The Last Lesson

Born to a silk manufacturer in Nîmes, France, Alphonse Daudet

didn’t have the smoothest of starts. When Daudet was seventeen,
his father lost all of his money, leaving Daudet without any easy
educational or employment prospects. Daudet moved to Paris,
where he joined his elder brother, to pursue writing, and published
his first book of poems, Les Amoureuses, in 1858. During his
early years in Paris, he was recruited to act as undersecretary to
the Duke de Morny, a powerful minister under Napoleon III.
When the Franco-Prussian war began in 1870, Daudet enlisted in
the army. He continued writing throughout this time, publishing
books such as Letters from My Mill (1869) and The Nabob
(1877), as well plays, including The Last Idol (1862). His novel
Fromont the Younger and Risler the Elder (1874) won an award
from the French Academy, and as a result Daudet became an
established fixture in the Paris literary scene. He would not live
long, however. The symptoms of a venereal disease that he had
picked up as a young man escalated with age, leading to an
affliction of the spinal cord. He died in 1897, at the age of 57.
’The last lesson’ written by Alphonse Daudet narrates about the year 1870 when the
Prussian forces under Bismarck attacked and captured France. The French districts of
Alsace and Lorraine went into Prussian hands. The new Prussian rulers discontinued
the teaching of French in the schools of these two districts The French teachers were
asked to leave. Now M. Hamel could no longer stay in his school. Still he gave lesson
to his students with utmost devotion and sincerity as ever. One such student of M.
Hamel, Franz who dreaded French class and M. Hamel’s iron rod, came to the school
that day thinking he would be punished as he had not learnt his lesson on participles.
But on reaching school he found Hamel dressed in his fine Sunday clothes and the old
people of the village sitting quietly on the back benches. It was due to an order from
Berlin. That was the first day when he realized for the first time that how important
French was for him, but it was his last lesson in French. The story depicts the pathos of
the whole situation about how people feel when they don’t learn their own language. It
tells us about the significance of one’s language in one’s life for the very existence of a
race and how important it is to safeguard it.

Gist of the lesson

Franz is afraid of going to school as he has not learnt participles.
He wants to enjoy beauty of nature. The bright sunshine, the birds chirruping in the
woods, Prussian soldiers drilling but resisted.
Bulletin board: all bad news, lost battles, the drafts and orders of the commanding
officers: wondered what it could be now
The changes he noticed in the school.
Instead of noisy classrooms everything was as quiet as Sunday morning
The teacher does not scold him and told him very kindly to go to his seat
The teacher dressed in his Sunday best.
Villagers occupying the last benches
To pay tribute to M. Hamel for his 40 years of sincere service and also to express their
solidarity with France.
Hamel making the announcement that that would be the last French lesson; realizes
that, that was what was put up on the bulletin board.
Franz realizes that he does not know his own mother tongue
Regretted why he had not taken his lessons seriously.
Also realizes the reason why teacher was dressed in his Sunday best and villagers
sitting at the back.
Hamel realizes that all three, the children , the parents and he himself are to be blamed
for losing respect and regard for the mother tongue.
Always keep the mother tongue close to your heart as it is the key to the prison of
slavery.
Atmosphere in class: teacher teaching sincerely and patiently, students and others
studying with utmost sincerity.
Franz wonders sarcastically if Prussians could force pigeons to coo in German.
Hamel overcome with emotions could not speak and wrote on the black board “Long
Live France”.
Franz
Franz is the young French student at a school in Alsace-Lorraine, France who is
the story’s first-person narrator. The dramatic tension of the story seems as
though it is going to be the result of friction with his teacher because the tale
begins with Franz anxious preparing for school knowing he is unprepared for his
teacher’s grammar lesson on participles. After getting to school, the tension
turns out to be far worse than a dangling participle.
Mr. Hamel
Mr. Hamel is Franz’s teacher and schoolmaster, the man whose intent to lure
Franz into the mysterious world of French participles has seized the young man
with dread. But when he gets to school, Franz quickly learns that his not having
studied or being prepared for the questions his teacher have overnight become
the problems of another world. The war with the Prussians has just resulted in
the annexation of Alsace-Lorrain into Prussian control. It turns out that today is
not just Mr. Hamel’s last day on the job, it is also his last day in the region,
having been ordered to leave what is now Prussian territory. Even more
distressing: it is the last day that Franz will be required to learn French.
Hauser
Hauser is an older gentlemen Franz recognizes from the village. He is surprised
to see the old man sitting on the benches in the back of the schoolroom
alongside the also unexpected sight of several other adults include the former
mayor and former postmaster. By the end of the story, Hauser is in tears as he
helps the younger students learn their letters using his old French language
primer.

