Lost Spring by Anees Jung

Lost Spring by Anees Jung

Theme: The story deals with the untold tale of slum children who live a life of depression and poverty for generations together. Their forefathers are either immigrant from Bangladesh or migrant workers from different parts of the country. This story is divided into two parts- the first part describes the deplorable state of Saheb and his family, who have migrated from Bangladesh during 1971 war. The second part of the story describes about Mukesh, whose family tradition of bangle making continues for generations tighter in spite of health hazards of working in dingy cells, where bangles are manufactured. Mukesh belongs to a family which is engaged in bangle making like many other families. Firozabad is the hub of India’s glass blowing industry where generation after generation has been involved in this business.  

In this lesson ‘Lost Spring’ , spring has been used in the context of ‘Childhood’. Spring is considered the most cherished season of the year when flowers bloom. Similarly, childhood is the most formative years of life . The story describes the pathetic life of the innocent children losing their childhood in the vicious circle of poverty and illiteracy. The deplorable condition of exploitation of slum children has been highlighted in the story. Saheb and Mukesh are metaphors for all slum children who fall prey to the family tradition of ragpicking and bangle making profession respectively, with Mukesh being the exception as he wants to be a motor mechanic breaking the family tradition of bangle making.

The author’s acquaintance with Saheb and other barefoot ragpickers introduced her to Seemapuri. Seemapuri consists of people who left Bangladesh in the 1971 war. Saheb’s family is among them. About 10000 ragpickers live here.

When Anees visits that place, she comes to know that these ragpickers have lived here for more than thirty years without any identity. They do not have permits but do have ration cards, thanks to the selfish whims and wishes of the politicians. With these they can get their name on the voter’s lists and buy grains.

The family tradition of rag picking in the case of Saheb and Bangle making in the case of Mukesh is a deterrent for both the boys to think big and do something out of the box.

However, Mukesh in the second part of the story wants to be a motor mechanic, something which is a night mare for his family members as they cannot afford to embrace any other profession besides bangle making. Therefore, Mukesh has been projected to be an iconoclast in the story.

Saheb, too lost his freedom when he was working at a tea stall and was paid eight hundred rupees as well as his meals. Saheb was not happy as the steel canister seemed heavier than the plastic bag. He wanted to be his own master. Therefore, the longing for living a normal childhood can be seen in both the boys.

The author feels that the slum people are caught in two distinct worlds. One is the family caught in the clutches of poverty and the stigma of caste and secondly the world of those rich people who exploit them for their selfish benefits. These people are caught in the vicious circle of Sahukars, middlemen, policemen, bureaucrats and politicians. It is because of these people that the child is weighed down with responsibilities at such a tender age.

Think as You Read ( page 17)

1.What is Saheb looking for in the garbage dumps? Where is he and where has he come from?

Ans: Saheb is looking for coins, which is considered as ‘gold’ in the story, in garbage dumps.

He is presently living at Seemapuri, which is at the periphery of Delhi. He has come from Bangladesh in 1971.

2.What explanations does the author offer for the children not wearing footwear?

Ans: The narrator found that children across the country walk barefoot in cities and on village roads. It is not lack of money always, but a tradition to stay barefoot. But the narrator wonders about the fact that the children are walking barefoot to explain away a perpetual state of poverty.

3.Is Saheb happy working at the tea-stall? Explain.

Ans: No, Saheb is not happy working at the tea stall. As he was no longer his own master by working at the tea stall at a meagre salary of 800 with meals. The steel canister , which he was carrying in his hand, seemed heavier than the plastic bag he was carrying over his shoulder. Therefore, he left the tea stall.

Think as You Read ( page 17)

4. What makes the city of Firozabad famous?

Ans: Firozabad is famous for bangle industries. It is the centre of India’s glass-blowing industry. Families have spent generations working around furnaces, welding glass, making bangles for all the women in  the land.

5. Mention the hazards of working in the glass industry.

Ans: The glass bangle industry offers very unhealthy environment to the people. They have to work in the glass furnaces with high temperature in dingy cells. Their eyes are more adjusted to the dark than to the light outside. This makes them blind before they become adults.   

6. How is Mukehs’s attitude to his situation different from that of his family?

Ans: Mukush’s family looks at the family profession of bangle making as ‘karam’ or destiny. His grandmother perceives it as ‘god-given. They are ready to die  out of blindness and grim poverty, but won’t defy this profession. On the other hand, Mukesh wants to be a motor mechanic and is therefore considered to be an iconoclast as he dares to deviate from taking to his family tradition of bangle making.

