CBSE Class 12 English Last Lesson Worksheet

Extract Based Questions

1. Multiple Choice Questions based on an extract

A. Poorman! Itwas in honour of this last lesson that he had put on his fine Sunday clothes, and now I understood why the old men of the village were sitting there in the back of the room. It was because they were sorry, too, that they had not gone to schoolmore. It was theirway of thanking ourmaster for his forty years of faithful service and of showing their respect for the country that was theirs no more.

Question. Why does the narrator refer to M. Hamel as ‘Poor man!’?
(a) He empathises with M. Hamel as he had to leave the village.
(b) He believes that M. Hamel’s “fine Sunday clothes” clearly reflected that he was not rich.
(c) He feels sorry for M. Hamel as it was his last French lesson.
(d) He thinks that M. Hamel’s patriotism and sense of duty resulted in his poverty.
Answer.C

Question. Which of the following idioms might describe the villagers’ act of attending the last lesson most accurately?
(a) ‘Too good to miss’
(b) ‘Too little, too late’
(c) ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth’
(d) ‘Too cool for school’
Answer.B

Question. Choose the option that might raise a question about M. Hamel’s “faithful service”.
(a) When Franz came late, M. Hamel told him that he was about to begin class without him.
(b) Franz mentioned how cranky M. Hamel was and his “great ruler rapping on the table”.
(c) M. Hamel often sent students to water his flowers, and gave a holiday when he wanted to go fishing.
(d) M. Hamel permitted villagers put their children “to work on a farm or at the mills” for some extra money.
Answer.C

Question. Choose the option that most appropriately fills in the blanks, for the following description of the given extract.The villagers and their children sat in class, forging with their old master a (i) ……… togetherness. In that moment,the class room stood (ii) ……… . It was France itself, and the last French lesson a desperate hope to (iii) ……… to the remnants of what they had known and taken for granted. Their own (iv)……….
(a) (i) graceful; (ii) still; (iii) hang on; (iv) country
(b) (i) bygone; (ii) up; (iii) keep on; (iv) education
(c) (i) beautiful; (ii) mesmerised; (iii) carry on; (iv) unity
(d) (i) forgotten; (ii) transformed; (iii) hold on; (iv) identity
Answer.D 

B. 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, becausewhen a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language 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. Which of the following can be attributed to M. Hamel’s declaration about the French language?
(a) subject expertise
(b) nostalgic pride
(c) factual accuracy
(d) patriotic magnification
Answer.D

Question. Read the quotes given below.
I. Those who know nothing of foreign languages know nothing of their own.  – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
II. Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going. – Rita Mae Brown
III. A poor man is like a foreigner in his own country. – Ali Ibn Abi Talib
IV. 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 perceptions for life. – Marshal McLuhan
Choose the option that might best describeM. Hamel’s viewpoint.
(a) Option (I)
(b) Option (II)
(c) Option (III)
(d) Option (IV)
Answer.B

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

2. Stand-alone MCQs

Question. Franz saw a huge crowd assembled in front of the bulletin board, but did not stop. How would you evaluate his reaction?
(a) Franz was too little to care about the news of lost battles.
(b) Nobody in Franz’s family was in the army, so it did not matter.
(c) Bad news had become very normal, so he went about his task.
(d) It was too crowded for Franz to find out what news was up on the board.
Answer.C

Question.There was usually great bustle and noise when school began, but it was all very quiet.Which of the following describes Franz’ emotions most accurately?
(a) shock and awe
(b) disappointment and anxiety
(c) confusion and distress
(d) curiosity and uncertainty
Answer.B

Question. “I never saw him look so tall”. Which of the following best captures M. Hamel on the last day of school?
(a) cranky, miserable, dedicated, resigned
(b) patient, dignified, emotional, courageous
(c) calm, nostalgic, disappointed, patriotic
(d) proud, reproachful, persistent, heroic
Answer.B

Question. Look at the table below. Column A provides instances from the story ‘The Last Lesson’. Column B provides titles of some famous English language poems. Choose the option that correctly match items of Column A with Column B.

