OS er: ee ee + @&) Why did Franz think of running away from school that morning? [Dethi 2013) Franz didn’t want to go to school that d and there were birds chirping at the ed drilling at the back of s fay because it was a fine warm day. The weather was very fine ‘ge of the woods. He heard the sound of the Prussian soldiers ‘awmill. Moreover, he was already late for the school and had not prepared his lesson on participles. He knew that he would be scolded by the teacher for that. So he wanted to run away from school.Franz thinks, “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?” What could this mean? Ans. Thisshows the patriotic fervour and love of French people for their mother tongue. Even a small boy like Franz was very upset at the fact that he would be deprived of his own language. He wondered if the pigeons would also be made to sing in German, In fact, it is a remark on the hollowness of man’s authority. Man can exert authority only on human beings, but not on nature.a) “What a thunderclap these words were to me!” What were the words that shocked. 2 * narrator? Ans. Or Or [all Why is the order from Berlin called a thunderclap by Franz? “What a thunderclap these words were to me!” (Franz). What were those words and what effect on Franz? announced that it was their last lesson in French and the new German teacher will take the: When Franz reached the school, he saw a strange stillness in the class. Then the teacher, M- the following day. These words of M. Hamel came as thunderclap to Franz since the was unexpected and sudden for him.What changes did little Franz undergo after M. amel’s announcement? Franz was shocked at M. Hamel’s announcement that it was their last lesson in French, Suddenly he felt his love for his mother tongue and realised that he could hardly write well in French. He was full of remorse and regret for being so careless and unattentive in his class. Moreover, he also s for his teacher M. Hamel. Ans. + developed a likiiS @ Who were sitting on the back benches during M. Hamel’s last lesson? Why? [Dethi 2014, a ‘ Ans. The village’s old and eminent people were sitting on the back benches of the classroom during Hamel’s last lesson. They all had come to attend the last lesson of M. Hamel as a mark of I and respect for their mother tongue and the teacher. They were gloomy, feeling guilty and full repentance to recall that till that day, they had ignored their own language. ;Ans. y Ans, nye Write a character sketch of little Franz. Franz was a typical scho A bins at 29 ; i sol a ded grit and hated to go to school. He was afraid of his school. Many times, he missed the school and w ea oe a soldiers drilling at the sawmill, He did not re re Rake ee ae ce lise the importance of learning his mother tongue till the time his country passed into Prussia ing of French was banned. This came as a thunderbolt to him when he came to school and found it to be his last French lesson. At this point, he lamented the loss of his language. His entire perspective towards the language and the teacher changed. He was surprised to learn and understand everything on the last day and did not find M. Hamel strict during the lesson, He was not able to understand the severity of war and wondered n hands and te: whether “the pigeons would be made to coo in German”. ¢ of our culture and we are proud of it. Describe how regretful M. Hamel and Our language is par {Delhi 2016] the village elders are for having neglected their native language, French. esson emphasized the importance of mother tongue and how it binds allof them to guard their native language though he blamed himself gretted giving them a holiday when he wanted to go fishing, He ater his flowers instead of learning their lessons. The parents ren to learn. They preferred to put them to work on a farm M. Hamel in his last French | everybody together. He exhorted ing French. He res also for neglec wished he had not sent them often tow too were not very keen for their child or at the mills for a little more money than encourage them to study, But after the announcement, niledders sat quietly at the back of the l#SS(OOU iia a aaa large on their faces. M. Hamel appealed to them again to hold fast to their languag® % that was the key to their freedom.@ e Ans, & How did the order from Berlin change the situation in the school? (Al India ang) Or The day of the last lesson was full of regret and sadness. Describe the events of the day in the classroom in the light of the above remark. (Foreign 21 Or “Order from Berlin aroused a particular zeal in the school.” Comment. [Foreign 2nis Or “Everybody in the last lesson is filled with regret.” Comment. {All India 205) Or ‘The entire classroom, M. Hamel as well as those present in the class, are full of regret. For what and why? (Foreign 26 The order from Berlin brought a sense of shock and surprise in the class. As per the order, this was the last French class. Alsace and Lorraine had been captured by the Prussians. So only German was to be taught in the schools. This made all the distinguished village elders feel guilty of ignoring their ‘mother tongue. So, they all came to the class to show their love and respect for their mother tongue and French teacher M. Hamel. The entire school was filled with an air of remorse and regret. There was