The Last Lesson - Flamingo

About the author

Alphonse Daudet (13 May 1840, Nimes, France - 16 December 1897,

Paris, France) was a French novelist, short-story writer, playwright and
poet. He also worked as a school teacher at Ales, Gard, in Southern
France for a brief period of time. Charles de Morny, Napolean III's
minister, appointed him as one of his secretaries, a post he held till
Morny's death. He enlisted in the army during the Franco-Prussian war.
A book of poems, Les Amoureuses (The Lovers) was Daudet's first
published work. "Letters from My Windmill", a collection of short
stories, was well received by the readers and was praised for the picture
it paints of the local culture. He is known for portraying human emotions
in a very realistic manner. Many of his works were inspired by instances
in his own life. He is regarded as one of the most iconic names of French
literature and many colleges and schools in France bear his name. His
novel "Fromont the Younger and Risler the Elder" won an award from
the Academie Francaise.

Some of his works include: "Little Good-For-Nothing", an

autobiographical memoir; "The Monday Tales", a collection of short
stories and the novel "Tartarin of Tarascon".

Word-meaning

 in great dread of: in extreme worry or fear

 in unison: speaking together, or at the same time
 counted on: dependent on
 a great bustle: a lot of activity and noise
 thumbed at the edges: having a slightly damaged appearance at the
edges by frequent handling or turning of pages
 reproach ourselves with: to blame or accuse ourselves, to express
disappointment in our actions
 Dread: to feel extremely worried or frightened
 Sawmill: a place where wood is cut into boards or other forms with
machines
 Drilling: training in military exercises
 Tempting: appealing or attracting
 Resist: remain unaffected by, to stop yourself from doing something that
you want to do
 Town hall: a building in which local government officials and
employees work and have meetings
 Bulletin board: a surface intended for the posting of public messages
 Blacksmith: a person who makes and repairs things in iron by hand
 Apprentice: someone who works for an expert to learn a particular skill
or job, trainee
 Bub: an informal way of addressing a boy or man; buddy; brother
 Bustle: exciting activity and movement, busy and noisy scene
 Unison: acting or speaking together, or at the same time
 Rapping: striking or hitting
 Commotion: a sudden, short period of noise, confusion, or exciting
movement
 Blushed: to become pink in the face, usually from embarrassment
 Fright: a sudden intense feeling of fear
 Frilled: having decorative ruffles or frills to make it more attractive
 Solemn: very serious or formal
 Mayor: chairperson of the municipal council
 Postmaster: a person who is in charge of a post office
 Primer: a small book containing basic facts about a subject, used
especially when you are beginning to learn about that subject
 Thumbed: slightly damaged appearance by frequent handling or turning
of pages
 Mounted: to go up or onto
 Grave: serious and sad
 Thunderclap: used in similes to refer to something startling or
unexpected.
 Wretches: here it refers to an unfortunate happening
 Saar: a river in northeastern France and western Germany
 Nuisance: a thing causing inconvenience or annoyance
 Cranky: bad-tempered, easily annoyed and angry
 Sunday clothes: a person's best or newest clothing, as saved for Sundays
and special occasions
 Recite: to say a piece of writing aloud from memory
 Dreadful: causing fear, shock, or suffering
 Bah: an expression of disagreement or disregard
 Reproach: expressing disappointment in actions that one has done, to
blame
 Anxious: feeling or showing worry, concerned
 Mill: a factory where a particular substance is produced
 Enslaved: to lose freedom of choice or action
 Hold fast: continue to believe in or adhere to
 Cooed: make a soft low sound
 Gazing: looking at something for a long time, especially in surprise or
admiration
 Worn: damaged as a result of much use
 Hopvine: the stock or stem of the hop (a climbing plant)
 Twined: Achieve vertical growth by revolving the stems around a
support
 Trunk: a large, strong container that is used for storing clothes and
personal possessions
 Trembled: shake involuntarily, typically as a result of anxiety, fear or
anger
 Angelus: prayers are said in the morning, in the middle of the day and in
the evening in the Roman Catholic Church, the start is marked by the
ringing of bells
 Trumpets: a brass musical instrument
 Drill: military training exercises
 Pale: having less colour than usual
 Choked: unable to speak or almost crying because of sadness or strong
emotion
 Might: strength, power
 Vive La France: Long Live France
 Gesture: a movement of part of the body, especially a hand or the head,
to express an idea or meaning

Introduction

The Last Lesson is set in the days of the Franco-Prussian War or

Franco-German War. It was a conflict between the Second French
Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of
Prussia. The war, lasting from 19 July 1870 to 10 May 1871 resulted in
the victory of Germany and the fall of the Second French Empire. The
unification of Germany was completed and the German states
proclaimed their union as the German Empire under the leadership of
Prussian chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Most of Alsace and parts of
Lorraine were annexed by Germany and the freedom to learn the French
language was taken away from the people of these two districts.

