The LAST LESSON

This is a story of a french boy named franz . He dislikes

studing french and hates his teacher M.Hamel . One
morning he was in great dread of scolding as he did not
learn the lesson he lesson on participle. When he
reached his school he found there was silence all
around . The student sat at their desks silently M.Hamel
did not scold Franz for coming late .

He was wearing his beautiful dress which he never

wore except on inspection and prize days . Villagers
were also present in the class . Everybody lookes very
sad in the class . Then M.Hamel told that the order has
come from Berlin to teach only german in the scholl of
Alsace and Lorraine . Franz got shocked to hear this
news . He felt sorry for not learning his lessons. He
suddenly starts liking learning French. He develops
liking his teacher M.Hamel . M Hamel blamed
everyone for not learning their language including
himself. He said thet the French language is the most
logical and beautiful language in the world. He asked
his people to protect their language. Accoerding to him,
language is the key to prison. One must preserve their
mother language .
 LOST SPRING

:- SAHEB-E-ALLAM

The writer Anees Jung highlights the plight of deprived

childer of Seemapuri. It ia a place which is not looked
after, no sewage,drainage or running water. Survival in
Seemapuri means rag-picking. Garbage to them is gold.
Here gold means a one rupee coin, a ten rupee note or a
pair of torn shoes.

The writer meets with a rag-picker boy nemed Saheb-

A-Allam who migrated from Bangladesh and lives in
Seemapuri. They could hardly manage some food for
survival. The writer finds Saheb walking barefoot. The
general explanation is that it is not lack of money but a
tradition. Howerver,she is not sure. One day the writer
finds saheb holding a steel canister going towards milk
booth. He tells that he got a job at a tea stall for 800
rupees and all the meals. The writer noticed that he has
lost the freedom of being his own master.

:- MUKESH

This is the story of a boy named mukesh who lives in

Frizobad which is famous for bangle making. This
profession is a hazardous one. The workers have to
work in furnances which have extremely high
temperatues. The cells are dingy without air or light.
The dust from polishing the glass of bangles affect the
eyes badly and often cause blindness. Mukesh is
different from his family. He has a dream of becoming
a car mechanics. He wants to go to garage and learn car
repairing. The bangl makers could not organize
themselves because of the fear of being beaten and
harassed by the police. They are compelled to live a
miserable life due to the sahukars, the middleman, the
policeman, the bureaucrats and the politician.
 DEEP WATER

The writer tells about his fear of water and how he

conquered it When he was 3084 years old, he would
go to the beach in California with his father The
waves knocked him down and swept over him. He
Got frightened and a fear of water developed in his
mind. A few years later, he joined YMCA swimming
pool where the was thrown into the pool by another
boy (18) the tried hard to Come up but could not do
so It almost drowned him. He experienced death
closely.