Codes
(a) 1 – (i); 2 – (ii); 3 – (iii); 4 – (iv)
(b) 1 – (ii); 2 – (iii); 3 – (iv); 4 – (i)
(c) 1 – (iii); 2 – (iv); 3 – (i); 4 – (ii)
(d) 1 – (iv); 2 – (i); 3 – (ii); 4 – (iii)
Answer.D

Questions on the Extracts from the Lesson

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
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’ve plenty of time. I’ll learn it tomorrow’. And now you see where we’ve come out. Ah, that’s the great trouble with Alsace; she puts off learning till tomorrow. Now those fellows out there will have the right to say to you, ‘How is it; you pretend to be Frenchmen, and yet you can neither speak nor write your own language?’ But you are not the worst, poor little Franz. We’ve all a great deal to reproach ourselves with.”

(a) M. Hamel did not scold Franz because:
(a) he was feeling bad
(b) there was plenty of time to learn
(c) he knew Franz was feeling bad
(d) he was blaming himself
Answer : C

(b) The phrase ‘those fellows’ refers to:
(a) the Frenchmen
(b) the village elders
(c) the Prussians
(d) the new teachers
Answer : C

(c) Why did M. Hamel say Franz was not the worst?
(a) The Frenchmen did not want to learn
(b) The children’s parents were to blame
(c) Most of the students were like Franz
(d) They were all at fault
Answer : D

(d) The word ‘reproach’ means the same as:
(a) admonish
(b) boast
(c) credit
(d) punish
Answer : A

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
I started for school very late that morning and was in great dread of a scolding, especially because M.
Hamel had said that he would question us on participles, and I did not know the first word about them.
For a moment I thought of running away and spending the day out of doors. It was so warm, so bright! The birds were chirping at the edge of the woods; and in the open field back of the sawmill the Prussian soldiers were drilling. It was all much more tempting than the rule for participles, but I had the strength
to resist, and hurried off to school.
When I passed the town hall there was a crowd in front of the bulletin-board. For the last two years all our bad news had come from there — the lost battles, the draft, the orders of the commanding officer — and I thought to myself, without stopping, “What can be the matter now?”

(a) Franz dreaded a scolding from M.Hamel because:
(a) he was late for school
(b) he had not learnt his lesson
(c) he wanted to spend the day out of doors
(d) he had not paid attention to his lesson
Answer : B

(b) Franz felt that __________ was more interesting than the rule for participles.
(a) to spend the day outside.
(b) to watch the drill of the Prussian soldiers.
(c) to hear the birds chirping
(d) all of the above
Answer : D

(c) The bulletin-board is symbolic of:
(a) distress
(b) struggle
(c) nuisance
(d) danger
Answer : A

(d) Choose the term which describes Franz’s emotions when he says, “What can be the matter now?”
(a) sadness
(b) dilemma
(c) inquisitiveness
(d) thoughtful
Answer : B

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
Whenever I looked up from my writing I saw M. Hamel sitting motionless in his chair and gazing first at one thing, then at another, as if he wanted to fix in his mind just how everything looked in that little schoolroom.
Fancy! For forty years he had been there in the same place, with his garden outside the window and his class in front of him, just like that. Only the desks and benches had been worn smooth; the walnut-trees in the garden were taller, and the hopvine that he had planted himself twined about the windows to the roof. How it must have broken his heart to leave it all, poor man; to hear his sister moving about in the room above, packing their trunks! For they must leave the country next day.

(a) M. Hamel sitting motionless in his chair reveals his:
(a) frustration
(b) gloominess
(c) anxiety
(d) indifference
Answer : B

(b) What had not changed in the last forty years?
(a) Walnut trees
(b) Hop vine
(c) Classroom
(d) None of the above
Answer : C

(c) Franz knew that M. Hamel’s heart was broken:
(a) to hear his sister moving in the room.
(b) his trunks were being packed.
(c) to leave the country the next day.
(d) All of the above
Answer : D

(d) The word ‘gazing’ means:
(a) looking steadily
(b) looking vaguely
(c) enduring
(d) staring indifferently
Answer : A

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
I jumped over the bench and sat down at my desk. Not till then, when I had got a little over my fright, did I see that our teacher had on his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt, and the little black silk cap, all embroidered, that he never wore except on inspection and prize days. Besides, the whole school seemed so strange and solemn. But the thing that surprised me most was to see, on the back benches that were always empty, the village people sitting quietly like ourselves; old Hauser, with his three-cornered hat, the former mayor, the former postmaster, and several others besides.

