Two Stories About Flying - HIS FIRST FLIGHT (Part-I)

Two Stories About Flying Part-I

 By– Liam O’Flaherty  

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

1. He stepped slowly out to the brink of the ledge, and standing on one leg with the other leg hidden under his wing; he closed one eye, then the other, and pretended to be falling asleep. Still they took no notice of him.

(a) What did the young seagull do?

(b) What was the seagull afraid of?

(c) Why did he close his eyes one-by-one?

(d) What were his brothers and sisters doing?

Ans. (a) The young seagull pretended to fall asleep on the brink of the ledge.

(b) The seagull was afraid to fly.

(c) He pretended to sleep.

(d) They were sleeping carefree.

2. He felt certain that his wings would never support him, so he bent his head and ran ways back to the little hole under the ledge where he slept at night.

(a) Who does He’ refer to in the first sentence?

(b) Why did he run back to the hole instead of trying to fly?

(c) Where did he sleep at night?

(d) Why was the young seagull afraid to fly?

Ans. (a) The young seagull.

 (b) He thought his wings would not support him so he did not try to fly.

(c) He slept at night in a hole under the ledge.

(d) The young seagull thought that his wings were too weak to support him so he was afraid to fly.

3. His father and mother had come around him calling him shrilly, upbraiding him, threatening to let him starve on the ledge unless he flew away. But for the life of him, he could not move.

(a) How did his parents try to make him fly?

(b) What was the effect of their efforts?

(c) What does the passage reflect on the young seagull?

(d) How was the young seagull threatened by his parents initially when he did not fly?

Ans. (a) First, they invited him encouragingly. Then scolded and threatened to leave him alone to starve unless he flew away.

(b) All their efforts failed but he did not fly.

(c) He was a coward.

(d) First his parents encouraged him to fly but later on, they even threatened to let him starve if he did not fly.

4. The day before, all day he had watched his parents flying about with his brothers and sisters, perfecting them in the art of flight, teaching them how to skim the waves and how to dive for fish. He had, in fact, seen his older brother catch his first herring and devour it, standing on a rock, while his parents circled around raising a proud cackle.

(a) Who is He’ in the above lines?

(b) Who trained the brothers and sister in the art of flying?

 (c) What does the cackle raised by the parents show?

(d) Why do you think all parental acts are for the betterment of the children?

Ans. (a) The young seagull.

(b) Their parents.

(c) This shows that they were quite happy.

(d) All parents wish that their children should be successful in life. Their acts are directed towards this aim.

5. His father was preening the feathers on his white back. Only his mother was looking at him. She was standing on a little high hump on the plateau, her white breast thrust forward. Now and again, she tore. at a piece of a fish that lay at her feet and then scrapped each side of her beak on the rock. The sight of the food maddened him. How he loved to tear food that way, scrapping his beak now and again to what it.

(a) Why do you think the mother was eating fish in full view of her little one?

(b) Who was looking at hint?

(c) What was the effect of sight of food on him?

(d) Do you think hunger was a good motivation for the young seagull in his first flight?

Ans. (a) She wanted to tempt him and then exploit the situation to make him fly.

(b) His mother.

(c) It maddened the young seagull for he was very hungry.

(d) Yes, I think so. Maddened by hunger, he lived to snatch a piece of fish and started flying..

7. He was soaring gradually downwards and outwards. He was no longer afraid. He just felt a hit dizzy. Then he flapped his wings once and he soared upwards. He uttered a joyous scream and flapped them again. He soared higher.

(a) When the young seagull spread his wings but did not flap them, how did he feel?

(b) How did the young seagull feel when he started flying?

(c) Why did he utter a joyous scream?

(d) How did his family welcome seagull’s flight?

Ans. (a) A hit dizzy but not afraid.

(b) Joyous and super excited.he was no more afraid.

(c) He was thrilled and confident to see himself flying.

(d) Seagull’s family members came near him and encouraged him to fly over and around him screaming in joy.

Answer the following questions in 30-40 words:

1. How did the young seagull’s family celebrate his first flight?

Ans. The young seagull was afraid to fly. Even the encouragement and coaxing didn’t work. But when the seagull had his first flight, he as well as his family was happy, relieved and proud of him to have completed his first flight.

2. Flying is a natural act in birds. Then why was the young seagull ‘exhausted by the strange exercise’?

Ans. The seagull didn’t have the courage to fly. Hence, he used to make excuses for not flying. He felt certain that his wings were too weak to support him. He had no courage to flap his wings and failed to muster up the courage to take the plunge.

3. ‘The sight of the food maddened him.’ Who is ‘he’ in these lines? Why was he angry? What does this suggest?

Ans. (i) The young seagull is the ‘he’ in these lines. (ii) He had not eaten anything for the last 24 hours. He was very hungry, hence was angry. (iii) His mother went near him with a piece of fish but did not feed him. Maddened by hunger, the young seagull dived to snatch it but the mother flew away. This shows the weakness of the young seagull.

4. What was the young seagull’s experience during his first flight?

Ans. Falling from the ledge, the seagull was terrified, but soon he started soaring, and then, flying. He forgot that he didn’t always know how to fly. His fear soon turned into confidence, and then into amusement. As he was landing, he was again afraid, but, soon became at ease. It was a memorable first flight.

