Unit 2

Text A The Last Leaf

by O.Henry

Many artists lived in the Greenwich Village area of New York.Two young women named Sue and Johnsy shared a studio apartment at the top of a three-story building.Johnsy's real name was Joanna.

In November,a cold,unseen stranger came to visit the city.This disease,pneumonia,killed many people.Johnsy lay on her bed,hardly moving.She looked through the small window.She could see the side of the brick house next to her building.

One morning,a doctor examined Johnsy and took her temperature.Then he spoke with Sue in another room.

"She has one chance in—let us say ten,"he said."And that chance is for her to want to live.Your friend has made up her mind that she is not going to get well.Has she anything on her mind?"

"She—she wanted to paint the Bay of Naples in Italy some day,"said Sue.

"Paint?"said the doctor."Bosh!Has she anything on her mind worth thinking twice—a man for example?"

"A man?"said Sue."Is a man worth—but,no,doctor;there is nothing of the kind."

"I will do all that science can do,"said the doctor."But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages at her funeral,I take away fifty percent from the curative power of medicines."

After the doctor had gone,Sue went into the workroom and cried.Then she went to Johnsy's room with her drawing board,whistling ragtime.

Johnsy lay with her face toward the window.Sue stopped whistling,thinking she was asleep.She began making a pen and ink drawing for a story in a magazine.Young artists must work their way to"Art"by making pictures for magazine stories.Sue heard a low sound,several times repeated.She went quickly to the bedside.

Johnsy's eyes were open wide.She was looking out the window and counting—counting backward."Twelve,"she said,and a little later"eleven";and then"ten"and"nine;"and then"eight"and"seven,"almost together.

Sue looked out of the window.What was there to count?There was only an empty yard and the blank side of the house seven meters away.An old ivy vine,going bad at the roots,climbed half way up the wall.The cold breath of autumn had stricken leaves from the plant until its branches,almost bare,hung on the bricks.

"What is it,dear?"asked Sue.

"Six,"said Johnsy,quietly."They're falling faster now.Three days ago there were almost a hundred.It made my head hurt to count them.But now it's easy.There goes another one.There are only five left now."

"Five what,dear?"asked Sue.

"Leaves.On the plant.When the last one falls I must go,too.I've known that for three days.Didn't the doctor tell you?"

"Oh,I never heard of such a thing,"said Sue."What have old ivy leaves to do with your getting well?And you used to love that vine.Don't be silly.Why,the doctor told me this morning that your chances for getting well real soon were—let's see exactly what he said—he said the chances were ten to one!Try to eat some soup now.And,let me go back to my drawing,so I can sell it to the magazine and buy food and wine for us."

"You needn't get any more wine,"said Johnsy,keeping her eyes fixed out the window."There goes another one.No,I don't want any soup.That leaves just four.I want to see the last one fall before it gets dark.Then I'll go,too."

"Johnsy,dear,"said Sue,"will you promise me to keep your eyes closed,and not look out the window until I am done working?I must hand those drawings in by tomorrow."

"Tell me as soon as you have finished,"said Johnsy,closing her eyes and lying white and still as a fallen statue."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."

"Try to sleep,"said Sue."I must call Mister Behrman up to be my model for my drawing of an old miner.Don't try to move until I come back."

Old Behrman was a painter who lived on the ground floor of the apartment building.Behrman was a failure in art.For years,he had always been planning to paint a work of art,but had never yet begun it.He earned a little money by serving as a model to artists who could not pay for a professional model.He was a fierce,little,old man who protected the two young women in the studio apartment above him.

Sue found Behrman in his room.In one area was a blank canvas that had been waiting twenty-five years for the first line of paint.Sue told him about Johnsy and how she feared that her friend would float away like a leaf.

Old Behrman was angered at such an idea."Are there people in the world with the foolishness to die because leaves drop off a vine?Why do you let that silly business come in her brain?"

