CBSE Class 12 English Flamingo the last lesson Assignment

Answer : The order from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine left a deep impact on M. Hamel as well as the villagers. Everybody

was extremely hurt by the announcement because it meant that they could no longer teach, learn or speak in their native language, French. This made

the last lesson, taught by M. Hamel, all the more significant and memorable. The village people who always neglected learning French felt sorry for not having gone to school more often. M. Hamel too expressed regret for not having been stricter with his students when there was still time. On the day of the last French lesson, amidst the strange solemnity, the students and the village elders present in the classroom listened to M. Hamel quite attentively. While he carried on with the lesson, he appealed to everyone to preserve French not only because it was the most beautiful language in theworld, but also because holding on to their mother tongue would always keep them united. Before the class ended, overwhelmed by emotions, M. Hamel wrote ‘Vive La France!’ on the blackboard to express his undying love for French.

 

Answer : The narrator had counted on commotion, noise and hustle and bustle, in other words, preoccupation of the teacher, to enter the school unnoticed.

 

Answer :  M. Hamel blames himself and the natives for neglecting their native language, French. He laments that the village elders and he himself too,

did not give much importance to learning French.

On many occasions, he gave the students holiday because he wanted to go fishing. He even asked the students to water his flowers.

Hamel also found fault with the parents who sent their children to work instead of making them attend school. The village elders too were regretful. On the last day of the French lesson, they all sat silently crying on the back benches of the classroom. They came to learn French from M.

Hamel and expressed their sadness and regret they felt in their heart. A deeply disheartened M.Hamel appealed to the class that they hold fast to French, their language, a key to their freedom.

 

Answer :  M. Hamel said that the French was the most beautiful language in the world-the clearest and the most logical.

He asked the students and the village elders to guard it and never forget because it would give them a cultural identity, a sense of freedom and

would a More Atls o@ hAejlp_ tehbeomo tkos remain united.

 

Answer : The narrator was shocked and surprised to hear from M. Hamel that it was going to be their last French lesson. The order had been sent from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine and the new teacher was expected to arrive the very next day.

 

Case Study Based Questions:

1. But I got mixed up on the first words and stood there, holding onto my desk, my heart beating, and not daring to look up.

Question. Why did he stand holding the desk?
a) He was surprised at the question
b) He had not prepared his lesson
c) He was absent the previous day
d) He did not listen the question clearly

Answer: B

Question. What was the reaction of the teacher?
a) Scolded him
b) Shouted at him
c) Sent him out of the class
d) Pitied him

Answer: D

Question. Who is I here?
a) Mr Hamel
b) Franz
c) Village Sarpanch
d) Not clear from the story

Answer: B

Question. What was asked in the classroom from ‗I‘?
a) Rule of grammar
b) Addition rule
c) Multiplication table of 18
d) Essay on the language

Answer: A

2. I heard M Hamel say to me, ―I won't scold you, little Franz; you must feel bad enough. See how it is! Every day we have said to ourselves, ‗Bah! I have plenty of time. I‘ll learn it tomorrow.‘ And now you see where we have come out. That's the great trouble with Alsace; she puts off learning till tomorrow.

Question. The given lines indicate how M Hamel is feeling. Pick the option that correctly states these feelings
1 angry
2 regretful
3 sad
4 hatred
5 Joyous
6 sympathetic
a) 1 and 4
b) 2 and 3
c) 5 and 6
d) 1 and 3

Answer: B

Question. For what reason Franz could have been scolded?
a) For being late to school
b) for not learning participles
c) for ignoring his lessons
d) for playing all the time

Answer: B

Question. Why should Franz be feeling bad?
a) his teacher was retiring
b) he would not learn French now
c) he was rusticated
d) his inability to show his command over friend

Answer: B

Question. The story ‗The Last lesson‘ highlights which human tendency?
a) male chauvinism
b) procrastination
c) courage
d) cowardice

Answer: B

3. M Hamel went on to talk of the French language, saying that it was the most beautiful language in the world- the clearest, the most logical; that we must guard it among us and never forget it, because when a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language as it is as if they had the key to their prison. Then he opened a grammar book and read us our lesson. I was amazed to see how well I understood it. All he said seemed so easy, so easy.

Question. ―I was amazed to see how well I understood it.‖
Select the option that does not explain why Franz found the grammar lesson‗easy‘.
a) Franz was paying careful attention in class this time.
b) M Hamel was being extremely patient and calm in his teaching.
c) Franz was inspired and had found a new meaning and purpose to learning.
d) Franz had realized that French was the clearest and most logical language.

Answer: D

Question. Franz was able to understand the grammar lesson easily because he was
a) receptive
b) appreciative
c) introspective
d) competitive

Answer: A

Question. Which of the following can be attributed to M Hamel‘s declaration about the French language?
a) Subjective expertise
b) Nostalgic pride
c) Factual accuracy
d) Patriotic magnificat

Answer: D

Question. Read the quotes given below. Choose the option that might best describe Hamel‘s viewpoint.
(a) Those who know nothing of foreign languages know nothing of their own.
(b) Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going.
(c) A poor man is like a foreigner in his own country.
(d) The greatest propaganda in the world is our mother tongue, that is what we learn as children, and which we learn unconsciously. That shapes our perception for life.
a) option (a)
b) option (b)
c) option (c)
d) option (d)

Answer: B

4. All at once, the church clock struck 12. then the Angelus. At the same moment the trumpets of the Prussians, returning from drill sounded under our windows. M Hamel stood up very pale in his chair. I never saw him look so tall.

Question. Why was M Hamel so pale?
a) He was tired by the end of the class
b) He was replaced by the German teacher
c) He was not well
d) He was tired due to the Mischief caused by the students

Answer: B

Question. ‗I never saw him look so tall‘means
a) Sad
b) Excited
c) Lively
d) seemed very confident

Answer: D

Question. What is Angelus?
a) Prayers said in the morning
b) Prayers said in the middle of the day
c) Prayers said in the evening
d) all of these

Answer: D

Question. Who are the Prussians?
a) Residents of Germany
b) Residents of Poland
c) Residents of some parts of Austria
d) all of these combined

Answer: D

5. ―Viva La France!‖ then he stopped and leaned his head against the wall and without a word he made a gesture to us with his hand- ―school is dismissed- you may go.‖

Question. The phrase ‗Viva La France‘ indicates the speakers
a) Enthusiasm
b) Depression
c) Nostalgia
d) Patriotism

Answer: D

Question. Why does M Hamel write Viva La France on the black board
a) to show his love for French
b) to show his love for teaching
c) to show his love for his country
d) both a and c

Answer: D

Question. The reason for his stopping and leaning against the wall was
a) because he was unwell
b) because he was emotional
c) because he wanted to teach German too
d) because the students didn't pay attention in his lecture

Answer: B

Question. What does ‗Viva La France‘mean?
a) Good bye France
b) Good living France
c) Long live France
d) France is the best

Answer: C