(a) Franz was frightened because:
(a) he had not learnt the participles.
(b) his teacher was angry.
(c) he was late for school.
(d) both (a) and (c)
Answer : D

(b) M. Hamel was dressed in his formals:
(a) in honour of the last French lesson.
(b) in a gesture of bidding farewell.
(c) to pay his respect to the village elders who were present.
(d) to show his respect for a country that was not theirs any more.
Answer : A

(c) The atmosphere prevailing in the whole school on that day was:
(a) threatening
(b) trivial
(c) haphazard
(d) grave
Answer : D

(d) The word ‘Strange’ means the same as:
(a) Queer
(b) Usual
(c) Ordinary
(d) Typical
Answer : A

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
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 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!

(a) Which of the following can be attributed to M. Hamel’s declaration about the French language?
(a) subject expertise
(b) nostalgic pride
(c) factual accuracy
(d) patriotic magnification
Answer : D

(b) Read the quotes given below. Choose the option that might best describe M. Hamel’s viewpoint.
I. Those who know nothing of foreign languages know nothing of their own. —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
II. Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going. —Rita Mae Brown
III. A poor man is like a foreigner in his own country. —Ali Ibn Abi Talib
IV. The greatest propaganda in the world’s our mother tongue, that is what we learn as children, and which we learn unconsciously. That shapes our perceptions for life. —Marshall McLuhan
Answer : B

(c) Why did M. Hamel say Franz was not the worst?
(a) The Frenchmen did not want to learn
(b) The children’s parents were to blame
(c) Most of the students were like Franz
(d) They were all at fault
Answer : D

(d) The word ‘reproach’ means the same as:
(a) admonish
(b) boast
(c) credit
(d) punish
Answer : A

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
The only sound was the scratching of the pens over the paper. Once some beetles flew in; but nobody paid any attention to them, not even the littlest ones, who worked right on tracing their fish-hooks, as if that was French, too. On the roof the pigeons cooed very low, and I thought to myself, “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?”

(a) Why was everyone quiet?
(a) They had been assigned some work.
(b) The mood in the class was solemn and somber.
(c) As mark of respect for M. Hamel.
(d) They wanted to finish their work on time.
Answer : B

(b) The serious mood of those present in the classroom is a proof of:
(a) patriotic fervour
(b) A sense of regret
(c) Respect for their teacher
(d) All of the above
Answer : D

(c) Nobody paid attention to the beetles that flew in because:
(a) They were too busy working.
(b) They were all sad.
(c) The teacher would get angry at them.
(d) They were distracted by the pigeons.
Answer : A

(d) When Franz says “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?”. This statement of Franz reveals his:
(a) Sarcasm
(b) Annoyance
(c) Frustration
(d) Empathy
Answer : A

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
Poor man! It was in honour of this last lesson that he had put on his fine Sunday clothes, and now I understood why the old men of the village were sitting there in the back of the room. It was because they were sorry, too, that they had not gone to school more. It was their way of thanking our master for his forty years of faithful service and of showing their respect for the country that was theirs no more.

(a) Why does the narrator refer to M. Hamel as ‘Poor man!’?
(a) He empathizes with M. Hamel as he had to leave the village.
(b) He believes that M. Hamel’s “fine Sunday clothes” clearly reflected that he was not rich.
(c) He feels sorry for M. Hamel as it was his last French lesson.
(d) He thinks that M. Hamel’s patriotism and sense of duty resulted in his poverty.
Answer : C

(b) Which of the following idioms might describe the villagers’ act of attending the last lesson most accurately?
(a) ‘Too good to miss’
(b) ‘Too little, too late’
(c) ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth’
(d) Too cool for school’
Answer : B

(c) Choose the option that might raise a question about M. Hamel’s “faithful service”.
(a) When Franz came late, M. Hamel told him that he was about to begin class without him.
(b) Franz mentioned how cranky M. Hamel was and his “great ruler rapping on the table”.
(c) M. Hamel often sent students to water his flowers, and gave a holiday when he wanted to go fishing.
(d) M. Hamel permitted villagers put their children “to work on a farm or at the mills” for some extra money.
Answer : C

(d) Choose the option that most appropriately fills in the blanks, for the following description of the given extract.
The villagers and their children sat in class, forging with their old master a (a) _____ togetherness. In that moment, the class room stood (b) _____. It was France itself, and the last French lesson a desperate hope to (c) ______ to the remnants of what they had known and taken for granted. Their own
(d) _______.
(a) (a) graceful; (b) still; (c) hang on; (d) country
(b) (a) bygone; (b) up; (c) keep on; (d) education
(c) (a) beautiful; (b) mesmerised; (c) carry on; (d) unity
(d) (a) forgotten; (b) transformed; (c) hold on; (d) identity
Answer : D