"She is very sick and weak,"said Sue,"and the disease has left her mind full of strange ideas."

"This is not any place in which one so good as Miss Johnsy shall lie sick,"yelled Behrman."Someday I will paint a masterpiece,and we shall all go away."

Johnsy was sleeping when they went upstairs.Sue pulled the shade down to cover the window.She and Behrman went into the other room.They looked out a window fearfully at the ivy vine.Then they looked at each other without speaking.A cold rain was falling,mixed with snow.Behrman sat and posed as the miner.

The next morning,Sue awoke after an hour's sleep.She found Johnsy with wide-open eyes staring at the covered window.

"Pull up the shade;I want to see,"she ordered,quietly.Sue obeyed.

After the beating rain and fierce wind that blew through the night,there yet stood against the wall one ivy leaf.It was the last one on the vine.It was still dark green at the center.But its edges were colored with the yellow.It hung bravely from the branch about seven meters above the ground.

"It is the last one,"said Johnsy."I thought it would surely fall during the night.I heard the wind.It will fall today and I shall die at the same time."

"Dear,dear!"said Sue,leaning her worn face down toward the bed."Think of me,if you won't think of yourself.What would I do?"But Johnsy did not answer.

The next morning,when it was light,Johnsy demanded that the window shade be raised.The ivy leaf was still there.Johnsy lay for a long time,looking at it.And then she called to Sue,who was preparing chicken soup.

"I've been a bad girl,"said Johnsy."Something has made that last leaf stay there to show me how bad I was.It is wrong to want to die.You may bring me a little soup now."

An hour later she said:"Someday I hope to paint the Bay of Naples."

Later in the day,the doctor came,and Sue talked to him in the hallway.

"Even chances,"said the doctor."With good care,you'll win.And now I must see another case I have in your building.Behrman,his name is—some kind of an artist,I believe.Pneumonia,too.He is an old,weak man and his case is severe.There is no hope for him;but he goes to the hospital today to ease his pain."

The next day,the doctor said to Sue:"She's out of danger.You won.Nutrition and care now—that's all."

Later that day,Sue came to the bed where Johnsy lay,and put one arm around her.

"I have something to tell you,white mouse,"she said."Mister Behrman died of pneumonia today in the hospital.He was sick only two days.They found him the morning of the first day in his room downstairs helpless with pain.His shoes and clothing were completely wet and icy cold.They could not imagine where he had been on such a terrible night.

And then they found a lantern,still lighted.And they found a ladder that had been moved from its place.And art supplies and a painting board with green and yellow colors mixed on it.

And look out the window,dear,at the last ivy leaf on the wall.Didn't you wonder why it never moved when the wind blew?Ah,darling,it is Behrman's masterpiece—he painted it there the night that the last leaf fell."

(Adapted by Shelley Gollust and produced by Lawan Davis for Special English of VOA.http://learningenglish.voanews.com/content/short-story-the-last-leaf-by-o-henry-137796213/114728.html)

Note

O.Henry (1862-1910) was a prolific American short-story writer,a master of surprise endings,who wrote about the life of ordinary people in New York City.A twist of plot,which turns on an ironic or coincidental circumstance,is typical of O.Henry's stories.

William Sydney Porter (O.Henry) was born in Greensboro,North Carolina.His father,Algernon Sidney Porter,was a physician.When William was three,his mother died,and he was raised by his paternal grandmother and aunt.William was an avid reader,but at the age of fifteen he left school,and then worked in a drug store and on a Texas ranch.He moved to Houston,where he had a number of jobs,including that of bank clerk.After moving to Austin,Texas,in 1882,he married.

In 1884 he started a humorous weekly The Rolling Stone.When the weekly failed,he joined the Houston Post as a reporter and columnist.In 1897 he was convicted of embezzling money,although there has been much debate over his actual guilt.In 1898 he entered a penitentiary at Columbus,Ohio.

