LAST LESSON - CLASS 12 (CBSE)

The Last Lesson (Flamingo) is the First lesson!

Dear students,

Hope you are as thrilled to be part of teaching-learning at SCS evolving to a new level!

Key themes explored in the Lesson

1. Preserving Mother Tongue is key to preserving one's identity.

• Language is a key marker of a distinctive identity.
• Accords special importance to native culture and traditions.
• Is as natural to a person as cooing is to pigeons. 
• Several factors cause the use of native language to be reduced; eventually dies a natural death.
• Effort must be made to keep the language alive, especially motivating the younger generation like M Hamel's appeal in his last lesson.

2. Linguistic Chauvinism

• Chauvinism refers to excessive or prejudiced support for one's own cause, group, or sex.
• Not to be confused with being proud/patriotic. 
• A chauvinist would definitely demean/look down upon the other.
• You could be a male/female chauvinist; be a chauvinist about your country/ religion/ caste (we are very good at this!)
• By imposing German on the people of the newly captured French districts of Alsace and Lorraine, Prussia kills two birds with one stone.

1. conveying their superiority over the French (interestingly, the French have traditionally been accused of being snobs who wouldn't speak any other language.)

2. Catch 'em young policy! When kids adopt the new, the old will slowly but surely be forgotten. Little wonder then why new governments in power are always keen on changing school History textbooks!!

 3. Attitude towards learning

• Universal malady of procrastination- putting off work/learning for the next day.
• Attitude changes in a flash when people awaken to the rude reality that they will no longer have what they took for granted. 

Now that we have a deeper understanding of some of the important ideas discussed in the lesson, we'll be able to appreciate the story better.  Long Answer questions to follow soon.

Please note

All the Short and Long answer questions are to be written in your new literature notebook. You are not to copy the MCQs in the notebook. 

We will be relying heavily on the NCERT textbook Flamingo for the answers

Long Answer questions

1. How was the environment of the classroom different before and after the announcement?

-Usually, when school began, there was a great bustle, which could be heard out in the street

-the opening and closing of desks, lessons repeated in unison, very loud.

- students had to put their hands over their ears to understand better, 

- the teacher’s great ruler rapped on the table. 

- great deal of commotion.

-on the day of the last lesson, everything was a still as a Sunday morning. 

-students were already in their places, and M. Hamel walking up and down with his terrible iron ruler under his arm.

- the village people sat quietly on the back benches reading their books.

-every single student paid attention to M Hamel's words

-silently did their work, scratching of the pens over the paper was the only sound heard, ignored even the beetles that flew in. 

-M Hamel was wore his best clothes, carefully explained everything and taught with patience. 

- everyone felt overwhelmed knowing that they would no longer have French lessons.

2. Describe the impact of the announcement on M Hamel.

-  had taught French in the same classroom for forty years. 

- was regarded as a strict teacher and everyone dreaded the loud rapping of his ruler

- Franz almost decided not to go to school when he was late

- was terrified of being scolded for not studying participles.

- sudden announcement was a jolt that completely shook him and left him heartbroken. 

- in honour of the last lesson, wore his best clothes

- even old villagers turned up that day to pay their tribute to him. 

- he felt guilty for not teaching well, sending students on errands and giving offs on days he wanted to go fishing. 

- praised the French language, urged his students to guard it 

- carefully explained everything he knew and taught with patience. 

- gave out new notebooks with 'France, Alsace, France, Alsace' written in beautiful handwriting.

- silently sat observing the class as if trying to capture the image in his memory.

- in the final moments, so choked with emotions that he could barely speak

- wrote 'viva la France' on the board and dismissed his last French class.

3. Elaborate the way in which the announcement affected Franz.

- comes across as a regular young boy who was not very keen to go to school.

-  was fascinated by idea of spending the day outdoors, enjoying the warm weather, 

- did not take his learning seriously, was scared of his teacher, M. Hamel who was going to test him on participles, and he did not know anything about them

- the announcement about that being his last French lesson was like a thunderclap to him.

- he hardly knew how to write and  he would  never learn any more 

- he deeply regretted not learning his lessons.

-his books, that had seemed such a nuisance a while ago, so heavy to carry, were old friends now that he couldn’t give up. 

- he even forget how cranky M Hamel was and his frightening ruler, discovered a new found love and respect for his teacher.

- he listened to his teacher very carefully, was amazed to see how well he understood his lesson. All seemed so easy.