Stand-Alone Multiple Choice Questions

Question. Concluding his last lesson by writing ‘Vive la France!’ on the blackboard shows that M. Hamel—
(a) was overwhelmed with emotions.
(b) wanted to distract all attending class that day.
(c) was keen on not leaving the country.
(d) wanted to teach French participles through it.
Answer : A

Question. There was usually great bustle and noise when school began, but it was all very quiet.
Which of the following describes Franz’s emotions most accurately?
(a) shock and awe
(b) disappointment and anxiety
(c) confusion and distress
(d) curiosity and uncertainty
Answer : B

Question. M. Hamel made a gesture with his hand to dismiss the class because he was:
(a) deeply touched
(b) extremely regretful
(c) overwhelmed with emotions
(d) intensely affected
Answer : C

Question. The thing that surprised Franz the most was:
(a) M. Hamel wearing his fine Sunday clothes.
(b) His not being scolded by his teacher.
(c) The village elders present in the classroom.
(d) No commotion in school.
Answer : C

Question. Franz did not want to go to school that morning because:
(a) it was a cold day.
(b) he wanted to learn the rules on participle.
(c) he feared M. Hamel’s scolding.
(d) he wanted to watch the children drilling.
Answer : C

Question. What was the ‘bulletin-board’ in ‘The Last Lesson’ symbolic of?
(a) Happiness
(b) Excitement
(c) Distress
(d) Commotion
Answer : C 

Question. ‘Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty of time. Franz thought the blacksmith was making fun of him because:
(a) The blacksmith was taunting him.
(b) Franz was late for school.
(c) The blacksmith was being sarcastic.
(d) Franz had not read the bulletin board.
Answer : D

Question. “I never saw him look so tall”. Which of the following best captures M. Hamel on the last day of school?
(a) cranky, miserable, dedicated, resigned
(b) patient, dignified, emotional, patriotic
(c) calm, nostalgic, disappointed, courageous
(d) proud, reproachful, persistent, heroic
Answer : B

Question. On the day of the last lesson M. Hamel was gazing at everything in the little school room:
(a) as he wanted to ensure he was not leaving anything behind.
(b) in an attempt to fix in his mind how everything looked.
(c) as he was free and the students were busy writing.
(d) as he had to leave the next day.
Answer : B 

Question. Choose the statement that is NOT TRUE with reference to Franz:
(a) He had never considered his books nuisance.
(b) He felt sad that M.Hamel was leaving.
(c) He made a mistake while reciting the participle.
(d) He felt sorry for not learning his lessons.
Answer : A

Question. M. Hamel’ words were a thunderclap for Franz because:
(a) He regretted not learning his language
(b) He would miss his teacher
(c) They were most unexpected
(d) None of the above
Answer : A

Question. When did Franz realize what had been put up at the bulletin board?
(a) When he reached school.
(b) On reaching the classroom.
(c) When he saw the village elders in the classroom.
(d) When M. Hamel announced in the class.
Answer : D

Question. Franz saw a huge crowd assembled in front of the bulletin board, but did not stop. How would you evaluate his reaction?
(a) Franz was too little to care about the news of lost battles.
(b) Nobody in Franz’s family was in the army, so it did not matter.
(c) Bad news had become very normal, so he went about his task.
(d) It was too crowded for Franz to find out what news was up on the board.
Answer : C

Question. What does the drill of the Prussian soldiers suggest?
(a) The loss of political freedom
(b) Prussia had been defeated
(c) Reminder of French invasion of Prussia
(d) The victory of the French
Answer : A

Q.1 Fill in the blanks using suitable words and phrases from the lesson’ The Last Lesson’.

i) The order has come from berlin to teach only german in the schools of -----------and------------.
ii) Franz is afraid of going to school as he has not learnt--------------.
iii) Franz wants to enjoy beauty of nature and the bright----------- but he---------------.
iv) M. Hamel realizes that all three, he himself, the children and the -- ----- are to be--------- for losing respect for the Mother tongue.
v) According to m. Hamel, french language was the most------------, -- ----------and--------language.
vi) The last words written on the board by M. Hamel were----------------

Q.2 find words from the lesson which mean the same as:

i) occurring together all simultaneously. --------------(page 3, para 2)
ii) confused moment. ----------------- (page 3, para 2)
iii) make slave for. ---------------- (page 7, para 1)
iv) a brass musical instrument. ---------------- (page 8, para 3)
v) a non finite form of the verb. ---------------- (page 1, para 1)
vi) to blame or condemn ---------------- ( page 5, para 3)