Extra Questions:

7.Why does the author say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web?

Ans: Certain forces conspire to keep the workers in bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty. These include the money lenders, the middlemen, the policeman, the law keepers, the bureaucrats and politicans. They dictate their will to get their work done cheaply and impose a heavy burden on children.  

8.Why could the bangle makers not organise themselves into a co-operative?

Ans: The bangle makers are trapped in the vicious circle of sahukars, middlemen, policemen, bureaucrats and politicians. If they tried to organise themselves, they would be beaten by police and pout in jail.

9.Garbage to them is gold. Why does the author say so about the ragpickers?

Ans: Garbage is gold to the rag pickers of Seemapuri because it provides them with food and is a means of survival. Moreover, it is gold also because the ragpickers can find stray coins and currency notes in it.

10. Can Mukesh realise his dream of becoming a motor mechanic?

Ans: Man is a product of his environment around him. It is difficult to realise his dream as he is torn between his desires and his family , which firmly believes that the art of bangle making is a God given lineage that cannot be escaped. However, he is ambitious and is willing to walk a long way to the garage to give wings to his dreams.

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THE LAST LESSON BY ALPHONSE DAUDET

                                     THE LAST LESSON  BY ALPHONSE DAUDET 

Introduction:   The Last Lesson was written in the days of Franco-Prussian war, in which France was defeated by Prussia (combined nations of modern day Germany, Poland and parts of Austria) led by Bismark. The French districts of Alsace and Lorraine were annexed by Prussia. It shows that the colonial power wants not only territory, but also dominates over the language and culture of a particular country. There pervades the story an atmosphere surcharged with the suppressed feelings of patriotism and nationalism coupled with the helplessness. The story is a wake-up call for all those people, who are in the habit of postponing things. The story also extrapolates the fact that war makes man inhuman and insensitive to the feelings of others.

POINTS TO REMEMBER

•Notice on the Bulletin Board about the war front.

• Gathering of Crowd

• School atmosphere silent.  

•No sound of desks.

Behaviour of M. Hamel

•Did not scold / spoke quietly.

• Wore green coat, frilled shirt, black silk-cap.

•Announced last lesson in French German to be taught from the next day.

Overall classroom ambience

•Villagers, Hauser, Postmaster, others on back benches.

• Everyone working very quietly.

• Only sound that was  heard was that of  the scratching of pens over paper.

Franz's Reaction to Last Lesson in French

• Wished that he had learnt the language well and not wasted time.

•Felt repentant

• Accepted Mr. Hamel  with his faults.

 • Wanted to impress M. Hamel but fails in his recitation of participle rules.

• Understood presence of villagers.

M. Hamel ‘s opinion about the class

 • Reluctant to learn, postponed learning

 • parents blamed for sending their children to work

 • Blamed himself for sending students to water his plants.

 • All to blame for the situation

 • Too late to make amends ( make up for the loss)

 • No time to make up for lost time

 • Germans would laugh at their inability to speak French

Questions and Answers

1.What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?  
Ans: Franz was expected to be prepared with the rules of participles assigned to him by his French teacher, Mr. M. Hamel , for school that day.

2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the school that day?  
Ans: Unlike other days in the school there was no bustle, no lessons repeated in unison. He could see his classmates being aready seated in their places. Mr. Hamel addressed Franz  softly and asked him to go to his place very quickly. Mr. Hamel was dressed in his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt and little black cap, which he normally wore on inspection days. The backbenches of the classroom were occupied by the village elders who looked very grave on that day.

3. What had been put up on the bulletin board?  

Ans: It had been put up on the bulletin board that as the French districts of Alsace and Lorraine  have passed into  Prussian hands, the order had come from Berlin to teach only Germans in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine in place of French from next day onwards.

4. What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school that day?  
Ans: Unlike other days, there was no commotion in the school and no lessons were repeated in unison. . The last benches, which on other days used to be empty,  were occupied by the village elders. Mr. Hamel appeared to be kinder than usual and was dressed in his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt and little black cap, which he normally wore on special occasions.

5. How did Franz’s feelings about M. Hamel and school change?  
Ans: Franz suddenly could find it very easy to  understand everything that Mr. Hamel spoke. He listened all that Mr. Hamel spoke very carefully. Mr. Hamel too taught with infinite patience on that day. Franz developed sudden obsession for the school and developed interest for the school.

