1、The Human Touch,O. Henry was born William Sydney Porter in Greenboro, North Carolina. His father, Algernon Sidney Porter, was a physician. When William was three, his mother died, and he was raised by his grandmother and aunt. William was an avid reader, but at the age of fifteen he left school, and
2、 then worked in a drug store . He continued to Houston, where he had a number of jobs, including that of bank clerk. After moving in 1882 to Texas, he worked on a ranch in LaSalle County for two years. In 1887 he married Athol Estes Roach; they had one daughter and one son. 1862年9月11日，美国最著名的短篇小说家之一欧
3、亨利（O.Henry）出生于美国北卡罗来纳州一个小镇。曾被评论界誉为曼哈顿桂冠散文作家和美国现代短篇小说之父。他出身于美国北卡罗来纳州格林斯波罗镇一个医师家庭。父亲是医生。他原名威廉西德尼波特(William Sydney Porter)。他所受教育不多，15岁便开始在药房当学徒，20岁时由于健康原因去得克萨斯州的一个牧场当了两年牧牛了，积累了对西部生活的亲身经验。此后，他在得克萨斯做过不同的工作，包括在奥斯汀银行当出纳员。,“It was beautiful and simple as all truly great swindles are.“ (from The Octopus Maro
4、oned) In 1894 Porter started a humorous weekly The Rolling Stone. It was at this time that he began heavy drinking. When the weekly failed, he joined the Houston Post as a reporter and columnist. In 1894 cash was found to have gone missing from the First National Bank in Austin, where Porter had wor
5、ked as a bank teller. When he was called back to Austin to stand trial, Porter fled to Honduras to avoid trial. Little is known about Porters stay in Central America. It is said, that he met one Al Jennings, and rambled in South America and Mexico on the proceeds of Jennings robbery. After hearing n
6、ews that his wife was dying, he returned in 1897 to Austin. In 1897 he was convicted of embezzling money, although there has been much debate over his actual guilt. Porter entered in 1898 a penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio.,While in prison, Porter started to write short stories to earn money to suppor
7、t his daughter Margaret. His first work, Whistling Dicks Christmas Stocking (1899), appeared in McClures Magazine. The stories of adventure in the U.S. Southwest and in Central America gained an immediately success among readers. After doing three years of the five years sentence, Porter emerged fro
8、m the prison in 1901 and changed his name to O. Henry. According to some sources, he acquired the pseudonym from a warder called Orrin Henry. It also could be an abbreviation of the name of a French pharmacist, Eteinne-Ossian Henry, found in the U.S. Dispensatory, a reference work Porter used when h
9、e was in the prison pharmacy. 。 他还办过一份名为滚石的幽默周刊，并在休斯敦一家日报上发表幽默小说和趣闻逸事。1887年，亨利结婚并生了一个女儿。 正当他的生活颇为安定之时，却发生了一件改变他命运的事情。1896年，奥斯汀银行指控他在任职期间盗用资金。他为了躲避受审，逃往洪都拉斯。1897年，后因回家探视病危的妻子被捕入狱，判处5年徒刑。在狱中曾担任药剂师，他在银行工作时，曾有过写作的经历，担任监狱医务室的药剂师后开始认真写作。他开始以欧亨利为笔名写作短篇小说，于麦克吕尔杂志发表。1901年，因“行为良好”提前获释，来到纽约专事写作。,The Last Leaf（
10、最后一片叶子）是O.Henry较有代表性的作品，突出反映了他的写作风格和特点。 年轻贫穷的画家Johnsy不幸染上肺炎，女友Sue竭尽全力照料她，但她的病情仍不见好转。万念俱灰的Johnsy放弃了生存的欲望，准备在窗外对面墙上常春藤的最后一片叶子凋落坠地时，撒手人寰。另一位一生未画出重大作品的老画家Behrman为了救她，连夜冒雨爬上墙头画了一片藤叶，他自己因而染上肺炎，两天后去世。老画家所画的最后一片叶子，成了他的毕生杰作。,It said in an autumn, a sad girl lied on the bed. She has a bad serious illness. And
11、 she would die soon. She looked attentively at a leaf outside the window, and told to an old painter who cared for her that she would die when the last leaf fell. The old painter didnt want the young girl to die; he wanted to give her a wish to live. He knew that there would be a rainstorm soon; the
12、 leaf will be blown off. For continuing the girls life, the old painter drew a green leaf on the wall when it rained heavily. The following day, the girl woke up, and she was surprised to see that the green leaf did not be blown off. Her wish came true, and her mood became better and better. In the
13、end, the girl is recovered to health. When she walked out of the hospital, she found that the leaf was painted on the wall! The old painter died, but the wish that a leaf never grew old came true in the girls heart. In fact, continuing the girls life is also the painters wish. If only the life never
14、 grow old, the wish will be young forever. The picture is a good present, it encourage the girl to face everyday. Maybe sometimes, we dont need to give somebody presents, flowers; I think they just need a wish, a wish to continue their life. Like the green leaf in the article, it will be the best me
15、dicine to a patient. The last leaf which the painter painted is full of love and wish; I think the painter wanted the girl to face sunshine happily. Thats enough.,著名作品： 爱的牺牲(A Service of Love)、警察与赞美诗(The Cop and the Anthem)、带家具出租的房间(The Furnished Room)、麦琪的礼物(The Gift of the Magi)、最后一片藤叶（The Last Leaf),The aim to article is theres love everywhere around us.The power of love is great , it can save a persons life .We also should love people around us.,The End,
