The Last Lesson through Mindmaps Class XII CBSE

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Today we will discuss the first chapter of the text book “Flemingo”

The Last Lesson – by Alphonse Daudet

About the Author :

Alphonse Daudet (1840-1897) was a French short-story writer and novelist. He is chiefly remembered for his sentimental tales of provincial life in the south of France.

Theme of “The Last Lesson” By Alphonse Daudet

The chapter is set in the days of the Franco Prussian war (1870-71) when two districts Alsace and Lorraine were conquered by the Prussian army led by Bismark. The whole story focuses on two major characters 1. Little Franz – a student and the narrator of the story, 2. His French teacher M. Hamel (M. here is a shortened form of Monsieur – a title of respect. The English equivalent of it is Mister / Sir.

To talk about the theme of the chapter, it deals with patriotism, love for Mother tongue the language chauvinism. The people of Alsace and Lorraine were forced to leave their mother tongue French and learn German language i.e. the official language of the Prussia. One more theme is dragged under the predominant themes is the importance of education and need of the mother tongue to sustain their freedom. The stubborn decision of the Prussians for imposition of German language over the French people of Alsace and Lorraine signals towards the unfair practice of linguistic chauvinism which refers to an inordinate love for one’s own language; considering it most superior to the other languages. The teacher M. Hamel tries his level best to arouse the feeling of pride among the Frenchmen for their mother tongue and the sense of patriotism is at once aroused.

One more aspect of this chapter is of worth importance i.e. the attitude of the people towards the education system and learning habits. The imposition of German language at once made them realize that they should guard their mother tongue in order to ensure freedom. The teacher did his best efforts to arouse the feeling of patriotism and sense of honour for their mother tongue by the words that your mother tongue is the only key to your prison of enslavement. The whole environment of the chapter is depressing, sad and gloomy.

Important Characters :

1.  Little Franz – a student; the narrator

2. M. Hamel – French Teacher

 Let's revise through Mindmap :

Note down the meanings of the difficult words from the text :

Download the PDF of The Last Lesson

WORD	MEANING		WORD	MEANING
M.	abbreviation of french courtesy title monsieur, an equivalent of "mr." of english.		Blushed	Embarrassed / Ashamed
In great dread of	Feared of		Frightened	Feared
Scolding	Verbal punishment		Embroidered	decorated with patterns sewn on with thread
Participles	A topic of Grammar		Solemn	Serious
Sawmill	A factory with machine to cut logs of wood		Primer	Book of primary class
Draft	Orders for people to serve in the armed forces during emergency		Thumbed at the edges	worn or soiled edges caused by frequent handling
Apprentice	A person who is under training to learn some skill		Mounted	Sit in
Plenty of	A lot of		Thunderclap	startling or unexpected
Usually	Generally		Cranky	eccentric or strange.
Bustle	Full of activity		Enslaved	Cause (someone) to lose his freedom
Counted on	Dependent upon		Floating	Present everywhere
Commotion	Noisy disturbance		Scratching	Rub (here writing with)

Now see the video for word to word explanation of the original text :

See the Video

Study of the whole chapter through Mindmaps :

Full Mindmap - The Last Lesson
Download Full in PPT

1. What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?                     (Page -7)

Ans : Franz was expected to prepare the rules for participles. But he did not prepare his lesson and thus thinking to avoid going school today.

2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the school that day?                  (Page -7)

Ans : Usually there is great hustle and bustle in the school of opening and closing of desks, repetition of lesson in unison and rapping of the terrible ruler by M. Hamel. He takes advantage of the commotion to enter in the class without being noticed by anybody.  But today it was so still like Sunday morning and all the students alongwith the teachers are also present in the class so he has to enter before everybody. The teacher was wearing his best dress and the prominent villagers were also sitting in the class.

3. What had been put up on the bulletin-board?     (Page -7)

Ans : On the Bulletin board at the Townhall an order from Berlin has been displayed that 2 districts of France Alsace and Lorraine have been conquered by the Prussian army and French language will be replaced by the German language. M. Hamel will be replaced by a German teacher.