6. The people in this story suddenly realize how precious their language is to them. What show you this? Why does this happen?  

Ans: It shows the eruption of patriotic fervor among the people. The imposition of German language on the people of Alsace and Lorraine further strengthened their love for French. They felt that their freedom of expression in their motherland has been held in hostage by the Germans.
This happens because people come together during time of identity crisis and try their utmost best to rescue their motherland and mother tongue from the aggressor. Their love for the country and their fellow countrymen suddenly get revamped during such emergency.

7. Faranz thinks, ‘Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?’ What could this mean?  

Ans: This sentence could possibly mean that whatsoever hard  the imperial power tries to impose their culture on the French, the French would hold fast to their language and remain loyal to it. As they cannot tame a pigeon to sing in German, so it would be very hard for them to embed the German language in the lives of the people of Alsace and Lorraine.

Q8. How did M. Hamel say farewell to his students and the people of the town? 

Ans: M. Halmel bade farewell in a solemn and grave manner. He declared in the class that as the Province of Alsace and Lorraine passed off into the hands of Germans, it was their last French lesson on that day. From the next day onwards, Germany would be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. He requested the class to treasure French in their heart as language is the key to the prison of imperial power.

Q9. Who did M. Hamel blame for the neglect of learning on the part of boys like Franz? 
Ans:  M. Hamel held both parents and children for dereliction of learning on the part of Franz. He blamed parents for delegating work to their wards to earn money instead of going to school. He even blamed himself for delegating the work of watering his plants or declaring holidays for children whenever he wanted to go fishing.

Q10. What words did M. Hamel write on the board before dismissing the last class? What did they mean? 
Ans: M. Hamel wrote ‘Vive La France’, which means ‘Long Live France’. These words describe his  unflinching faith and profound love for his motherland. He was undergoing the waves of patriotic fervor  while writing these words on the blackboard.

Q11. What regrets did Franz have after hearing Hamel’s announcement? 

Ans: Franz regretted missing the school so often. When the class started, the narrator heard his name being called out to recite the rules of the participles in which he got stuck on the first words. He felt very disgusted at his failure. His books, which were a nuisance recently, suddenly became his old friends. He also regretted that he would not see Hamel and feel his ‘crankiness.’

Q12. How does M. Hamel pay a tribute to the French language?  

Ans: Hamel pays tribute by referring to the French language as the most beautiful language in he world. It was the clearest and the most logical language in the world. They must guard it among themselves. He reminded that when people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language, it ws the key to their prison.

Q13. Mention two things about M. Hamel that surprised Franz on his last day at school. 

Ans: M. Hamel did not scold Franz for being late. Instead he kindly told him to go to his place. On that day he was dressed in his best clothes. He wore his beautiful green coat, frilled shirt and little black silk cap with embroidery, which he wore only on inspection or prize days.

Q14. Hamel while addressing Franz says about the fate of Alsace: ‘Ah, that’s the great trouble with Alsace.’’ What fate of Alsace does he refer to here? 

Ans:  Mr. Hamel laments the fact about Alsace that it will not learn the French language henceforth and its people will be deprived of this language. In fact, Alsace had put off learning till the next day. But the prospect of learning the French language is no longer possible as German language would be taught in schools of Alsace and Lorraine from the next day onwards.


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THE LAST LESSON BY ALPHONSE DAUDET

THE LAST LESSON  BY ALPHONSE DAUDET

Introduction:The Last Lesson was written in the days of Franco-Prussian war, in which France was defeated by Prussia (combined nations of modern day Germany, Poland and parts of Austria) led by Bismark. The French districts of Alsace and Lorraine were annexed by Prussia. It shows that the colonial power wants not only territory, but also dominates over the language and culture of a particular country. There pervades the story an atmosphere surcharged with the suppressed feelings of patriotism and nationalism coupled with the helplessness. The story is a wake-up call for all those people, who are in the habit of postponing things. The story also extrapolates the fact that war makes man inhuman and insensitive to the feelings of others.

1.What was Franz expected to be prepared with for school that day?

Ans: Franz was expected to be prepared with the rules of participles assigned to him by his French teacher, Mr. M. Hamel , for school that day.

2. What did Franz notice that was unusual about the school that day?

Ans: Unlike other days in the school there was no bustle, no lessons repeated in unison. He could see his classmates being aready seated in their places. Mr. Hamel addressed Franz  softly and asked him to go to his place very quickly. Mr. Hamel was dressed in his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt and little black cap, which he normally wore on inspection days. The backbenches of the classroom were occupied by the village elders who looked very grave on that day.

