ENGLISH

PROJECT

NAME: VETTRISHREE KANNAN

CLASS: 12TH
REGISTRATION NO: 20241423
By Alphonse Daudet
 BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that ……………………………………, a student of Grade X11 has successfully

completed English project entitled

‘…………………………………………………………………………………’ under the guidance of

Mrs. SHABANA PARVEEN (PGT ENGLISH) during the academic year 2021-2022 in

partial fulfillment of English project conducted by AISSCE , New Delhi.

REGISTER NUMBER:
DATE OF SUBMISSION:

INTERNAL EXAMINER EXTERNAL EXAMINER

PRINCIPAL
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to

Mr. Dr. R. KRISHNAMOORTHY, CHAIRMAN, Sri Krish International School
for providing me with all the facility that was required to complete my project.

I am thankful to Mrs. Dr. S.UDAYA CHITRA, PRINCIPAL,

Sri Krish International School for her valuable guidance and for her constant
encouragement.

It gives me great pleasure to extend my special thanks to my English teacher Mrs.

SHABANA PARVEEN (PGT ENGLISH) for her guidance, support & encouragement
throughout the duration of the project. Without her motivation and help, the
successful completion of this project would not have been possible.
 INDEX

S.NO CONTENT PAGE NO TEACHER’S

SIGN
 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alphonse Daudet was a French short-story writer and novelist,

now remembered chiefly as the author of sentimental tales of
provincial life in the south of France. He was born on May 13,
1840, at Nimes in France. He was the son of a silk manufacturer.
In 1849 his father had to sell his factory and move to Lyon.

Married in 1867, a father the following year, Daudet felt that the press
of family responsibilities made success imperative; the shock of defeat
and occupation after the Franco-Prussian War (1870) turned his
imagination to a more serious vein, and it was at this time that he met
regularly with Gustave Flaubert, Ivan Turgenev, Edmond de Goncourt,
and Zola—all diversely arguing for an art expressive of nature in all its
determinisms, of man in his natural milieu. Zola's formulation of
"naturalism," weighted with scientific analogies, would not come until
 1880, but Daudet followed the author of “les rougon macquart” closely
as his temperament permitted and over the next 20 years produced 10
long novels of his own “froment jeune et risler aine” in 1874; “jack” in
1876;”le nabab” in 1877 and so on. Perhaps the most accomplished of
the early, more determinedly objective works is Jack, the story of an
illuminate son reared below his station, forced to become a labourer,
and eventually destroyed by the brutalizing world of industrial society.
The novel contains one of the first protests heard in France against the
dehumanizing effects of child labour.
As in all these realistic novels of manners, however, Daudet undermines
both the force of “Jack’s” social protest and the novel's very artistic
integrity with acrimonious appeals to reader sentiment and verbose
developments. Sentimentality is perhaps the hallmark of Daudet's
fictional world. Daudet died after an apoplectic attack on Dec. 16, 1897.

Alphonse Daudet is one of the most iconic names of French literature.

Unlike many famous writers in world history, Alphonse wasn’t very
well educated, and wrote his first novel at the age of fourteen. Many of
Alphonse’s works drew inspiration from instances of his life. His liaison
with a model, and the depressing times of his childhood were reflected
in few of his books. His works ‘Trente ans de Paris’ and ‘Souvenirs d'un
homme de lettres’ seemed to be more like autobiographies. He died on
Dec. 16, 1897, in Paris, France after an apoplectic attack on Dec. 16,
1897.
Though he passed away in the final decade of the 19th century, his name
continues to be popular amongst the citizens of France. A lot of
educational institutions in France have been named after this famous
writer. However, he was also criticized by many for being anti-Jewish
and a monarchist. His book ‘Le Nabab’, revolved around a Jewish
politician, and spoke about Alphonse’s strong dislike towards the
community. However, Alphonse, till date, is considered by many
literature lovers to be one of the handful writers who portray human
emotions in a very realistic manner. He died on Dec. 16, 1897, in
Paris, France after an apoplectic attack on Dec. 16, 1897.
 INTRODUCTION
The last lesson written by Alphonse Daudet narrates about the year 1870 when the Prussian
forces under Bismarck attacked and captured France. The French districts of Alsace and
Lorraine went into Prussian hands. The new Prussian rulers discontinued the teaching of
French in the schools of these two districts. The French teachers were asked to leave. Now
M. Hamel could no longer stay in his old school. Still, he gave the last lesson to his students
with utmost devotion and sincerity as ever... One such student of M. Hamel, Franz who
dreaded French class and M. Hamel’s iron rod, came to the school that day thinking he
would be punished as he had not learnt his lesson on participles. But on reaching school he
found Hamel dressed in his fine Sunday clothes and the old people of the village sitting
quietly on the back benches. It was due to an order from Berlin. That was the first day when
he realized for the first time that how important French was for him, but it was his last
lesson in French.The story depicts the pathos of the whole situation about how people feel
when they don’t learn their own language. It tells us about the significance of one’s
language in one’s life for the very existence of a race and how important it is to safeguard
it.

