Question 1:
What is Johnsy’s illness ? What can cure her, the medicine or the willingness to live ?
Answer:
Johnsy suffers from pneumonia. But her illness is more psychological than physical. She has lost all interest in life. She is certain that she is going to die. Now no medicine can help her. It is only her desire to live that can cure her.
Question 2:
Do you think the fear Johnsy has is common among the teenagers ?
Answer:
Teenagers are generally very imaginative. If a thing once gets into their mind, it becomes difficult to take it away. Therefore, it is important that teenagers should always think positively. Johnsy is also a teenager. The idea of death gets into her mind. She can’t get rid of it easily. Sue has to make her think positively.
Question 3:
Behrman has a dream. What is it ? Does it come true ?
Answer:
Behrman’s dream is to paint a masterpiece. This dream does come true but only with his death. He paints an ivy leaf on a wall. He works in the cold winter rain. He catches pneumonia and dies. His painting proves a masterpiece. Even Johnsy, who is herself an artist, can’t guess that it is not a real leaf.
Question 4:
What is Behrman’s masterpiece ? What makes Sue say so ?
Answer:
Behrman paints an ivy leaf on a wall. This painting proves a masterpiece. Johnsy is herself
an artist.
Even she can’t tell that it is not a real leaf. That is why Sue calls it a masterpiece. It
is because of this masterpiece that Johnsy regains her will to live.
Question 5:
Who were Sue and Johnsy ? What happened to Johnsy ?
Answer:
Sue and Johnsy were two young artists. Johnsy was seriously ill. She had pneumonia.
Question 6:
What did Johnsy feel about her illness ?
Answer:
She thought she was not going to get well. She thought she would die with the falling of the last ivy leaf.
Question 7:
What did Sue do to make Johnsy feel happy ?
Answer:
She talked about clothes and fashions. She started whistling while working at her painting.
Question 8:
Why did Johnsy look at the ivy leaves carefully ?
Answer:
Johnsy thought she was nearing her death with the falling of each leaf. She kept looking at the leaves carefully to see how many of them were left.
Question 9:
Who was Behrman ?
Answer:
He was an old painter. He was sixty years old. He had always desired to paint a masterpiece. But he could never begin it.
Question 10:
Why did Sue call Behrman to her room ?
Answer:
An ivy creeper went up the wall opposite Johnsy’s window. Only one leaf was left on the creeper. Johnsy thought she would die when this last leaf fell. Sue wanted Behrman to convince Johnsy to not give up on life and find the strength to fight and get well. Behrman was elder to them. So, Sue thought that he might be able to convince Johnsy.
Question 11:
How was Johnsy saved ?
Answer:
Johnsy thought she would die when the last leaf fell. When Johnsy woke up the next morning, she saw one last leaf on the ivy. Berhman had painted a leaf in place of the fallen last leaf. She could not know that it was not a real leaf. The leaf did not fall in spite of heavy rain and the wind. Johnsy regained her will to live. Thus she was saved.
Question 12:
What happened to Behrman and why ?
Answer:
In order to save Johnsy, Behrman painted an ivy leaf on the wall. He worked in the night. It was a cold and windy night. It was raining also. Behrman got pneumonia. He died after two days.
Question 13:
What was Behrman’s masterpiece ?
Answer:
It was the ivy leaf he had painted on the wall. It looked so real that Johnsy didn't realise that it was not real. She regained her will to live. Thus the painting proved Behrman’s masterpiece.
Question 14:
Do you think Behrman was right in sacrificing his life ? Why ?
Answer:
Behrman was an old painter. He was already sixty. He had always wanted to paint a masterpiece. But he could never begin it. He realised that he could save the life of a young artist. He at once started to work in the cold night. He painted an ivy leaf on the wall. It looked so real that Johnsy could not realise that it was not real. She regained her will to live. Thus she was saved. But Behrman got pneumonia and died. His sacrifice was not in vain. He had painted a masterpiece and also saved a life.
Question 15:
What role did Sue play in saving the life of her friend Johnsy ?
Answer:
Johnsy had given up all hope to live. She thought that she would die when the last leaf of the ivy creeper fell. Sue tried to make her take interest in life but she failed. She shared her problem with Berhman, an pianter. Berhman quietly began to work in the cold night. He painted an ivy leaf on the wall. Johnsy woke up the next morning. She saw one last leaf on the ivy. She didnt know that it was not a real leaf. She wondered how in spite of heavy rain and wind the last leaf had not fallen. Johnsy realised her mistake. She regained her will to live. She soon got well. So, Sue indirectly helped Sue to live.
Question 16:
What was Behrman’s singular achievement ? How was it a masterpiece ?
Answer:
Behrman was an old painter. He was sixty years old. But he was a failure in art. He had always desired to paint a masterpiece. But he could never begin it. At last his ambition was fulfilled. But he didn’t live to see it. He painted an ivy leaf on the wall of a neighbouring house. It looked real. Even Johnsy took it for a real leaf. Behrman got pneumonia while painting the last leaf. He died of it. But his painting saved the life of a poor girl. Behrman’s act was one of great sacrifice. His painting was really a masterpiece.
Question 17:
What did Johnsy think of the falling leaves ? How was her faith in life restored ?
Answer:
Johnsy was a painter. Once she had an attack of pneumonia. The window of her room overlooked
the
wall of a neighbouring house. An ivy creeper grew against this wall. It was the month of
November.
The leaves of the ivy were falling. A very strange idea entered Johnsy’s head. She thought
that she
would die when the last ivy leaf fell. Her friend Behrman acted very wisely. He painted a
leaf on the wall. Johnsy took it for a real leaf. This leaf did not fall
in spite of heavy wind and rain. Johnsy regained her will to live. Very soon she recovered
from her
illness.
Question 18:
Behrman had a dream ? How did it come true ?
Answer:
Behrman’s dream was to paint a masterpiece. But he could never really begin it. When Johnsy
fell ill, her
friend, Sue confided in him about her illness. His dream did come true.
He worked in the cold winter rain and painted a leaf on the creeper outside Johnsy's room.
He caught pneumonia and died. His painting proved a masterpiece.
Even Johnsy, who was herself an artist, couldn’t know that it was not a real leaf. She took
it to be a real
leaf and regained her desire to live. Thus Behrman’s painting proved a masterpiece in that
it saved the life of a girl who had lost all hopes of recovery.