Q.3 write True or False giving reasons wherever necessary:

i) Franz started for school very early that morning and was very happy.
i) The villagers were very eager to have their children learn their mother tongue and study well in school.
ii) On the last day in school, M. Hamel taught them literature, mathematics and German.
iii) The villagers were occupying the last benches to learn a lesson in history.
iv) Instead of noisy classrooms everything was as quiet as Sunday morning and m. Hamel was dressed in his Sunday best on that day.
v) When a people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language it is as if they had the key to prison.

Q.4 Multiple choice questions.

Choose the most appropriate option from the options given below for the questions that follow.

I) when I passed the town hall there was a crowd in front of the bulletin board. What was it about?
a) to teach German in schools of Alsace and Lorraine.
b) to teach French in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine.
c) to inform people that they should learn their mother tongue.

II) The people in the story suddenly realize how precious their language is to them . What makes them feel so?
a) M.Hamel’s motivating words.
b) They realize that their language has been taken away from them.
c) They also realize the importance of their mother tongue.
d) All the above.

III) How it must have broken his heart to leave it all. Who has been referred to as a poor man? Why ?
a) M.Hamel as he has to leave the country the next day.
b) The postmaster as he has come to pay tribute to m. Hamel.
c) The mayor as he has to move from France to Germany.

IV) Franz’s feeling about M. Hamel changes because:
a) M. Hamel blames his parents for not sending him to school.
b) Hamel teaches the last lesson with sincerity, emotion and patience.
c) M. Hamel punished him as he was late.

V) What happened when the church clock struck 12?
a) The villagers gathered near the bulletin board.
b) M. Hamel left the class and went fishing.
c) The Prussian army came to take over Alsace and Lorraine.

Question. What did Franz find on reaching the school?
(a) students were dancing
(b) students were singing
(c) police patrolling
(d) strange quietness

Answer : D

Question. Who occupied the back benches in the class?
(a) teachers
(b) village elders
(c) weak students
(d) monitors

Answer : B

Question. Why did the villagers come to meet M. Hamel in the school?
(a) to gossip
(b) to say goodbye
(c) to complain
(d) to express gratitude

Answer : D 

Question. Since the last two years, where did all the bad news come from?
(a) the bulletin board
(b) town hall
(c) M. Hamel’s house
(d) school 

Answer : A 

Question. What is the moral that Alphonse Daudet wants to bring out?
(a) not to put off things that one can do that day
(b) old order changed to new
(c) one should accept everything that happens
(d) teachers should be respected 

Answer : A 

Question. What does marching of soldiers under the windows represent?
(a) the departure of Hamel
(b) dawn of Prussia in France
(c) freedom for Franz
(d) sorrow of villagers 

Answer : B 

Question. What does M. Hamel’s motionless posture reflect?
(a) the school is dismissed
(b) changing order of life
(c) sense of finality
(d) feeling of nostalgia 

Answer : C 

Question. M. Hamel is a ruler-wielding teacher. This demonstrates that……….
(a) he is concerned
(b) he is adamant
(c) he is unfeeling
(d) he is hard task master 

Answer : D 

Question. M. Hamel emerges as ---------- a person when he teaches his last lesson.
(a) meek person
(b) true patriot
(c) repentant man
(d) defeated person 

Answer : B 

Question. Why did Franz want to skip the school?
(a) work on mills
(b) go for fishing
(c) water the plants
(d) collect bird eggs 

Answer : D 

Question. “Like little flags floating everywhere in the school-room, hung from the rod at the top of our desks.” Which poetic device is used in the above given line?
(a) metaphor
(b) simile
(c) alliteration
(d) hyperbole 

Answer : B 

Question. “Because when people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language it is as if they had the key to their prison.” Which poetic device is used in the above given line?
(a) simile
(b) metaphor
(c) alliteration
(d) hyperbole 

Answer : A 

Question. “What a thunderclap these words to me!” Which poetic device is used in the above given line?
(a) alliteration
(b) simile
(c) metaphor
(d) hyperbole 

Answer : C                                      

More Important Questions For CBSE Class 12 English The Last Lesson Worksheet........