Map of Alsace & Lorraine

Justification of The Title

The story ‘The Last Lesson’ highlights the human tendency that there is plenty of time to
do things, hence, the man keeps postponing the lessons of life, oblivious to the fact that life
is subject to change. The people of Alsace always thought that they had plenty of time to
learn the lesson, therefore, they did give much importance to the school. The preferred their
children to work on the farms and mills instead of having them learn the lessons. Even Franz,
the narrator, always looked for opportunities to skip school and look for birds’ nests or go
sliding on the banks of the river Saar. However, the unexpected happens and an order is
received from Berlin regarding the compulsory teaching of German in the schools of Alsace
and Lorraine. It is then that the people of Alsace realize that they would be deprived of what
they had not been valuing all this while. The story is aptly titled as it evokes the
consciousness in the reader not to put off things and do what one can do that day.
 THEMES OF
THE STORY 1.
DOMINANT THEME
LINGUISTIC CHAUVANISM

“Chauvinism” is a devotion for or against something, just based on what you feel (not necessarily what
you may know). So, Linguistic chauvinism is the idea that one’s language issuperior to that of others.
‘The Last Lesson’ very prominently raises the question of linguisticand cultural hegemony of the colonial
and imperial powers and their lust for controlling theworld and influencing their cultures and identities.

Linguistic chauvinism is the overt preference for one language over others. Language is the cultural
identity of a particular group of people who use it. Hence, imposing some other language on the people
hammers their emotions and is a step to annextheir relationship with their culture. The language of any
country is the pride of that country.It not only defines the culture but also tells us about the people,
literature, and history of other country. Language for some people is just the medium of communication but
for others it is the question of life and death.

The Last Lesson raises the burning question very innocently through the words of little Franz that “Will
they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?” This raises the question of imposing a language on
others. The child questions that when even the birds and animals can’t be forced to abandon their
language, then what forces a man to enforce a language on others. People of Lorraine and Alsace are the
victims of linguistic chauvinism. They are forced to learn German.
SUB-THEME
The Last Lesson’ revolves around the language and its importance to the citizens of a
country. It is the duty of every citizen to safeguard the language of the country as it
is the identity of that country. The lesson depicts how after defeating France in the
war, the Prussians wanted to rule over not only the territory of France but also over
the minds and hearts of the people. The story reinforces the fact that we value
something more when it is lost. The pain and anguish of the students and the teacher
is evident as everyone realizes how things were taken for granted. The lesson
emphasizes the importance of the mother tongue for everyone and the need to
realize the fact that it is our language which gives us our identity, respect, and
freedom.
MAIN CHARACTERS

The Last Lesson has two major characters:

1. Franz: Franz is the young French student at a school in Alsace-Lorraine

Character sketch of Franz

The narrator of the story, Franz is a young schoolboy in the French region of Alsace-
Lorraine in the nineteenth century. Franz is a dawdler when it comes to schoolwork,
preferring to spend time in the woods or by the local river over going to class. He doesn’t
like learning his French grammar lessons and, when the story begins, is terrified that his
negligence will be found out by his teacher, the stern M. Hamel. Franz comes to a new
appreciation of his education, however, when Prussian authorities who have occupied his home
region announce that school will no longer be taught in French, but in German. Upon hearing this news, Franz feels a great
sense of remorse and regrets not taking his French education more seriously while he still had the chance.
2. Monsieur Hamel: schoolmaster, who has been teaching French in a school for 40 years

Character sketch of M. Hamel

M. Hamel was a true French man. Teaching at Alsace for forty years, he had become a part of its people. He was an honest
teacher. He did not blame his students alone for poor learning. He also held himself
responsible for the same. He was very patriotic as he appealed to his countrymen to hold
fast to their mother tongue to be free from the Prussians. According to him the French
language was the most beautiful, the clearest and the most logical language in the world.
He urged on his countrymen to guard it and never forget it. He was deeply attached to
the school and all his students. However, he was very brave and strong. He was regretful
for not making sincere efforts to teach French to his countrymen. At the end, he became
so emotional that he could not speak.