Theme
The Last Lesson revolves around the language and its importance
to the citizens of a country. It is the duty of every citizen to
safeguard the language as it connects with the person’s identity.
Another important aspect is “Chauvinism” i.e. a devotion for or
against someone or something. If the language is of the ruling
class, we notice “Linguistic Chauvinism”. Language is like a
cultural identity and it defines the people. If a country loses its
own language, people lose their own identity. The story also
focuses on the importance of mother tongue. Language is the one
which gives us our respect, identity and freedom.
Question and Answers
Q1. The people in this story suddenly realize how precious their
language is to them. What shows you this? Why does this happen?

A. When the village men realize that their mother tongue, French will
no longer be taught to them, they realize its importance. Suddenly, they
develop an inclination towards learning.

They attend the last lesson of French, bring their old, torn primers to
learn the language which shows their eagerness. They regret putting off
learning French to the next day. Now, finally, the last lesson has arrived,
and they cannot read their own language. They are ashamed of
themselves and realize that the Germans have overpowered them due
to their lack of knowing their own language.

Q2. Franz thinks, “Will they make them sing in German, even the
pigeons?” What could this mean?

A. Franz is disheartened when he comes to know that he can no longer

learn his language – French. Their district has been captured by
Germany and now German will be taught to them. Franz feels that
mother tongue comes to a person naturally, he is born with it and no
one can snatch it away.

Just like the pigeons make the ‘coo’ sound, irrespective of the country
from which they are, similarly, human beings also communicate in their
mother tongue. As the Germans are trying to impose their language on
the French, so similarly, Franz feels that they will teach the pigeons also
to ‘coo’ in German language. He has given this example to highlight his
point that language is a natural mode of communication and it cannot
be imposed.
Question 2 : Why did Franz not want to go to school that day?

Answer : Franz did not want to go to school that day as he had not
prepared his lesson on participles. His French teacher would certainly
scold him for this. So, Franz wanted to avoid going to school.

Question 3 : What did Franz wonder about when he entered the class
that day?

Answer : When Franz entered class that day, he was expecting a

scolding from M Hamel he spoke very kindly and asked him to sit.
Franz also wondered at the presence of senior villagers occupying back
benches of the class.

Question 4 : Why did M Hamel write ‘Vive La France!‘ on the

backboard?

Answer : 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.

Question 5 : “We have all got a great deal to reproach ourselves with,”
said M Hamel. Comment.

Answer : M Hamel said this as most of the people of Alsace could

neither speak not write French. The parents of students preferred to put
them to work to earn money and M Hamel himself did not give much
importance to learning as it demanded.

Question 6 : How did M Hamel display his love for the French
language?

Answer : M Hamel showed his love for the French language by telling
the students that the French language was the most beautiful language
in the world – the clearest and the most logical.

Question 7 : What was the bulletin board news that caused a change in
the school?

Answer : A news had been put on the bulletin board stating that only
German should be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine from
the next day.
Question 8 : Whom did M Hamel blame for Franz’s inability to
answer his question?

Answer : M Hamel blamed the habit of people of Alsace of putting

off learning for tomorrow and not sending their children to school
regularly. He also blamed himself for neglect of learning of boys like
Franz.

Question 9 : What was unusual about M Hamel’s dress on his last

day in school?

Answer : M Hamel had put on his ceremonial clothes on his last day
in the school. He was wearing a beautiful green coat, a frilled shirt,
and a little black embroidered silk cap.

Question 10 : What tempted Franz to stay away from school?

Answer : Franz feared a scolding at school as he had not prepared his

lesson on participles. Besides, the warm, bright weather, the chirping
of birds and the sight of the marching Prussian soldiers also tempted
him to stay away from school.

Question 11 : “What a thunderclap these words were to me!” (Franz).

What were those words and what was their effect on Franz?

Answer : M Hamel told his students that it was their last French
lesson as an order had come from Berlin that henceforth only
German was to be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. This
announcement seemed to be thunderclap to Franz as he was surprised
and shocked on hearing them.