Summary of The Last Lesson

The narrator of the story is a young boy Franz who is on his way to
school. He was very late and was afraid of being scolded by his teacher
M. Hamel who was to question the class on participles that day and he
knew nothing about them. It was a warm and bright day and Franz was
tempted to spend the day outdoors but he resisted and hurried off to
school.
When he passed the town hall he saw a crowd in front of the bulletin
board. All the bad news was displayed on that board for the last two
years.

When Franz reached the school, he was very surprised to see everything
so still. A terrible silence surrounded the school and everything was as
quiet as Sunday morning. He noticed that all of his classmates were
already in their seats and M. Hamel was walking up and down with his
iron ruler under his arm. He opened the door and went inside the
classroom very frightened. Instead of scolding him, M. Hamel asked him
very kindly to go to his place.

Franz sat down at his desk and noticed that the teacher was wearing his
beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt, and the little black silk cap with
embroidery on it. He only wore this attire on special occasions like
inspection and prize days. The thing that surprised Franz the most was
seeing village people seated on the back benches of the classroom. One
of the village men, Hauser had brought with him an old primer.

M. Hamel mounted on his chair and told the class that it was their last
French lesson as the order had come from Berlin to teach only German
in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine and the new teacher will arrive the
next day. This was very surprising for Franz. He realizes that this was
the order that had been put up on the bulletin board. He regrets not
learning his lessons and wasting the time instead. Now, he didn't want to
give up his books which had seemed a burden a while ago, and his
feelings about his teacher, of how strange and irritable he was, changed.
He understood that it was in honour of the last lesson that the teacher
had put on his Sunday clothes and the village people had gathered there
to express their gratitude towards him for his faithful service of forty
years and to show respect for their country. When the class started,
Franz heard his name being called to recite the rules of participles. He
got confused about the first words and stood there embarrassed. M.
Hamel said he wouldn't scold him, for he must already feel bad enough.
He criticized the people of Alsace for putting off learning till another
time.

He further blamed their parents for not being concerned enough about
their education and putting them to work to have a little more money. He
also blamed himself for the poor performance of the students.
M. Hamel then talked about the French language and called it the most
beautiful language in the world and that it must be protected because
when people are enslaved, adhering to their language is like having a
key to their prison. He then explained a grammar lesson to the class.
Franz was amazed to see how well he understood it. The teacher
explained everything with a lot of patience.
The grammar lesson was followed by a writing lesson. All the students
worked very seriously. It was very quiet in the classroom and the only
sound that could be heard was the scratching of the pens over the paper.
Franz heard pigeons cooing on the roof of the classroom and wondered
if they will also be made to sing in German.

All this while, M. Hamel sat still in his chair looking intently at
everything as if he wanted to fix in his mind just how everything looked
in that room.
Franz pondered how difficult it must be for him to leave the country the
following day.

After the writing, they had a lesson in history and then the children
chanted the alphabet. The old Hauser at the back of the room spelt the
letters with them. Towards the end, everybody became very emotional.
Then the curch-clock struck twelve followed by Angelus and it was time
for class to end. M. Hamel stood up in his chair and started to speak but
something choked him. Then he turned to the blackboard and wrote as
large as he could "Vive La France!" which means "Long Live France!".
Then he leaned his head against the wall and dismissed the class with a
gesture.

The theme of the story

"Language is power, life and the instrument of culture, the instrument of

domination and liberation" - Angela Carter. The theme of the story is the
pain experienced by people when they are deprived of the freedom to
study or speak their own language. It also tells about the attitude of
students and teachers towards learning and teaching respectively. The
story highlights the human tendency to not realise the value of
something until it's gone. "The biggest mistake we make in our life is
thinking we have time" - Kobe Bryant. The people of Alsace failed to
realize the importance of learning their language French until the last
lesson arrived.

NCERT Solutions

Think as you read

Question 1. What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school

that day?

