Short and Long Answer Questions - The Last Lesson | English Class 12 PDF Download

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Important Short Answer Type Questions

Q1: What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?
Ans: Franz was expected to be prepared with participles that day for school, as Mr. Hamel had said that he would question them on participles.

Q2: Why was Franz tempted to play truant from school?
Ans:

• ​The French teacher, M. Hamel, was going to ask questions on participles that Franz had not prepared.
• To avoid being scolded, he was tempted to play truant from school and spend the day outdoors in a pleasurable manner.

Q3: What was unusual about the school that Franz noticed when he entered the school?
Ans: 

• On entering the school, Franz noticed an unusual silence.
• There was no noise of opening and closing of desks.
• The village elders had occupied the last benches that were always empty.
• M. Hamel was in his very fine Sunday clothes.
• Everybody looked sad.

Q4: What had been put up on the bulletin board?
Ans: 

• Franz had a negative view of the bulletin board as, for the last two years, only bad news had come from it.
• That day was no exception, as Germans had put up an order passed from Berlin on the bulletin board to teach only German in the school of Alsace and Lorraine.

Q5: What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school that day?
Ans: 

• The order from Berlin caused many changes in the school that day.
• The entire school seemed strange and solemn.
• The old villagers were sitting on the back benches of the classroom quietly to thank M. Hamel for his forty years of faithful service and to show their respect for their country.
• M. Hamel had put on his best dress, though it was neither an inspection nor a prize day.
• The order from Berlin also brought a sense of repentance for those who, despite having time, didn’t learn French properly.

Q6: How did Franz’s feelings about M. Hamel and school change?
Ans: 

• Earlier, Franz didn’t like M. Hamel much because of his ruler and cranky nature, and he feared him.
• The message conveyed by M. Hamel about the order from Berlin was a thunderclap for little Franz.
• He immediately felt sorry for not being sincere in school and for not learning French properly.
• His books, which earlier seemed a nuisance and a burden, now felt like old friends.

Q7: What reasons did M. Hamel give for their lack of interest in learning French?
Ans: 

• The lack of interest in learning French was due to:
• Parents who wanted their children to work in farms or mills to earn.
• Students who were reluctant to learn and often postponed lessons.
• M. Hamel himself, as he sometimes asked them to water the flowers and gave them a holiday when he had to go fishing.

Q8: Why doesn’t M. Hamel want the people to forget French?
Ans: 

• M. Hamel wanted them not to forget French because:
• It is the most beautiful, clear, and logical language in the world.
• As long as they hold fast to their language, it would be as if they had the key to the prison.

Q9: Franz thinks, “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?” What could this mean?
Ans: 

• The Frenchmen were highly patriotic and took pride in their language.
• A strong feeling of revolt was in the air against the Germans.
• It shows that Franz did not accept their rule and thought they couldn’t tame pigeons.

Q10: Describe how M. Hamel conducted the last lesson.
Ans: 

• In his last French class, though M. Hamel was emotional, he fully involved himself in the teaching-learning process.
• He heard every lesson to the last, sitting motionless in his chair.
• When the church bell struck twelve, he stood up pale and wrote ‘Vive La France’ on the board.
• With a gesture, he communicated that the school is dismissed.

Q11: What did M. Hamel say about the French language?
Ans: 

• M. Hamel said that the French language was the most beautiful, clearest, and logical language in the world.
• He emphasized that it should be guarded and never forgotten.
• He also added that love for one’s language could act as the key to freedom for people who are enslaved.

Q12: Why did villagers come to school that day?
Ans: 

• The old men of the village came to the school that day to thank M. Hamel for his forty years of faithful service.
• They also came to show their respect for their country, which was no longer theirs.

Q13: How did Franz find teaching and learning that day?
Ans: 

• Franz found teaching and learning very interesting that day.
• He was very attentive and careful.
• He also realized that M. Hamel had never explained everything with so much patience before.
• It seemed almost as if the poor man wanted to give them all he knew before going away.
• M. Hamel wanted to put all knowledge into their heads at one stroke, as it was their last lesson.