The story has a few other very minor characters:

• Wachter: the blacksmith
• M. Hamel’s Sister: who lives with Hamel
• Hauser: is an older gentleman
 SUMMARY
Out of breath, he arrives at school. To his dismay, there is no noise or confusion to cover his
entrance. Instead, this day, there is the silence and stillness of the Sunday. Frightened and
red-faced, he enters the classroom; instead of giving Franz a harsh scolding, however,
Monsieur Hamel gently directs Franz to his seat.

Once settled in his seat, Franz notices the differences that this day has brought. Monsieur
Hamel is all dressed up in his Sunday best, the clothes that he wears when prizes are given or
on inspection days. Franz’s classmates are especially solemn this day. Then his attention is
drawn to the back of the room, where villagers are seated, and to Hauser, therewith his old
primer spread across his knees. He couldn’t understand until M Hamel announced the notice
which was served from Berlin that now onwards no French would be taught in schools of Alsace
and Lorraine, only German would be taught in the schools of these two French cities, and he
emotionally requested students to be more attentive for their last French lesson. Franz now
realized that what was there on notice board in Town Hall.

These words of notice fell on Franz like a thunderclap. He couldn’t believe it would be his last
lesson that day. He was badly repenting that why he didn’t learn, never paid attention tohis
lessons. He hardly knew how to read and write French. He was repenting that instead of
studying he would go for other pleasant activities. His book that seemed always burden to
him now to same appeared to him like old friends. Even his thoughts for his teacher M. Hamel
changed as he realized that he would never see him again as it was his last day in the school.
He forgot about his cranky nature and his cruel ruler. Now he could realize that the teacher
had worn this dress in honor of his last lesson. He also understood why older people were present
in class as they were repenting why they never bothered to go to school and they were there
to show their respect to their teacher, who served them for forty years.
When Franz’s name was called to recite the lesson, he made mistake and could even speak few
words, but M. Hamel did not scold him rather he preached him that one should not waste his
precious time just by living under the impression that there is plenty of time and postponing
the important things for next day. How would they feel when the Germans will make fun of
them that they were not able to speak or write the French despite of being Frenchmen?
Teacher did not put all blame on Franz, but he also blamed the parents who never bothered to
send their children to school to study, instead they put their children to work on farms and in
mill to earn extra money. Even he blamed himself that he often wouldsend his pupils to water
his plants instead of study at school and he would declare a holidaywhenever he wanted to go
for fishing.
Teacher further said about the French language that it was the most beautiful, clearest, and
most logical language of the world. People should stick with their language it will prove to bea
key to their prison in case they are enslaved. A magic had happened that day in class the
students understood everything very well, because they were more attentive, and teacher
was more patient and polite on that day.

Finally, with a very heavy heart, M Hamel stood up, he was very sad as he walked to the black
board, took some chalk, and wrote on it “Vive La France” which means “Long Live France”
and declared the class was dismissed.

THE SETTING OF THE STORY (BACKGROUND)

The present story is set during the days of Franco – Prussian War (1870 – 18710)
in which France was defeated by Prussia led by Bismarck. At that time Prussia
consisted of Germany,Poland, and some parts of Austria.

Bismarck

The French district of Alsace and Lorraine were captured by Germans. The new
master was to come the next day in a school in Alsace to teach German in place of
French. The story tells the effect of this news on the life at a school in Alsace.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The story depicts the irony of the whole

situation about how people feel when they don’t
learn their own language.

1.Franz’s reluctance to reach school:

(i) was worried as he started late from home.

(ii) was apprehensive of facing his teacher, M. Hamel as he had not prepared
his lessons on participles, which was to be questioned in class.
(iii) distracted by the chirping birds, warm and bright day, and Prussian
soldiers drilling.

2.Usual scene of the classroom:

(i) great

commotion.
(ii) opening and the closing of the desks.
(iii) lessons being repeated in unison.
(iv) teacher’s ruler rapping on the table.
(v) back benches were usually empty.
3.The difference on the last day of School:
(i) the quiet atmosphere as on Sunday mornings.
(ii) all classmates occupying their respective places.
(iii) M. Hamel walking to and fro with his iron ruler under
his arm-was formally dressed-spoke to Franz in a gentle
manner.
(iv) back benches were occupied by old Hauser, former
Mayor, former postmaster and several other villagers.

4. The response to M. Hamel and the class in the last lesson:

(i) M. Hamel taught the students without losing his temper-was patient-made
special notebooks putting in extra efforts-giving his best on the last day-
imparted knowledge about the importance of the
mother tongue in each one’s life.
(ii) children in the class were quiet and gave a
patient ear to the teacher.
(iii) Old people of the village attended the class.
(iv)Franz made a special effort to understand the
lesson for he found it comfortable to grasp-was
guilty of not paying attention earlier.