3. What had been put up on the bulletin board?

Ans: It had been put up on the bulletin board that as the French districts of Alsace and Lorraine have passed into  Prussian hands, the order had come from Berlin to teach only Germans in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine in place of French from next day onwards.

4. What changes did the order from Berlin cause in school that day?

Ans: Unlike other days, there was no commotion in the school and no lessons were repeated in unison. . The last benches, which on other days used to be empty,  were occupied by the village elders. Mr. Hamel appeared to be kinder than usual and was dressed in his beautiful green coat, his frilled shirt and little black cap, which he normally wore on special occasions.

5. How did Franz’s feelings about M. Hamel and school change?

Ans: Franz suddenly could find it very easy to  understand everything that Mr. Hamel spoke. He listened all that Mr. Hamel spoke very carefully. Mr. Hamel too taught with infinite patience on that day. Franz developed sudden obsession for the school and developed interest for the school.

6. The people in this story suddenly realize how precious their language is to them. What show you this? Why does this happen?

Ans: It shows the eruption of patriotic fervor among the people. The imposition of German language on the people of Alsace and Lorraine further strengthened their love for French. They felt that their freedom of expression in their motherland has been held in hostage by the Germans.

This happens because people come together during time of identity crisis and try their utmost best to rescue their motherland and mother tongue from the aggressor. Their love for the country and their fellow countrymen suddenly get revamped during such emergency.

7. Faranz thinks, ‘Will they make them sing in German, even the pigeons?’ What could this mean?

Ans: This sentence could possibly mean that whatsoever hard  the imperial power tries to impose their culture on the French, the French would hold fast to their language and remain loyal to it. As they cannot tame a pigeon to sing in German, so it would be very hard for them to embed the German language in the lives of the people of Alsace and Lorraine.

Q8. How did M. Hamel say farewell to his students and the people of the town?

Ans: M. Halmel bade farewell in a solemn and grave manner. He declared in the class that as the Province of Alsace and Lorraine passed off into the hands of Germans, it was their last French lesson on that day. From the next day onwards, Germany would be taught in the schools of Alsace and Lorraine. He requested the class to treasure French in their heart as language is the key to the prison of imperial power.

Q9. Who did M. Hamel blame for the neglect of learning on the part of boys like Franz?

Ans:  M. Hamel held both parents and children for dereliction of learning on the part of Franz. He blamed parents for delegating work to their wards to earn money instead of going to school. He even blamed himself for delegating the work of watering his plants or declaring holidays for children whenever he wanted to go fishing.

Q10. What words did M. Hamel write on the board before dismissing the last class? What did they mean?

Ans: M. Hamel wrote ‘Vive La France’, which means ‘Long Live France’. These words describe his  unflinching faith and profound love for his motherland. He was undergoing the waves of patriotic fervor  while writing these words on the blackboard.

Q11. What regrets did Franz have after hearing Hamel’s announcement?

Ans: Franz regretted missing the school so often. When the class started, the narrator heard his name being called out to recite the rules of the participles in which he got stuck on the first words. He felt very disgusted at his failure. His books, which were a nuisance recently, suddenly became his old friends. He also regretted that he would not see Hamel and feel his ‘crankiness.’

Q12. How does M. Hamel pay a tribute to the French language?

Ans: Hamel pays tribute by referring to the French language as the most beautiful language in he world. It was the clearest and the most logical language in the world. They must guard it among themselves. He reminded that when people are enslaved, as long as they hold fast to their language, it ws the key to their prison.

Q13. Mention two things about M. Hamel that surprised Franz on his last day at school.

Ans: M. Hamel did not scold Franz for being late. Instead he kindly told him to go to his place. On that day he was dressed in his best clothes. He wore his beautiful green coat, frilled shirt and little black silk cap with embroidery, which he wore only on inspection or prize days.

Q14. Hamel while addressing Franz says about the fate of Alsace: ‘Ah, that’s the great trouble with Alsace.’’ What fate of Alsace does he refer to here?

Ans:  Mr. Hamel laments the fact about Alsace that it will not learn the French language henceforth and its people will be deprived of this language. In fact, Alsace had put off learning till the next day. But the prospect of learning the French language is no longer possible as German language would be taught in schools of Alsace and Lorraine from the next day onwards.

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