Ques.1. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
While I was wondering about it all, M. Hamel mounted his chair, and, in the same grave and gentle tone which he had used to me, said, "My children, this is the last lesson I shall give you. The order has come from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. The new master comes tomorrow. This is your last French lesson..."

i. What was the tone of M. Hamel when he was addressing his students?

(a) cheerful 

(b) excited 

(c) heart-broken 

(d) angry

ii. The grave and gentle tone in which M. Hamel spoke after getting the order from Berlin was due to:

(a) his patriotic feeling for his country 

(b) his love for his mother tongue

(c) the grief of not being able to teach French in future 

(d) All of these

iii. When would M. Hamel leave?

(a) the same day 

(b) the next day 

(c) after one week 

(d) after two weeks

iv. What did M. Hamel want from the students on the last day of French lesson?

(a) To give him a farewell. 

(b) To oppose the order from Berlin.

(c) To be very attentive. 

(d) To guard their language.

Ques.2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

When I passed the town hall there was a crowd in front of the bulletin-board. For the last two years all our bad news had come from there — the lost battles, the draft, the orders of the commanding officer — and I thought to myself, without stopping, “What can be the matter now?” Then, as I hurried by as fast as I could go, the blacksmith, Wachter, who was there, with his apprentice, reading the bulletin, called after me, “Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty of time!”

i. Who was called ‘bub’?

(a) M. Hamel 

(b) Wachter 

(c) Franz 

(d) Old Hauser

ii. What did the narrator think when the blacksmith called after him and said, "Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty of time!"

(a) The school was closed today. 

(b) It was the last lesson today.

(c) He was making fun of him. 

(d) None of these

iii. Identify the tone in which the speaker said the words , “Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty of time!’’?

(a) Sarcastic 

(b) Humorous 

(c) Depressive 

(d) Cheerful

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

(a) The news of the lost battles

(b) The draft of the commanding officer

(c) The order from Berlin to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine.

(d) All of these

Ques.3. What words did M. Hamel write on the blackboard before dismissing the last class ? What did they mean ?

Ans.. Before dismissing the last class, M. Hamel wrote “Vive La France!” on the blackboard. The French expression means “Long Live France.”

Ques.4. What was unusual about M. Hamel’s dress on his last day in the school?

Ans. On his last day in the school, M.Hamel put on his beautiful green coat, frilled shirt and a silk cap. It was an attire he would wear on important occasions.

Ques.5. How did M. Hamel say farewell to his students and the people of the town ?

Ans. M. Hamel announced in the class that it was going to be the last French lesson. He regretted not being stricter when there was enough time to teach

French. He asked everybody to preserve their language, French, since it was the most beautiful of all languages. He also said that their language was the key to their freedom. At last, he stood up on his chair to say something. However, his melancholy made him choke. So, instead, he wrote “Vive La France!” on the blackboard and making a gesture with his hand, he said, “School is dismissed, you may go.”

Ques.6. Franz thinks, “Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?” What does this tell us about the attitude of the Frenchmen?

Ans. It shows the pitiable state of the Frenchmen. They feared the German atrocity. They thought that they would be forced to learn and read German and no one will be spared.

Ques.7. “This is your last French lesson.” How did Franz react to this declaration of M. Hamel?

Ans. To Franz, the words sounded like thunderclap. He was shocked, at first, to hear that it was going to be his and everybody’s last French lesson. However, he was soon overcome with a feeling of remorse and regret.

Ques.8. Why did M. Hamel write ‘Vive La France!’ on the blackboard?

Ans. M. Hamel wrote ‘Vive La France!’ on the blackboard because of the love for his country. It could also be considered as an expression of rebellion against imposition of the German.

Ques.9. The order from Berlin aroused a particular zeal in the school. Comment.

Ans. The order from Berlin, to teach only German in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine from now on, aroused a particular zeal in the school on the day of the last French lesson.

The air that day, was mixed with pride and sorrow.Students as well as elderly members of the village came to attend the class. The ambiance was quite sombre as the children were serious and some of the elders, sitting at the back benches, were crying.

M. Hamel, who was dressed in his best attire, appeared to be in a pensive mood. His students and the village elders too paid great attention to everything that was being taught in the class. They hoped to learn as much as possible. Even Franz seemed to love his books. M. Hamel told those present in the class to hold on to French as it was the most beautiful language in the world. He said that their mother tongue was the key to their freedom.

A feeling of oneness and immense love and respect for the mother tongue showed on everyone’s face. The class ended with M. Hamel writing ‘Vive La France!’ on the board.