Answer. Franz was expected to be prepared with participles for school

that day as his teacher M. Hamel had said that he would question the
class on the topic.
Question 2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the
school that day?

Answer. An unusual silence prevailed in the school that day. Usually,

there was a great bustle when school began that could be heard out in the
street, the opening and closing of desks, lessons repeated in unison, and
the teacher's ruler striking on the table. But that day, it was all so still
and quiet as on a Sunday morning.

Question 3. What had been put up on the bulletin board?

Answer. The order that had come from Berlin to teach only German in
the schools of Alsace and Lorraine had been put up on the bulletin
board.

Think as you read

Question 1. What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school
that day?

Answer. The order had come from Berlin to teach only German in the
schools of Alsace and Lorraine due to which a terrible silence
surrounded the school that day. There was no bustle and everything was
as quiet as Sunday morning. The teacher M. Hamel had on his beautiful
green coat, his frilled shirt, and the little black silk cap, all embroidered,
that he never wore except on inspection and prize days. The village
people were sitting quietly on the back benches of the classroom that
were always empty.
Question 2. How did Franz's feelings about M. Hamel and school
change?

Answer. M. Hamel told the class that this would be their last French
lesson as the order had come from Berlin to teach only German in the
schools of Alsace and Lorraine. Upon hearing this, Franz felt sorry for
not learning his lessons and wasting time. His books, which he found
annoyance earlier, were old friends now that he couldn't give up. His
feelings about M. Hamel also changed, he felt sorry for him and the
thought that he would never see him again made him forget all about his
strictness and crankiness.

Understanding the text

Question 1. The people in this story suddenly realise how precious

their language is to them. What shows you this? Why does this
happen?

Answer. In the story, the French districts of Alsace and Lorraine were
annexed by Germany and the freedom to learn the French language was
taken away from the people of these districts. People were anguished as
they lost the right to study or speak their own language. They realized
the importance of learning their mother tongue and that the Germans
have overpowered them due to their lack of knowing their language. The
story highlights the human tendency to put away things for tomorrow.
Everyone was filled with regret and shame for not utilising the
opportunities they had for learning French. The story also reflects upon
how we tend to take things for granted that we've had for long periods of
time. It is on the day of the last lesson that people realize how precious
their language is to them.
Question 2. Franz thinks, "Will they make them sing in German,
even the pigeons?" What could this mean?

Answer. Franz wonders whether the Germans would make even the
pigeons sing in German. This demonstrates that language is just not the
means to communicate but also an inseparable part of personal and
socio-cultural identity. Franz feels that the mother tongue is what we
learn from birth and it can't be taken away.

Talking about the text

Question 1. "When a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to

their language it is as if they had the key to their prison."

Can you think of examples in history where conquered people had

their language taken away from them or had a language imposed on
them?

Answer. A language is not just words. It unifies a community and is

intrinsic to the expression of culture. It holds the power to build bridges
and break barriers and paves the way for one's freedom.
There are numerous examples in history where conquered people had
their language taken away from them or had a language imposed on
them.
1. Imposition of Urdu in East Pakistan

The Government of the Dominion of Pakistan imposed Urdu on the

Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan. As part of the Islamization
and the Arabization of East Pakistan, the Government declared Urdu to
be the sole national language of Pakistan. People protested against the
suppression of their mother tongue Bangla and even sacrificed their
lives.

2. Imposition of English in India

The English language was imposed on India during the colonization of

India by Britain. British rule is said to have been responsible for the
spread of Western education in India. English was made the official
language of India and was adopted as the official medium of instruction.

3. Imposition of Turkish on Kurds

The Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Turkey. The Turkish
government officially prohibited the Kurdish language in public and
private life. Many people who spoke, published, or sang in Kurdish were
arrested and imprisoned. It is illegal to use Kurdish as a language of
instruction in schools in Turkey.

Question 2. What happens to a linguistic minority in a state? How

do you think they can keep their language alive? For example:
 Punjabis in Bangalore
Tamilians in Mumbai
Kannadigas in Delhi
Gujaratis in Kolkata

Answer. A linguistic minority is a class of people whose mother tongue

is different from that of the majority in the state or part of a state.
Minority languages suffer from institutional neglect and linguistic
minority often face discrimination. There is a special provision in the
constitution for the protection of the linguistic interests of minorities, but
it is unfortunate that linguistic minorities have still suffered. States have
often restricted the official use of minority languages. Children
belonging to a linguistic minority may also suffer as they may not have
access to education in the language they speak or understand. One of the
crucial reasons for the weakening of national solidarity is discrimination
of all kinds are made in the linguistic field.
Mother tongue bears our culture and heritage and is key to our
development. Numerous languages in the world face the risk of
extinction. When a language dies we lose more than just a medium of
conversation, we lose a unique worldview.