He had developed phobia of water It deprived him of

the joy of Canoeing boating & Swimming So he
decided to overcome his fear the got "an a instructor
and started learning Swimming. The instructor put a
belt around him and a rope attached to it He taught
how to put his face under water, inhale & exhale The
author repeated the exercise hundreds of times. He
practiced five days a week, an hour each day. Finally,
William had learned swimming but he was not
satisfied So he went to different lakes & islands. At
last he repeated the feat by diving Doug Corpron had
overcome in the Warm Lake & swam across. He had
overcome his baseless fear of water. He realised
that death is peaceful and it is the fear of death that
is terrorising.
''ALL WE HAVE TO FEAR IS FEAR ITSELF''
 POET AND PANCAKES
Asokamitran, a tamil writer tells about Gemini
Studios where his work was to cut out
newspaper Clippings and store them in files. He
performed an insignificant work but he was the
most well informed member The make-up room
of Gemini Studio was like a hair salon with a
dozen of large mirror and incandescent lights .
The actor & actresses has to bear too many
lights on their face in makeup room According to
him, heaps of make-up was used to turn them
into ugly looking creatures. There was an office
boy whose task was to slap paint onto the faces
of players at the time of crowd shooting. He
was a poet and joined in the hope of becoming
an actor, screenwriter, director or a lyricist. He
always looked frustrated and blamed Subbu for
his troubles. He thought that he had Greater
talent than Subbu but he was Given a chance
because he was a Brahmin . Kothamangalam
Subbu was a man of great qualities . He was a
resourceful person known for his hospitality &
creativity He also did poetry He was loyal to the
Gemini Studios & his Boss that made him No
02 . He worked for the story department with a
lawyer, who ended the bright career of an
actress by recording her voice when she was
Getting angry at the producer. Later, he also
lost his job when the Boss closed the Story
department. Gemini Studio hosted a Group of
international performer Called Re-armament
army. Their plots & may were simple but their
Sets & costumes were so impressive. The scene
of sunrise & sunset of Jotham Valley were used
in Tamil plays for many years. Another quest,
Stephen Spender visited Gemini Studio where
he could not connect due to linguistic barriers.
No one could identify him. After few years.
Asokonitran saw his name in a book Encounter:
He wanted to participate in a short-story
competetion organised by The Encounter.
 THE RATTRAP
This is a story of a rattrop seller who leads a Very
poor, sad and monotonous life. He has to resort to
thievery & begging to survive. One day he was
struck by the idea that the whole world is nothing
but a big rattrap. It offers riches & joys, shelter &
food, heat & clothing exactly as the rattrap offers
cheese & pork. The world has never been very kind
to him. One evening he reached to a cottage of an
old crofter and asked for shelter. The crofter gave
him shelter & food as he was happy to get someone
to talk to in his loneliness. The next morning he stole
the crofter's money which he had earned by selling
cow's milk. The peddler chose the path through the
forest to protect himself. but soon found himself in
the dense forest. He heard a sound of hard regular-
thumping & found a forge. He asked for shelter but
the ironmaster mistook him as an old friend. He
invited him to his house. The peddler rejected the
offer due to the fear of being caught The ironmaster
sent her daughter to bring him home. Her daughter
(Edla) talked to him very politely & showed sympathy
with him.
She called him 'Captain' & offerred him a fur coat
The peddler accepted the offer. But when he reached
home and got ready. The got caught. The ironmaster
got angry at him and asked him to leave but Edlo
stopped him & showed Compassion. She convinced
her father to allow peddler to celebrate Christmas
together. The next day after Christmas. the
ironmaster & his daughter visited the church. They
came to know that. a man with the rat traps had
stolen money from a crofter. The started repenting
but found that the peddler Gifted a sm to Edla. She
found a letter of thanks & the stolen mon rattrap. He
thanked Edla for her kindness & requested he the
stolen money to Crofter.

INDIGO

This chapter is an excerpt from the book- The life of

Mahatma Gandhi written by Louis Fischer. Gandhiji
told Louis Fischer about the British departure in
1916. Gandhi attended the INC convention, met Raj
Kumar Shukla (peasant in Champaran, Bihar).
Initially, Gandhi didn’t take Shukla seriously and told
him that he was busy but he accompanied him to
various places. His firm decision impressed Gandhiji
and he promised him to meet on a fixed date in
Calcutta. Baapu met Shukla in Calcutta, took a train,
and visited Dr. Rajendra Prasad (who was not there).
However, they were both treated badly by the
servants. Gandhi ji goes to Muzzafarpur, and met J.B.
Kriplani (Govt professor) He chided lawyers for high
fees. He understands the problem. Grow 15% indigo
on land and pay rent. Gandhi went to the British
Landlord Association but he was not given any
information because he was an outsider. He then
went to the commissioner of the Tirhut division who
threatened Gandhiji and asked to leave Champaran.
Gandhiji went to Motihari to investigate the matter
where he received the support of the lawyers and
common people. One day as he was on his way to
meet a peasant, who was maltreated in a village, he
was stopped by the police superintendent’s
messenger serving him a notice asking him to leave.
Gandhiji received the notice but disobeyed the order.
A case was filed against him, On the day of trial a
large crowd gathered near the court. It became
impossible to handle the crowd. Gandhiji helped the
officers to control the crowd. Gandhiji told the court
that he was not a lawbreaker but he disobeyed so
that he could help the peasants. The court asked
Gandhiji to file for bail but he refused and later he
was released without the bail. Later, a commission
was set up by Sir Edward gait to look into the matter.
After the inquiry, planters were found guilty and
asked to pay back to the peasants. Gandhi agreed to
a settlement that refunded 25% to the farmers.
Gandhiji accepted the offer because he wanted to
make the peasants free from the planters and give
them rights. Gandhi emerged victorious in the
Champaran episode, and the landlords surrendered
before the peasants. He considered this a turning
point in his life as it was the first time that British
landlords had surrendered to the sharecroppers.
Gandhi and Kasturba Bai helped the peasant.
Champaran taught a lesson about being selfreliant.
The “Indigo” chapter describes the exploitative
system of indigo cultivation in India during the British
colonial period. The chapter emphasizes the
importance of resistance and unity in fighting against
oppression.
 THE INTERVIEW

