Franz’s attitude towards the little school as well as Mr. Hamel changes when he comes to know about the take over of his village by the Prussians. Do you agree? Discuss with reference to ‘The Last Lesson’.

When Franz came to know that his village had been taken over by the Prussians, suddenly his attitude changed. Feelings of loyalty aroused in him. He decided that now, he would pay attention to his lesson. Love for his school and his language suddenly became important to him. He felt that he would never miss his school from the very next day, which was in contrast to his attitude of avoiding school earlier. Even Mr. Hamel became a good teacher. Suddenly, his lesson became interesting. Franz developed an interest in learning the rules of participles. Franz was genuinely upset that Mr. Hamel was leaving the village. He felt that he had hardly learnt to read and write. He was sorry to have wasted his time. He had always been enjoying himself outdoors. He had hated his books. He had dreaded Mr. Hamel and his iron ruler, but his attitude suddenly changed. Mr. Hamel now seemed to him like a gentleman. The sudden threat of losing his very identity sent shivers down his spine and he desperately wanted to learn as much as he could in those forty minutes. The subject was no longer difficult and Mr. Hamel no longer was a cranky teacher.