A linguistic minority in a state can keep their language alive by

speaking,
by writing and by learning their native language. By reading books, and
listening to the radio in the minority language. The concentration should
be on mother languages in the early education of children. The linguistic
minority can also preserve their language and culture by forming a small
community and having social gatherings to celebrate the festivals and
special events as per their traditions.

Question 3. Is it possible to carry pride in one's language too far?

Do you know what 'linguistic chauvinism' means?

Answer. Yes, it is surely possible to carry pride in one's language too far
that one starts believing in the superiority or dominance of one's own
language and considers other languages as inferior or unworthy.

'Linguistic chauvinism' means a strong belief that one's own language is

superior to all other languages. Linguistic chauvinism has cultural and
socio-economic perils and can result in irrevocable damage to the social
fabric of society.

Working with words

1. English is a language that contains words from many other

languages. This inclusiveness is one of the reasons it is now a world
language, For example:

petite - French
kindergarten - German
capital - Latin
democracy - Greek
bazaar - Hindi

Find out the origins of the following words.

tycoon barbecue zero

tulip veranda ski
logo robot trek
 bandicoot

Answer.
 Tycoon - from Japanese taikun 'great lord'
 Barbecue - from Spanish barbacoa, perhaps from Arawak barbacoa's
wooden frame on posts. The original sense was a 'wooden framework
for sleeping on, or for storing meat or fish to be dried.
 Zero - from French zéro or Italian zero, via Old Spanish from Arabic
sifr 'cipher'.
 Tulip - from French tulipe, via Turkish from Persian dulband 'turban',
from the shape of the expanded flower.
 Veranda - from Hindi varandā, from Portuguese varanda 'railing,
balustrade'.
 Ski - from Norwegian, from Old Norse skíth 'billet, snowshoe'.
 Logo - abbreviation of logotype; from Ancient Greek (lógos) 'word,
speech', and (túpos) 'mark, imprint'.
 Robot - from Czech, from robota 'forced labour'.
 Trek - from South African Dutch trek (noun), trekken (verb) 'pull,
travel'.
 Bandicoot - from Telugu pandikokku, literally 'pig-rat'.

2. Notice the underlined words in these sentences and tick the option
that best explains their meaning.

(a) "What a thunderclap these words were to me!"

The words were
(i) loud and clear.
(ii) startling and unexpected.
(iii) pleasant and welcome.

Answer. (ii) startling and unexpected.

(b) "When a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their
language it is as if they had the key to their prison"
It is as if they have the key to the prison as long as they
(i) do not lose their language.
(ii) are attached to their language.
(iii) quickly learn the conqueror's language.

Answer. (ii) are attached to their language.

(c) Don't go so fast, you will get to your school in plenty of time.
You will get to your school
(i) very late.
(ii) too early.
(iii) early enough.

Answer. (iii) early enough.

(d) I never saw him look so tall.

M.Hamel
(a) had grown physically taller.
(b) seemed very confident.
(c) stood on the chair.

Answer. (b) seemed very confident.

Noticing form

Read this sentence

M. Hamel had said that he would question us on participles. In the

sentence above, the verb form "had said" in the first part is used to
indicate an "earlier past". The whole story is narrated in the past.
M. Hamel's "saying" happened earlier than the events in this story.
This form of the verb is called the past perfect.

Pick out five sentences from the story with this form of the verb and
say why this form has been used.

Answer. Five sentences from the story in the past perfect tense are -

1. For the last two years all our bad news had come from there.

The past perfect verb form has been used as the action has been
happening since an earlier time.

2. I had counted on the commotion to get to my desk without being

seen.

The action had occurred prior to Franz getting into the class.

3. Hauser had brought an old primer, and thumbed at the edges.

The action had occurred before the incident.

4. It was in honour of this last lesson that he had put on his fine Sunday
clothes.

The act of putting on his fine Sunday clothes had been done prior to the
incident.

5. The hop vine that he had planted himself twined about the windows
to the roof.

The action of planting happened earlier than the events in the story.