Questions for reflection about the documentary Marie Antoinette Last Queen of France
You will be graded for Criterion C: Critical Thinking: analyses concepts, event, and issues; recognize different
perspectives; make connections between information to make valid arguments. Each question should be answered in
a short paragraph showing reasons for your answers and using evidence from what you learned in the film.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Marie Antoinette’s childhood did not really prepare her to become queen. What was she like as a child, what was she expected
to do and learn, and how was she treated in the Habsburg Palace? Describe some aspects of her childhood and explain why she
wasn’t prepared to be queen.
Marie Antoinette was married to the heir to the French throne when she was 14. She had to give up everything that was
Austrian when she was given over to France and was not allowed to keep anything from her old life. Describe what happened
to her in the handing over ceremony, and explain how you would have felt in her place.
The heir to the throne was only 15 when he got married, and neither he nor Marie Antoinette was ready for married life. Do
you think it was a good idea to make them marry so young? How do you think they could have been better prepared?
Everything that Marie Antoinette did was in front of people in the court. She had no privacy. What sort of things did she have
to do in public that most people do in private? Why do you think the royal family was treated that way in France? How would
you feel in that situation?
Before Marie Antoinette went to France, Austria and France had been enemies for many years, and this union was supposed to
form diplomatic ties between the countries. Marie Antoinette was expected to put the interests of France first, but she was
pressurized by her family to look after Austrian interests in dealings with France. How would you feel if you were sent to live in
another country, where you had to give up your own nationality to take up citizenship of your new country and to be loyal to
that country above your own place of birth? How do you think Marie Antoinette felt?
Marie Antoinette was criticized as being frivolous and empty-headed, only caring about her own pleasure and not caring about
the people of France. Do you think this is true? Give some examples from her life when this appears to be true and others
where it is not true, then say whether you agree with the statement or not.
Questions for reflection about the documentary Marie Antoinette Last Queen of France
You will be graded for Criterion C: Critical Thinking: analyses concepts, event, and issues; recognize different
perspectives; make connections between information to make valid arguments. Each question should be answered in
a short paragraph showing reasons for your answers and using evidence from what you learned in the film.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Marie Antoinette’s childhood did not really prepare her to become queen. What was she like as a child, what was she expected
to do and learn, and how was she treated in the Habsburg Palace? Describe some aspects of her childhood and explain why she
wasn’t prepared to be queen.
Marie Antoinette was married to the heir to the French throne when she was 14. She had to give up everything that was
Austrian when she was given over to France and was not allowed to keep anything from her old life. Describe what happened
to her in the handing over ceremony, and explain how you would have felt in her place.
The heir to the throne was only 15 when he got married, and neither he nor Marie Antoinette was ready for married life. Do
you think it was a good idea to make them marry so young? How do you think they could have been better prepared?
Everything that Marie Antoinette did was in front of people in the court. She had no privacy. What sort of things did she have
to do in public that most people do in private? Why do you think the royal family was treated that way in France? How would
you feel in that situation?
Before Marie Antoinette went to France, Austria and France had been enemies for many years, and this union was supposed to
form diplomatic ties between the countries. Marie Antoinette was expected to put the interests of France first, but she was
pressurized by her family to look after Austrian interests in dealings with France. How would you feel if you were sent to live in
another country, where you had to give up your own nationality to take up citizenship of your new country and to be loyal to
that country above your own place of birth? How do you think Marie Antoinette felt?
Marie Antoinette was criticized as being frivolous and empty-headed, only caring about her own pleasure and not caring about
the people of France. Do you think this is true? Give some examples from her life when this appears to be true and others
where it is not true, then say whether you agree with the statement or not.