The last leaf - Art for Human Life (Literary criticism essay)

After reading the story, perhapsmany readers can say that American artists’ life is so poor. It seems be totally true. Nothing their property is. Their residences are bad too, “north windows and eighteenth-century gables and Dutch attics and low rents”. Sue and Johnsy are those kind of artist. However, Old Buhrman is the best exemplary one. So is it true that “The last leaf” was written in order toaccuse the misery of American artists? It must be NO.
The profound meaning of the story, as the main sound of a song, is the deep-felt love between poor artists. That love wins poverty, disease. That love is more valuable than art. It makes art become alive.
The time when that love is revealed is “a cold, unseen stranger” appears and touches his cold fingers on little Johnsy whose blood is going dry by wind from the west. Sue, herfriend, does everything for her with a big heart. Sue draws many more illustrated paintings to earn money to buy soup, wine. She invites doctor to come to see her friend. Shecooks, comforts Johnsy to eat and drink medicine. With Sue, the biggest hope of her is to see Johnsy become happy with her desperation, drawing the Naples guff.So noble that love is. But it is not strong enough to drown Johnsy’s desperation. Reading these pages, readers seem to be nearly strangled by her bigger and bigger desperation: “I want to see the last one fall. I'm tired of waiting. I'm tired of thinking. I want to turn loose my hold on everything, and go sailing down, down, just like one of those poor, tired leaves.” Johnsy seems to be approaching her end. At that time, Old Buhrman appears.
Old Buhrman is the most strange in the story. His life is unsuccessful and miserable. The biggest unsuccessful thing is in art. For forty years, he has not touched the hem of art fairy. And after twenty years, he