1. What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school that day?             (Page – 8)

Ans  : There was no hustle and bustle, repetition of lesson or rapping of the ruler of M. Hamel. The Teacher M. Hamel was wearing his best dress, which he used to wear on prize distribution days or the inspection days. Some prominent village people were also sitting in the class on the last benches. M. Hamel announced in a grave tone that this is going to be the last lesson in French language and from tomorrow there will be a German teacher to teach German language. It was like a shock to little Franz. Everybody was grave and sad that they didn’t give time to learn their own mother tongue French. M. Hamel shifts the responsibility of not learning the lessons on two persons i.e. first the parents who sent their wards to mills or farms instead of school and the second is he himself who made the students busy in watering his plants or declared leave in the school to go to fishing. Some written task was also given by the teacher, note books with “France Alsace, France Alsace” were distributed & then everybody got busy in learning their lesson without being disturbed by any sound.  

2. How did Franz’s feelings about M. Hamel and school change?    (Page – 8)

Ans : When M. Hamel announced that this is going to be the last lesson in French language and by tomorrow there will be a new German teacher to teach German. These words were very much shocking to the student. In one stroke his attitude towards his teacher and books changed. His books are not his old friends which were a great burden to him earlier. He developed a fondness for M. Hamel at the troubling idea of being separated from him forever. He forget everything about his terrible iron ruler and how cranky he was.

Previous Year CBSE Questions and Value points suggested by CBSE in Marking Schemes :

