A Comparison Of Gwilan's Harp, And The Last Leaf

In each of the following short stories—“Gwilan’s Harp”, by Ursula LeGuin, “The Washwoman”, by Isaac Singer, and “The Last Leaf”, by O. Henry—a main character experiences deep loss. Whether it be the loss of a prized possession, the loss of life, or the loss of a loved one, these characters face grief in extremity. The title character of “Gwilan’s Harp” comes into contact with loss when a sudden accident destroys her most precious instrument. A Jewish family in “The Washwoman” slowly discovers many layers of loss within their Gentile friend. Two roommates in “The Last Leaf” grieve the loss of their artist friend. However, through these three stories, the main characters discover something important through the death of something else. …show more content…
As the reader can no doubt guess from the self-explanatory title, the story centers around a girl named Gwilan, and her harp. In a terrible cart accident, Gwilan’s favorite instrument is broken beyond repair, and Gwilan morns the loss of her harp as she would morn the death of a loved one. Years later, her husband dies, and Gwilan, no longer a wife, and no longer a musician, grapples with her own loss of personality. She feels utterly deprived of both herself and everything she cared about. However, a trace of hope appears when Gwilan, gloomy but pondering, remarks, “…you play the instrument you have” (LeGuin). Sorrowfully but meaningfully, she stands and begins to sing. The story leaves the readers with a lasting resilience; in the face of complete loss, Gwilan finds …show more content…
Desperation strikes Sue and Johnsy, two artists rooming in the heart of Greenwich Village, when Johnsy develops a life-threatening case of pneumonia. She lies motionless in bed all day, staring out of the window at an old ivy vine losing its leaves in the autumn breeze, believing that the last leaf falling will cause her imminent death. When old Behrman, a failed painter living below the girls, learns of Johnsy’s superstition, he decides to take the matter of the last leaf into his own hands. The next morning, “…they found a lantern, still lighted, and a ladder that had been dragged from its place, and some scattered brushes, and a palette with green and yellow colors mixed on it…” (Henry). Sue and Johnsy realize Behrman braved the storm the night before so that he could paint the last leaf on the ivy vine. Tragically, just as Johnsy recovers, he dies from pneumonia, caught from the cold and wet of the storm. While grieving the loss of their friend, the girls understand his sacrifice—he painted the last leaf, so that, stuck to a canvas, it could never fall for