While in prison O.Henry started to write short stories to earn money to support his daughter Margaret.His first work,Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking (1899),appeared in McClure's Magazine.After doing three years of the five years sentence,Porter emerged from the prison in 1901 and changed his name to O.Henry.

O.Henry moved to New York City in 1902 and from December 1903 to January 1906 he wrote a story a week for the New York World,also publishing in other magazines.Henry's first collection,Cabbages and Kings appeared in 1904.The second,The Four Million,was published two years later and included his well-known stories"The Gift of the Magi"and"The Furnished Room".The Trimmed Lamp (1907) included"The Last Leaf".Henry's best known work is perhaps the much anthologized"The Ransom of Red Chief",included in the collection Whirligigs (1910).The Heart of the West (1907) presented tales of the Texas range.O.Henry published 10 collections and over 600 short stories during his lifetime.

O.Henry's last years were shadowed by alcoholism,ill health,and financial problems.He married Sara Lindsay Coleman in 1907,but the marriage was not happy,and they separated a year later.O.Henry died of cirrhosis of the liver on June 5,1910,in New York.Three more collections,Sixes and Sevens (1911),Rolling Stones (1912) and Waifs and Strays (1917),appeared posthumously.

Words and Expressions

canvas [ˈkænvəs] n.　a piece of rough cloth used for an oil painting 画布

count [kaʊnt] vt.　calculate 数数，计数

curative [ˈkjʊərətiv] adj.　tending to cure or restore to health 有治病效力的

ease [iːz] vt.　take away pain or worry，make more comfortable 减轻（痛苦），使舒适

even [ˈiːvn] adj.　equal in degree，extent or amount 均等的

fierce [fiəs] adj.　marked by strong feeling 感情强烈的

funeral [ˈfjuːnərəl] n.　ceremony for a dead person 葬礼

helpless [ˈhelpləs] adj.　unable to act，without help 无助的，无奈的

ivy [ˈaivi] n.　a climbing plant with dark，shiny leaves 常春藤

lantern [ˈlæntən] n.　a container，usually of glass and metal，that encloses and protects the flame of a light 灯笼

lean [liːn] vi.　slope or bend from an upright position 倾斜，倾向

masterpiece [ˈmɑːstəpiːs] n.　task done with great skill，especially an artist's greatest work 杰作，名作

nutrition [njuˈtriʃn] n.　a source of materials to nourish the body 营养

pneumonia [njuːˈməʊniə] n.　serious illness with inflammation of the lungs 肺炎

pose [pəʊz] vi.　take up a position （for a portrait，etc.） 摆姿势

professional [prəˈfeʃənl] adj.　of or working in one of the professions 职业的，专业的

ragtime [ˈræɡtaim] n.　music with a syncopated melody （usually for the piano） 拉格泰姆音乐，繁音拍子

severe [siˈviə（r）] adj.　intensely or extremely bad or unpleasant in degree or quality 严重的

statue [ˈstætʃuː] n.　a usually large likeness of a person，animal，etc.made in solid material such as stone or metal 雕像，塑像

studio [ˈstjuːdiəʊ] n.　an apartment with a living space and a bathroom and a small kitchen，workplace for the teaching or practice of an art 一室一厅的公寓，画室，工作室

vine [vain] n.　a plant with a weak stem that derives support from climbing，twining，or creeping along a surface 藤，蔓，攀爬植物

whistle [ˈwisl] vi.　make a sharp，clear，piping sound or note with the lips or with a whistle 吹口哨

worn [wɔːn] adj.　showing the wearing effects of overwork，care or suffering 憔悴的

yell [jel] vi.　utter a sudden loud cry 吼叫

be done （with，doing sth.）　have finished doing something 结束，做完

float away　be carried away by water or wind 飘走，飘零

have sth.on one's mind　对……放心不下，有……心事

one chance in ten　a slim chance 概率甚小

serve as　function as，play the role of 起……作用，担任……角色

be tired of　not wanting to do something anymore 厌倦

turn loose　loosen the grip on，let go 放开，松开

Exercises

I.General Questions

Read the text carefully and answer the following questions.