Year & Paper set

Question and Value points suggested by CBSE in the Answer Key

2015  - 1	Everybody during the last lesson is filled with regret. Comment. (The Last Lesson) (6 marks)
	Regret in Franz – wished he had attended classes more often – paid more attention – found lessons more interesting The village people regretted – they had paid less heed to learning their language – for not letting their wards go to school more often M Hamel – for sending his students to water flowers – giving students a holiday when he wanted to go fishing
2015  - 2	How different from usual was the atmosphere at school on the day of the last lesson ? (The Last Lesson) (6 marks)
	– School very quiet and still – usually very noisy – M Hamel with ruler – banging on the desks – lessons repeated in unison – that day M Hamel dressed in his Sunday best – spoke gently and kindly – all very attentive – even small children not distracted – villagers present – feeling of patriotism and regret at not having learnt French when they had the time
2015  - 3	How did the order from Berlin change the situation in the school ? (The Last Lesson) (6 marks)
	– school scene was utterly different – silence prevailed everywhere – feeling of regret – even the noisy classroom breathed a quiet ambiance – presence of villagers in the classroom – M Hamel had worn special dress meant for special occasions – since it was the last lesson, everyone paid full attention – M Hamel delivered his lesson to the best of his capability – people realised the worth of M Hamel and the French language – children found the lesson very easy
2016  -1	Out native language is part of our culture and we are proud of it. How does the presence of village elders in the classroom and M. Hamel’s last lesson show their love for French?    (6 marks)
	– old men of the village sitting quietly at the back of classroom – were sad as well as sorry for not having gone to school more often – came to thank the master for forty years of faithful service and to show respect for a country that was theirs no more – regretted neglecting their language – M. Hamel explained everything patiently – appealed to people to preserve ‘French’ – holding on to their language will keep them united – spoke about beauty of French language – was overwhelmed with emotions – wrote Viva-la-France on the board in spite of Prussian soldiers marching outside (any 3)
2017  -1	Why were some elderly persons occupying the back benches that day ? (The Last Lesson) (3 marks)
	- as a mark of respect/to bid farewell to M.Hamel for his forty years of service - last day of French class - pay homage to their country which was theirs no more - repented not having attended class/ school - love for their mother tongue   (any two)
2017  – 2	‘What a thunderclap these words were to me!’ (Franz). What were those words and what was their effect on Franz? (3marks)
	-words- ‘French will not be taught any longer’ -only German to be taught -the new master to arrive/ take charge from the next day (any one) -Franz was shocked that M. Hamel was leaving -developed sudden love and regard for his books, French and his teacher -regretted his negligence ( any one)
2017  - 3	How were the parents and M. Hamel responsible for the children’s neglect of the French language ? (3marks)
	- parents not anxious to have them learn - made them work in fields or at mills                                        (any one) - M. Hamel made children water his garden during class hours - dismissed classes when he wanted to go fishing.                      (any one)
2019  1-1-1	Who did M. Hamel blame for the neglect of learning on the part of boys like Franz ? (3 marks)
	- Parents preferred to send them to work on a farm or at the mills – to have little more money. He himself sent them to water his flowers - When he wanted to go fishing gave them a holiday.
2019  1-1-3	How did M. Hamel make his last lesson a special one ? What did he emphasize in it ? (3marks)
	- M. Hamel’s outfit (beautiful green coat, frilled shirt, the little black silk cap all embroidered) - new copies - patient / not his usual cranky self - he wanted to deliver all knowledge to them at one stroke - made confession on his part                                                (any one) - spoke about the French language, most beautiful/clearest/most logical - guard the language – not forget it as it was the key to their prison when people are enslaved.   (any one)
2019  1-2-1	Everybody during the last lesson was filled with regret. Comment. (6 marks)
	– students, village elders and even M. Hamel were full of regret and sadness – in a depressed mood – The order was stunning and shocking. – aroused patriotic feelings for the native language – Even the school appeared solemn and strange. – Hamel’s message – its profound effect – Franz developed a new respect for the teacher – all of them wished they had taken their classes seriously
2019  1-3-1	What was unusual in the market and in the classroom on the day of the last lesson ? (6 marks)
	In the market - a huge crowd in front of the bulletin board as Franz passed the town hall - sight troubled him as all bad news of the war reached the French through this bulletin board In the classroom - pindrop silence / no hustle/ no opening and closing of desks/ no rapping of ruler - M. Hamel was formally dressed. - children were in their places - elders had come to attend the last lesson - marked with mixed feelings-the feelings of regret, patriotic fervour. (any other relevant point) (any two)
2019  1-3-3	How was M. Hamel different in his last lesson ? Who did he scold and for what ? (6 marks)
	How: - portrayed as a strict, cranky hard task master - but in the last lesson he was-compassionate, polite, grave, gentle and patient - voice had mellowed - was not rapping his ruler on the table - was dressed in his best attire - wanted to teach all he knew in that one day Who: - scolded the country men for postponing learning - scolded adults for sending their children to work at farms and mills instead of sending them to school - blamed himself for sending children on errands whenever he went for fishing (any other relevant point) (any two from each)
2019  1-3-2	‘The Last Lesson’ shows that people suddenly realised how precious their language was to them. Comment. (6marks)
	The order from Berlin aroused a patriotic zeal M.Hamel- aroused patriotic fervour - called French as the most beautiful , logical and the clearest language - asked them to safeguard their language - called it ‘the key to prison’ - wrote ‘Vive La France’ on the board (any two) Franz- felt sorry for not learning his lessons - books became his old friends/ prized possessions - started liking M.Hamel (any two) Elders - back benches were occupied - had come to express their gratitude to the teacher and the country - regretted having procrastinated the need to learn their native language  (any two) (any other relevant point)
2019  1-4-1	How and why was M. Hamel dressed differently that day ? (3marks)
	Ø  Green coat, frilled shirt, embroidered hat reserved for special days Ø  Prussians had conquered Alsace & Lorraine – last French class as German to be taught from the next day.
2019  1-4-2	The order from Berlin banning teaching of French stunned everyone. Comment. (6marks)
	Ø  Orders from Berlin to teach German in schools of Alsace and Lorraine Ø  announcement by M. Hamel shocked everyone Ø  students and elders sat attentively Ø  M. Hamel taught patiently Ø  German language would be imposed on them Ø  deprived of their basic right to learn their mother tongue Ø  made the people of Alsace realize that they were going to miss their mother tongue Ø  evoked a feeling of patriotism and love for their mother tongue Ø  felt remorse and regret for not giving due importance to mother tongue earlier Ø  M. Hamel became overwhelmed at the end of the lesson.           (Any three)
2019  1-4-3	Why were the old men of the village sitting in the classroom on the last day of the lesson ? (3marks)
	Ø  They were sad at the order that had come from Berlin Ø  realized the importance of their mother tongue Ø  last French class; German was to be taught from the next day Ø  patriotism Ø  way to atone for their guilt for not attending school regularly Ø  it was the only opportunity to thank their master for his forty years of service.