complete silence. The teacher, M. Hamel, was in his best dress and was full of emotions. Even the students in the class, including little Franz, felt remorse for their indifference to their mother tongue. There was an atmosphere of stillness and quietness in the class. Give a character sketch of M. Hamel. [Foreign 2013] M. Hamel was a teacher at a school in a village in the French districts of Alsace and Lorraine. He used to teach French. He had been teaching his mother tongue for the last forty years. He loved his profession from the core of his heart and had a deep sense of respect for the mother tongue. He had always been very particular and strict in imparting the knowledge of the language to his pupils The news, that French would no more be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine and that this was going to be his last lesson, completely shattered a calm and composed M. Hamel. He tried his Jevel best to remain calm and composed but broke down at the end. He felt tormented by the fact that people had become indifferent to learning French and appealed to them to keep their language alive. M. Hamel was a patriot in the real sense. He regarded the mother tongue to be a means of holding one’s identity and self-respect. He blamed not only the parents and children but himself also for neglecting French His concern and love for his country is evident at the end of his last lesson, when, he writes on the black board ‘Vive La France?’ in bold letters.[Me * 24 The last lesson reflects the flaws in human character that led to the sad plight of or hee 1 ely yy 1 ae Substantiate your answer with evidence from the text. Ans. “The Last Lesson”, a story by Alphonse Daudet, was written in the backdrop of the loss of language and culture due to war and political rivalry. It mainly highlights the flaws in human character that led to the sad plight of people in Alsace. One must have excessive love for one’s country, language and culture. In ‘The Last Lesson’, Franz, the main character of the story did not take his French lessons seriously. He always believed that he could learn it later on. He only realised its importance when M. Hamel, the French teacher was about to leave the country. On the other hand, the German officials were more concerned about their power and control over the region rather than preserving language and culture. They had nothing to take from the emotional and cultural impact the loc: “that their actions would have on the people of Alsace. Thus, this lesson sums up the flaws in human characters. One must preserve one’s language and culture, The ban on teaching French strengthened the resolve of the French to learn their language. Give pprove the above statement. evidence from the text to proveldis “The Last Lesson’ clearly brings out the resolve of the French to hold fast to their language. The order from Berlin imposing German language on them made them more determined to respect and learn their language. This was evident in the last lesson of M. Hamel. All the back benches were occupied by villagers, including old Hauser, former mayor, former postmaster, ete. That day students in the class were quiet and eager to make the best of the last opportunity to learn their mother tongue. M, Hammel taught the last lesson with immense patience and told his students to safeguard their language. He reminded them that they would be able to liberate themselves only if they kept their language with them. Even the students realised the importance of their language and listened to their teacher carefully. They could not be distracted by beetles or the cooing of the pigeons.Ans, -M. Hamel went on to talk of the French language, saying that it was the most beautiful language in the world — the clearest, the most logical; that we must guard it among us and never forget it, because when 4a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language it is as if they had the key to their prison. Then he opened a grammar book and read us our lesson. I was amazed to see how well I understood it. Alll he said seemed so easy, so easy! (a) What is the writer's purpose in using the phrase ‘the key to their prison’? (b) The line, “It was the most beautiful language in the world — the clearest, the most logical” can be best classified as: (@ a fact (i) an opinion (ii) a theme (iv) a plot point (c) Explain any one possible inference that can be drawn from the line, “ All he said seemed so easy, 50 eas (4) Identify the line from the text that bears evidence to the fact that a community or people’s language is their identity. (@) Based on the context provided in the extract, which of the following can be attributed to M. Hamels declaration about the French language? () Patriotic magnification (ii) Subject expertise (iii) Nostalgic pride (iv) Pactual accuracy (P Complete the sentence with a word or two. The central theme of the story highlights the fact that sometimes even the most in our lives are taken for granted by us (a) The writer has used metaphors to compare knowing one’s native language to a key and prison to the loss of freedom. (6) (ii) an opinion (c) Franz was now more open and responsive so, he found grammar easy to understand. (d) ‘We must guard it among us and never forget it” (€) (®) Patriotic magnification (D precious things