Important long Answer Type Questions

Q1: How did M. Hamel react when Franz failed to recite the rule for the participle?
Ans: 

• Franz’s name was called to recite the rule for the participles, but he got mixed up on the first word.
• He stood there, holding on to his desk, his heart beating, and did not dare to look up.
• Instead of scolding him, M. Hamel told Franz that he must feel bad enough.
• He said that every day they think they have plenty of time and will learn tomorrow.
• Now, they see the consequences of putting off learning till tomorrow.
• He warned that others would question their identity, saying,
• “How is it; you pretend to be a Frenchman, and yet you can neither speak nor write your language?”
• M. Hamel also stated that Franz alone was not to be blamed:
• His parents preferred putting him to work on a farm or at the mills for extra money.

M. Hamel himself sometimes sent him to water flowers or gave holidays when he wanted to go fishing.

Q2: What does M. Hamel tell about the significance and safeguarding of the French language? How does he conclude his last lesson?
Ans: 

• M. Hamel said that French was the most beautiful, clear, and logical language in the world.
• He urged everyone to guard it and never forget it, as when people are enslaved, holding fast to their language is like having the key to their prison.
• He then opened a grammar book and read the students their lesson with great patience.
• After grammar, he gave a writing lesson with new copies written in a beautiful round hand:
• France, Alsace, France, Alsace.
• He heard every lesson to the very last, trying to put all his knowledge into their heads in one stroke.
• When he wanted to speak further, he could not go on.
• He turned to the blackboard, took a piece of chalk, and wrote:
• “Vive La France!”
• Lastly, he said: “School is dismissed—you may go.”

Q3: What impression do you form of M. Hamel based on your study of the story “The Last Lesson”?
Ans: 

• M. Hamel was an experienced teacher who had taught in the school for forty years.
• He was a hard taskmaster, and students like Franz feared his scoldings.
• The order from Berlin saddened him, as he had to leave forever.
• He maintained self-control but was heartbroken.
• In his last lesson, he was kind even to latecomers like Franz.
• He spoke in a solemn and gentle tone, showing patience.
• He blamed parents, students, and himself for neglecting French.
• He knew the emotional hold of language over its users.
• He was patriotic and expressed his sorrow when he failed to say goodbye, as his throat was choked.
• On the whole, he was a patriotic and devoted gentleman.

Q4: Franz’s attitude towards school and M. Hamel changes when he learns about the takeover of his village by Prussians. Do you agree? Discuss with reference to ‘The Last Lesson’.
Ans: 

• Berlin’s order to take over the village deeply affected Franz.
• The school notice board announced that only German would be taught, and M. Hamel had to leave.
• Franz felt sorry for neglecting his lessons in French.
• His books, which earlier seemed a nuisance and heavy burden, now felt like old friends.
• His feelings towards M. Hamel changed, and he decided to pay attention.
• School became very important to him.
• The thought of losing M. Hamel made Franz serious about history and grammar.
• I fully agree that people only realize the value of things when they are about to lose them.

Q5: Give a brief description of M. Hamel.
Ans: 

• M. Hamel was a devoted, dedicated, and strict disciplinarian.
• Students were afraid of his cranky nature and iron ruler.
• He was a true patriot and a sincere teacher who served the school for forty long years.
• He was heartbroken when he received the order from Berlin to vacate his place for a German teacher.
• His last class showed a changed behavior—he was polite and patient.
• When Franz failed to recite, instead of scolding, he explained the importance of learning the mother tongue.
• He preached that one should never postpone important tasks, as time flies fast.

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 one’s language is superior to all others.
• It shows excessive or prejudiced support for one’s language.
• Extreme linguistic enthusiasts try to preserve and spread their language at all costs.
• In their enthusiasm, they ignore the merits of other languages.
• Excessive pride in language can create ill-will and division instead of unity.

Example:

• Resistance to Hindi as the national language in southern states of India due to fear of domination.
• As a result, the idea of “one India” remains only a slogan.