Selflessness and sacrifice is the theme of which story?

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Selflessness and sacrifice show up when a character acts for someone else at great personal cost, and The Last Leaf embodies that exquisitely. In this story, an elderly artist stays out in the cold to paint a leaf on the wall, making it appear that a leaf still clings to the vine to give a bedridden girl hope. That gesture costs him his life, yet it buys the girl the courage to keep fighting her illness. The act is a direct, dramatic example of putting another person’s well-being above one’s own safety, which is the heart of the theme. Other stories touch on sacrifice in different ways—A Christmas Story focuses more on holiday spirit and family moments; The Necklace involves pride and the consequences of vanity; The Gift of the Magi centers on lovers giving up possessions for each other—yet none deliver the same life-affirming, selfless act that saves a person’s life and spirit the way The Last Leaf does.