1.Where and when did the story happen?

2.Who was the"cold,unseen stranger"in the second paragraph?

3.What did the doctor say about Johnsy's case?

4.What was Johnsy's attitude toward her own illness at the beginning?

5.Why did Johnsy change her mind and want to get well?

6.What do you think Mister Behrman did that night?

7.Why did Mister Behrman die?

8.Do you think Mister Behrman was an artist?Why?

II.Paraphrases

Paraphrase the following sentences by making the original meaning more direct and explicit.

1.In November,a cold,unseen stranger came to visit the city.This disease,pneumonia,killed many people.

2.She has one chance in ten,and that chance is for her to want to live.Has she anything on her mind?

3."I will do all that science can do,"said the doctor."But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages at her funeral,I take away fifty percent from the curative power of medicines."

4.In one area was a blank canvas that had been waiting twenty-five years for the first line of paint.

5."This is not any place in which one so good as Miss Johnsy shall lie sick,"yelled Behrman."Someday I will paint a masterpiece,and we shall all go away."

6.The next day,the doctor said to Sue:"She's out of danger.You won.Nutrition and care now—that's all."

7.It is Behrman's masterpiece—he painted it there the night that the last leaf fell.

III.Multiple Choices

Choose the most appropriate word to complete each of the following sentences.

1.When you have something_____________your mind,it is hard to concentrate on the work.

A.in　B.out of　C.across　D.on

2.Would you please_____________the paper for me and see if there are any mistakes?

A.look around　B.look into　C.look up　D.look through

3.Milk is health-sustaining（维持健康的）due to its high content of（高含量）_____________.

A.nutrition　B.nutrients　C.production　D.calories

4.When I am_____________writing this letter,I can play basketball with you.

A.finished　B.done　C.over　D.tired of

5.In the war time,our basement_____________as a shelter from air raids by Japanese bombers.

A.used　B.served　C.preserved as　D.worked as

6.It is possible that the boss will give you a raise but,as the proverb goes,don't_____________the chickens before_____________they are hatched.

A.count　B.feed　C.number　D.enumerate

7.With the great efforts of the doctors,the patient now is_____________danger.

A.outside of　B.away from　C.out of　D.in

8.The doctor gave the stressed patient some pills to_____________her anxiety and help her sleep.

A.ease　B.lighten　C.lease　D.cease

9.Written on Sue's_____________face was a life of hard luck and poverty as an artist.

A.torn　B.worn　C.sworn　D.corn

10._____________are slim that the relationship between the two countries will return to normal after territory dispute.

A.Opportunities　B.Chances　C.Ratios　D.Rates

IV.Blank Filling

Fill in each of the blanks in the following passage with one of the words given at the end.

After the 1 rain and 2 wind that blew through the night,there yet stood 3 the wall one ivy leaf.It was the last one on the vine.It was still 4 green at the center.But its 5 were colored with the yellow.It 6 bravely from the 7 about seven meters 8 the ground.

hung　dark　edges　above　beating　against　fierce　branch

V.Cloze

Fill in each of the blanks by choosing one word from the corresponding group of words.

There seems to be an increased tendency that when a person is dying of cancer,or other kinds of 1 diseases,his family will send him to a hospital.They think that this is a correct 2 of love for him,for he can receive the best 3 medical and surgical treatment.4 their good intentions,however,I think a 5 person should spend his last remaining days at home,with his family around and in the warmth of 6 love.