The author opens the chapter by giving a brief

overview of the interview process and its history. He
mentions that interviews have been a part of
journalism for over 130 years and that people have
varying opinions about them. It notes that people
have varying opinions about the use of interviews,
with some viewing it highly and others disliking the
experience. He tells us that how the interview has
become a vital arena in everyone's life and a source
of truth. The author highlights that an interview can
leave a lasting impression and can sometimes
change the opinion of a person, leading to the loss of
their true identity. He then cites examples of famous
celebrities who have criticized interviews and
mentions Rudyard Kipling's wife's diary, in which she
writes about how two reporters ruined her. For
example, Rudyard Kipling's wife wrote in her diary
about how two reporters ruined their day in Boston
and Kipling viewed interviewing as an assault that
should be punished. He also believed that a
respectable person would never participate in either
giving or asking for an interview. Kipling himself
considered interviewing an assault and believed that
it should be punish ed. The chapter also includes an
paragraph from an interview between Mukund, a
representative from The Hindu Newspaper and
Umberto Eco, a professor at the University of
Bologna in Italy and a famous scholar in the fields of
semiotics, literary interpretation, and medieval
aesthetics, who became famous for his fiction
writing. Mukund asks Eco about his successful novel.
The focus of the interview is Eco's successful novel,
"The Name of the Rose," which has sold over ten
million copies. Mukund starts by asking Eco how he
manages to do so many different things, to which
Eco responds by saying he is doing the same thing.
He goes on to explain that his books for children
promote peace and non-violence, reflecting his
philosophical interests. Eco views himself as an
academic scholar, attending academic conferences
during the week and writing novels on Sundays. The
fact that others see him as a novelist rather than a
scholar does not affect him, as he understands the
challenge of influencing millions of people through
academic work. Eco believes there are gaps in our
lives, similar to the gaps in atoms and the universe,
which he refers to as interstices. It is during these
times that he is most productive. When discussing
his novel, Eco notes that it is not an easy read,
combining elements of detective work, metaphysics,
theology, and medieval history. He also says that if
the novel had been written 10 years earlier or later,
it would not have achieved the same level of
success, leaving the reason for its success a mystery.
 GOING PLACES
• Sophie, a teenage girl who is filled with dreams and
ambitions despite her family's financial struggles. She
aspires to own a boutique and be a famous
fashion designer or actress.
• Her friend Jansie is practical and tries to keep Sophie
realistic, but her efforts go to waste as Sophie remains
in her world of fantasies.
• They both work in a biscuit factory.
• Sophie's family consists of her parents and 2 brothers.
They live in a small and cluttered House.
• Sophie shares her desires with her family, but they are not
as excited as she is due to the harsh realities they
face. Sophie is particularly curious by her elder
brother Geoff, who is tall, strong, and handsome
but reserved. He works as a trainee mechanic.
• Sophie likes a young Irish football player, Danny Casey. She
is so infatuated with him that she creates stories
about meeting him and sharing conversations
with him.
• She shares these tales with her elder brother Geoff, but he
does not believe her claims. She tells him that she
met Danny Casey in a boutique. Despite this,
Sophie is so good at convincing people with her
details that even Geoff starts to wish that her
stories were true. She also tells about the date
with Casey.
• On Saturday, Sophie and her family go to watch a football
match where their team wins due to the goal made by
Casey
• Sophie fully involved herself in her fantasy world, waiting
for Danny to arrive as promised.
• She worries about disappointing Geoff when Danny does
not show up, but she still
believes that they will eventually meet.
• Sophie remains in this dream world, holding onto her
belief that they will meet soon. The Going Places
summary highlights the innocent daydreams of
teenagers and how the reality of the world, with
its challenges and expenses, can often shatter
such aspirations.