MP Board Question Bank  Question and Answer -The Last Lesson

The Last Lesson

Question and Answer

 

1. Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meanings from the context.

In great dread of

Ans: fearful in anticipation of something

Counted on

Ans: to rely or trust on somebody/something

Thumbed at the edges

Ans: worn or soiled edges caused by frequent handling

In unison

Ans: something happening or being done at the same time

A great bustle

Ans: an excited (and often noisy) activity or a rapid, active commotion

Reproach ourselves with

Ans: to express disapproval, criticism, or disappointment 

 

2 Find out the origin of the following words.

Tycoon, tulip, logo, bandicoot, barbecue, veranda, robot, zero, ski, trek

Ans:

Tycoon - Japanese

Tulip - French

Logo – Greek

Bandicoot - Telugu

Barbecue - Spanish

Veranda - Hindi

Robot - Czech

Zero - Italian

Ski - Norwegian

Trek – Dutch. 

 

Short Answer Questions-

1. What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?

Ans: The lesson on participle was expected to be prepared by Franz.

2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the school that day?

Ans- He noticed that it was all very still, calm and quite like sunday morning while on other days it used to be great hustle and bustle. The sound could be heard out in the street.

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

Ans. It was about an order from Berlin that only German was to be taught in the school of Alsace and Lorraine.

4. What changes did the order from Berlin cause on school that day?

Ans. There was complete silence everywhere. All looked sad and serious. Old people of the village had came to thank Mr. Hamel for his faithful service for 40 Years.

5. How did Franz's feelings about M Hamel and school change?

Ans. Franz was now very sad for Mr. Hamel. He forgot all about his cranky behaviour. Now he did not hate school. He made books as his friends.

6. Why did Franz not want to go to school that day?

Ans. Franz was late for the school. He thought that the teacher would scold him, and he would ask questions on participles. Franz did not know anything participles. So he thought of running away and spent day out of doors.

7. What tempted Franz to stay away from school?

Ans. It was a warm and bright day. Birds were chirping on the trees. Prussian soldiers were drilling in an open field and Franz thought that it was more tempting than going to school.

8. What was unusual about M Hamel's dress on his last day in the school?

Ans. He was dressed in his best clothes. He wore beautiful green coat and a frilled shirt, also he wore a little black silk cap. He always wore this dress on inspection and prize distribution days.

9. Why the order from Berlin is called a thunderclap by Franz?

Ams.The order from Berlin was called a thunderclap by Franz because it was a shock for him to know that the study of the French language had been prohibited in the school of Alsace and Lorraine.

10. Why were the villagers sitting in the classroom?

Ans. They came to thank Mr. Hamel, for his 40 years of faithful service. They sat on the last benches with the students.

11. Who did M Hamel blame for the students' poor performance in study?

Ans.  M. Hamel blamed the parents for the neglect of learning on the part of boys like Franz because their parents wanted them to work on farm to earn some money. Franz himself wanted to enjoy his time and thus, avoided going to school. M. Hamel blamed himself too for the neglect as he made the boys work in the garden which made them miss their lessons and whenever he wanted to go fishing, he gave them a holiday.

12.How did M Hamel praise the French language?

Ans- M. Hamel declared that French was the most beautiful language of the world. It was the clearest and the most logical all languages. He asked the people to guard it among themselves and never forget it. As long as people ‘hold fast to their language' they have the key to freedom. Hence, they must love and respect their own language.

13. What words M Hamel write on the blackboard before leaving the last class What did they mean?

Ans. M Hamel wrote ‘Vive La France!‘ on the backboard to show his love for his country as well as for the French language. In addition, he was displaying his resistance to the German occupation of France. Vive La France Means Long Live France

14. What was the fear in little Franz's mind when he started for school in the morning?

Ans. On that day Franz was very late for the school. He feared that the teacher would scold him, also the teacher had given the home task to learn participles, and Franz did not know a word about participles. Hence, he was in great fear.

15. What did Franz see while he was going to school?

Ans. He saw that Prussian soldiers were drilling in an open field. When he was passing through the town hall, he saw a crowd stood infront of the bulletin board. He wandered to see the crowd.

16. Why was Franz not scolded for reaching the school late that day?

Ans- Franz was not scolded for reaching the school; late on that day because everyone was very sad because of the notice. As per the notice, it was instructed that French would not be taught in the schools, instead, German would be taught from the next day onward It was M.Hamel's last lesson in French and because of this reason, there was a sense of grief and sadness everywhere.

17.How did M Hamel dress himself on his last day at school?

Ans. He was dressed in his best clothes. He wore beautiful green coat and a frilled shirt, also he wore a little black silk cap. He always wore this dress on inspection and prize distribution days.

18. What information did M Hamel give to his students in his last class?

Ans. Mr. Hamel told in the class that it would be his last lesson. Orders had came from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. The new teacher was coming the next day.

 

The Last Lesson Long Question Answer

1. How did the order from Berlin change the atmosphere in the school?

 

Ans.  The order from Berlin brought all the routine hustle and bustle of the school life to a stand-still.M. Hamel,the teacher ,became more sympathetic to his students and taught his lessons with more patience. The students became more attentive to their classes. The back benches were no more empty as they used to be. The villagers had occupied those seats They had come to show their respect and gratitude to M. Hamel.They regretted not attending the classes more than they did. The order also brought about a great change in the feelings of the people towards their country and their native language. There was a general sadness about not being able to utilise the opportunities of learning French when it was easily accessible.

 

2. What did Mr. Hamel, Franz and the villagers regret for during the last lesson?

Ans. M Hamel regrets that he had not taken enough interest in teaching  French by often sending students to water his flowers, besides giving them a  holiday when he wanted. Franz  realised he had so much more to learn. He felt sorry for whiling away his time and skipping his lessons.Villagers were also regretting for not learning French anguage and giving atention to their children.

 

3. Justify the title of the story 'The Last Lesson'.

Ans: The story ‘The Last Lesson’ highlights the human tendency that there is plenty of time to do things; hence, man keeps postponing the lessons of life, oblivious to the fact that life is subject to change.

 

The people of Alsace and Lorraine always thought they had plenty of time to learn their language. However, the unexpected happens and an order is received from Berlin regarding compulsory teaching of German. It is then that they realized they are going to lose French forever.

The last French lesson taught by M. Hamel symbolizes the loss of language and the loss of freedom for France. 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.

 

4.  Franz thinks, "Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons ? What does this tell us about the attitude of the Frenchmen ?

Ans. This tells us about the love of the Frenchmen to their country, and their own langauge. This love is in their blood and can not be stopped as long as they are alive. They can slave the body but not the spirit. If a bird can not sing in another bird's voice similarly, no one can make a Frenchmen love another nation's language over and above his own language.

 

Q.5 . How did M. Hamel pay a tribute to the French language ?

Ans. M. Hamel declared that French was the most beautiful language of the world. It was the clearest and the most logical all languages. He asked the people to guard it among themselves and never forget it. As long as people ‘hold fast to their language' they have the key to freedom. Hence, they must love and respect their own language.

 

Q6. What is linguistic chauvinism? Is it possible to carry pride in one‘s language too far?

Ans. Linguistic chauvinism means an aggressive and unreasonable belief that your own language is better than all others. This shows an excessive or prejudiced support for one‘s own language. Sometimes pride in one‘s own language goes too far and the linguistic enthusiasts can be easily identified by their extreme zeal for the preservation and spread of their language. In their enthusiasm, love and support for their own language, they tend to forget that other languages too have their own merits, long history of art, culture and literature behind them.