5. Old people of the village in

the class:
(i) They were sorry that they had not gone to
the school for longer.
(ii) they wanted to pay respect to the language
which they would not be able to learn anymore.
(iii) they wanted to thank M. Hamel for his
unflinching service to the village for the past
forty years.
(iv) to show respect to the country which would not be theirs now.

6. Responsible for neglecting French:

(i) Alsace as a city was responsible for
procrastinating.
(ii) Franz was responsible for delaying and avoiding the
learning of the language.
(iii) Parents were responsible for they were not keen for the education of their
children and made them run errands.
(iv) M. Hamel blamed himself for sending Franz to water his plants or even

taking an off, the day he wanted to go fishing.

7. Hamel on the French language:

(i) the most beautiful language in the world.
(ii) the clearest and most logical.
(iii) it had to be guarded.
(iv) it acts as a key to the prison if people are enslaved.

8. Franz on M. Hamel:
(i) Franz desperately wanted to give the answer on participles to reassure his
teacher that all his years of teachings have not been wasted.
 (ii) Franz felt that M. Hamel was giving his best on the day of the last lesson
as he wanted to share all his knowledge before going away.
(iii) Franz felt that his teacher was sitting motionless and was staring at things
as he wanted to fix in his mind and take each memory with him from that
school room where he had taught for forty years.
iv) Franz felt that the teacher must be heartbroken for he was to leave the
country the next day.
(v) Franz could well identify with the teacher’s sorrow as to what he felt on
hearing his sister move boxes to pack and leave.

9. M. Hamel as a teacher.
(i) had been teaching for forty years without wavering.
(ii) refused to give up on the last day of teaching-treated it as the most
important day was in his best fineries-had prepare copies for the children in
which he had written beautifully-was ready to teach all age groups without
reservation-decided to be patient and impart whatever he could even if it was
the last day-stood tall to bid and accept farewell.
(iii) imparted knowledge about the importance of the mother tongue.
(iv) instilled patriotism amongst his students with his wise words.
GLOSSARY:
➢ Chauvinism: exaggerated or aggressive patriotism.
➢ Linguistic: relating to language
➢ Hegemony: dominance, especially by one state or social group over others.
➢ Imperial: relating to an empire.
➢ Annex: seize
➢ Monsieur: a title or form of address used of or to a French-speaking
man, corresponding to Mr. or sir.
➢ solemn: serious, grave
➢ Gesture: a signal
➢ Choked: became unable to speak due to strong emotions
➢ Trumpets: a musical instrument.
➢ Pale: used to describe a person’s face or skin if it has less colour than usual
➢ Angelus: prayer song in the church, the start is marked by the ringing of the
bell.
➢ Pretend: show
➢ to reproach: blame
➢ Tempting: attracting
➢ Resist: to stay away
 LITERARY DEVICES

1.METAPHOR

What a Thunderclap
After Hamel announces to the class that the French language will no longer be
taught in Alsace-Lorraine, Franz comments on the shock of receiving the news,
calling Hamel's words "a thunderclap." With this metaphor, Daudet's narrator
emphasizes the suddenness of the announcement by equating it with the loud,
disrupting sound of thunder.

2.SIMILE

a) Looked Like Little Flags

During the cursive lesson, Franz comments on how the slips of paper that say
"Alsace, France" which Hamel distributes for the students to copy look "like little
flags floating everywhere in the school-room, hung from the rod at the top of our
desks." In this simile, Franz sees the common sight of cursive copy slips anew;
under the circumstance of his native language being removed from his lessons,
Franz interprets the slips as flags planted in the territory of the students' desks.
Hamel would like to remind his students that the desks belong to Alsace-Lorraine
and not the Prussian invaders.

b) As If They Had the Key to Their Prison

Before beginning the grammar lesson, Hamel digresses to remind his students about the
importance of learning and protecting their native language. With their language and
culture under immanent threat from the invading Prussians, Hamel instructs his students
to guard the French language "because when people are enslaved, as long as they hold
fast to their language it is as if they had the key to their prison." In this passage, Daudet
uses simile to liken knowledge of one's native language to a key that lets them escape
the prison that is the forces seeking to oppress and control them.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.litbug.com › ... › Lit Guides › CBSE

https://literarydevices.net › last-lesson-of-the-afternoon

https://poemanalysis.com › D.H. Lawrence

https://smartenglishnotes.com/

https://www.learncbse.in/

https://edumantra.net/