NCERT Class 8 English Unit 4 Poem – The Last Bargain by Rabindranath Tagore (Lesson Plan)

1. English
CLASS 8

3. THE LAST BARGAIN
Written by
Rabindranath Tagore

4. A bargain is an agreement in which both parties promise
to do something for each other. Someone is looking for
work, waiting to be hired. He strikes a bargain but thinks it
worthless. He tries twice again but doesn't like either.
Finally, in the last bargain, when he is hired for nothing
whatever, he is happy as never before.
What is the bargain, and why is it the
best?

5. Rabindranath Tagore
 Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) was a Bengali
poet, short-story writer, song composer, playwright,
and painter.
 Rabindranath Tagore Was mostly known for his
poem i.e.Gitanjali, also known as 'Song Offerings',
 Collection of Rabindranath Tagore lies not in his
poetry, music, dramas, novels, or paintings, but
rather with his “Jana Gana Mana” India’s national
anthem.

6. Before we recite :
 The last bargain is a
poem describing a story
of a man, who is in
search of a job.

7. Let’s recite the poem… Stanza - 1
“Come and hire me,” I cried, while in the morning
I was walking on the stone-paved road.
Sword in hand the King came in his chariot.
He held my hand and said, “I will hire you with
my power,”
But his power counted for naught, and he went away in
his chariot.

8. Stanza - 2
In the heat of the mid-day the houses stood with
shut doors.
I wandered along the crooked lane.
An old man came out with his bag of gold.
He pondered and said, “I will hire you with my money.”
He weighed his coins one by one, but I turned away.

9. Can you relate the term “Bargain” with
one of your day to day life example.

10. Let’s revise …..
 Who is the speaker in the poem?
 The king offered the poet, his _______.

11. Stanza - 3
It was evening. The garden hedge was all a flower.
The fair maid came out and said, “I will hire you with
a smile.”
Her smile paled and melted into tears, and she went
back alone into the dark.

12. Stanza - 4
The sun glistened on the sand, and the sea waves broke
waywardly.
A child sat playing with shells.
He raised his head and seemed to know me and said,
“I hire you with nothing.”
From henceforward that bargain struck in child’s play
made me a free man.

13. Jumbled words
Dgeeh
Redednop
Archtoi
Ooedkrc
Anderwed
Chariot
Crooked
Wandered
Pondered
Hedge

14. Word meanings:
 paved : covered with hard layer
 chariot : go-cart
 naught : Nothing, like zero
 Crooked : Not straight
 Pondered : to think about something carefully or for a long time
 Hedge : Boundary formed by grasses or bushes
 waywardly : Opposite of what is expected

15. Summary
The Last Bargain is a poem written by the famous and renowned Bengali poet Rabindranath
Tagore. It is a poem about a person looking for a job. The speaker in the poem is searching for a
job in which he does not have to lose his freedom. He receives the first proposal from a King.
The king offers him power in return for his labor. But he refuses the king’s offer.
He receives the second offer from a rich man. He offers the
speaker lots of gold in return for his labor. But the speaker refuses his offer also. He receives the
third offer from a beautiful girl. She says that she will give him smiles in return for his labor. The
speaker refuses her offer too. In the end, he finds a child playing on the seashore. The child says
that he will offer him nothing in return for his services. The speaker accepts the child’s offer as
he can still be a free man.

16. Let’s revise
 “I hire you with nothing.” Explain this sentence in your own words.
 Word meaning:
1. Hedge
2. Paved
3. Pondered

17. Home work
 Imagine you are a king/queen and you have to
convince the man to work for you. Write 3 points to
convince the man to work with you.
 Learn the poem and write the summary of the poem
in your own words.