One of the most important facts is that the dying becomes lonely and impersonal because the patient is taken out of his familiar environment.In a hospital,a patient often spends most of his time lying 7 and alone in the ward,listening to the groans,screams and other 8 sounds echoing and re-echoing 9 the empty corridors all day.In 10 a cold,solitary and frightening 11,a dying person is not only tortured with his physical pains but also plagued with 12 loneliness and psychological anxiety.This,13 to cancer experts,only 14 illness and quickens death.15 the contrary,staying with family can better a patient's condition.The homely atmosphere makes the patient calmer and less 16.It helps him cope 17 illness:helps him tolerate pain better,need few drugs,and even 18 faster after surgery.19 it cannot necessarily prolong his life,staying at home,at least,20 the dying to enjoy the last love of his family in the last days of his life.

1.A.incurable　B.dead　C.permanent　D.grave

2.A.method　B.expression　C.approach　D.Exhibition

3.A.applicable　B.capable　C.possible　D.available

4.A.Regardless　B.With　C.Spite　D.Despite

5.A.dying　B.fatal　C.deathly　D.deadly

6.A.its　B.their　C.his　D.one's

7.A.aware　B.asleep　C.awake　D.awkward

8.A.sorrowful　B.painful　C.aching　D.sore

9.A.down　B.up　C.beneath　D.across

10.A.thus　B.this　C.that　D.such

11.A.feeling　B.atmosphere　C.mood　D.air

12.A.emotional　B.disturbing　C.serious　D.moral

13.A.considering　B.according　C.concerning　D.regarding

14.A.worsens　B.strengthens　C.sharpens　D.lightens

15.A.In　B.On　C.At　D.For

16.A.dangerous　B.tedious　C.anxious　D.nervous

17.A.against　B.with　C.for　D.from

18.A.recover　B.treat　C.progress　D.improve

19.A.When　B.While　C.Where　D.Since

20.A.lets　B.makes　C.enables　D.gets

VI.English-Chinese Translation

Translate the following English sentences into Chinese.

1.Two young women named Sue and Johnsy shared a studio apartment at the top of a three-story building.

2."She has one chance in—let us say ten,"he said."And that chance is for her to want to live.Your friend has made up her mind that she is not going to get well.Has she anything on her mind?"

3.Young artists must work their way to"Art"by making pictures for magazine stories.

4.There was only an empty yard and the blank side of the house seven meters away.

5.An old ivy vine,going bad at the roots,climbed half way up the wall.The cold breath of autumn had stricken leaves from the plant until its branches,almost bare,hung on the bricks.

6."Tell me as soon as you have finished,"said Johnsy,closing her eyes and lying white and still as a fallen statue.

7.I want to turn loose my hold on everything,and go sailing down,down,just like one of those poor,tired leaves.

8.He earned a little money by serving as a model to artists who could not pay for a professional model.

9.They looked out a window fearfully at the ivy vine.Then they looked at each other without speaking.A cold rain was falling,mixed with snow.

10.And then they found a lantern,still lighted.And they found a ladder that had been moved from its place.And art supplies and a painting board with green and yellow colors mixed on it.

VII.Chinese-English Translation

Translate the following Chinese sentences into English,preferably using the words or phrases given in the brackets.

1.他下定决心要战胜疾病，早日恢复健康。（make up one's mind）

2.我们不一定能赢，但却值得一试。（worth）

3.小时候，我们几乎每天都去游泳。（used to）

4.过度放牧与草场沙化有着密切的关系。（have to do with）

5.经过这一整夜的狂风暴雨，砖墙上还立着一片常青藤叶子。（stand against）

6.我们赶快开始干活吧，我不想听你那些迟到的借口了。（be tired of）

7.她斜倚在墙上，眼睛看着窗外。（lean against）

8.士兵伤势严重，身体虚弱，康复的机会微乎其微。（one chance in ten）

9.这张照片使她看起来很年轻。（make）

10.为了增长自己的阅历，他决定去远航。（go sailing）

VIII.Essay Writing

Directions:Read the text again and then take Sue or Johnsy as the characters,rewrite the story in about 500 words.