5. How did the young seagull’s parents treat him initially when he did not fly?

Ans. First, his parents encouraged him, coaxed him then scolded and taunted him for his cowardice. They even threatened to let him starve if he did not fly. But the young seagull could not muster up the courage to fly.

6. Young seagull tried to fly but he could not. Why was he afraid to fly?

Ans. The young seagull felt certain that his wings were too weak to support him. He had no courage to flap his wings. Even when each one of his brothers and sisters whose wings was much shorter than his, ran to the brink of the ledge, flapped their wings and flew away, he failed to muster up the courage to take that plunge.

7. What did the young seagull do to attract the attention of his mother?        

Ans. He came slowly up to the brink of the ledge and stood on one leg. He hid the other leg under his wing. He closed one eye and then the other and pretended to be falling asleep. Thus he tried to attract the attention of his mother.

8. When did the seagull’s flight begin? And where did it end?

Ans. The young seagull’s flight started when he dived trying to snatch the piece of fish from his mother’s beak. He fell down but instinctively his wings spread out, he flapped them and started flying. His flight ended after half an hour when he landed on the green sea with his family.

9. Did the seagull think the sea was like land? Pick out the words that suggest this.

Ans. Yes, the seagull thought that the sea was like land. He called it the green (looting. When he had learnt how to fly, he flew for some time. Then he came down and stood on the sea surface thinking it to be like land. But his legs sank into the sea. ‘Dropped his legs to stand on’, ‘sank into’ and ‘screamed with fright’ are the words that suggest this.

10. When did the seagull’s flight begin?

Ans. The seagull was very hungry. When he saw his mother bringing food in her beak, he dived towards her. But he fell from the brink of the ledge. He screamed with fear. But his fear lasted only for a moment. The next moment he felt that his wings spread outwards. He was flying now. Now he screamed with joy.

 11. Where did the seagull’s flight end?

Ans. The seagull was very happy as he had learnt how to fly. He kept flying for some time. His parents, brothers and sister flew around him. Then they landed on the sea surface. The seagull also came down. When he tried to land, his legs sank into the sea. He cried with fear again. But then his belly touched the water. He did not drown. He started floating on the surface of the sea. Thus his first flight ended.

 12. When did the seagull get over his fear of the water? 

Ans. After flying for some time, the seagull saw that his parents and brothers and sister were sitting on the surface of the sea. He came down and landed on it. But his legs sank into it. He cried with fear. However, his belly touched the surface and he did not drown. Now the seagull got over his fear of the water.

 13. Do you sympathise with the seagull? Give reasons.

Ans. Yes, we sympathise with the seagull. He is a very young bird. He has not yet learnt how to fly. His parents want that he should fly. They encourage him. But he is afraid of falling. His parents starve him for twenty-four hours. In the end, however, the seagull learns how to fly.

14. How did the seagull express his excitement when he saw his mother bringing food to him?

Ans. The seagull saw his mother bringing food to him. He screamed with joy. He leaned out eagerly. He tapped rock with his feet and tried to get nearer to her as she flew towards him.

15. How did the young seagull’s parents teach him the art of flying

Ans. The seagull’s parents encouraged him to fly. But he was too afraid to fly. Then they kept him hungry for twenty-four hours. Even then the seagull did not fly. Then they thought that experience would teach him. So they made him fall from the ledge. Now when he fell, he felt his wings spread and started flying.

16. Where did the young seagull sit alone? What did he watch from there?

Ans. The young seagull was alone on his ledge. In the whole family, he was the only one who didn’t know how to fly. Only the day before, his two brothers and his sister had flown away with their parents. When he tried to flap his wings, he was seized with fear. Hence, he sat alone on the ledge watching his family flying over the sea.

17. Why didn’t the young seagull take the plunge? What stopped him from doing so?

Ans. The young seagull was the only one in the family who couldn’t fly in the air. His brothers and sister had far shorter wings than his wings but they had already learnt the art of flying. He felt certain that his wings would never support him. So he was hesitant and afraid of flapping his wings and go deep in the air.

18. Did upbraiding and threatening of his parents help him in flying?

Ans. The parents of the young seagull did try to teach his young one the art of flying. He wouldn’t simply move from his ledge. They would fly around him encouraging and challenging him to follow them. When he wouldn’t budge, his parents would fly around calling to him shrilly. They would upbraid and threaten to let him starve unless he flew away.

19. How were his two brothers and sister different from the young seagull?

Ans. His two brothers and his sister had far shorter wings than he had. But still, they had flown away only the day before. He would watch his parents perfecting them in the art of flying. They were taught how to skim the waves and dive for the fish. The young seagull had seen his older brother catch his first herring and devour it.

20. How did the hungry seagull try to pretend to attract his mother’s attraction?

Ans. The whole family had flown away. Only the young seagull sat alone on the ledge. He had not eaten anything thing since the previous nightfall. He stepped slowly out to the brink of the ledge. He stood on one leg. He closed his eyes pretending to be falling asleep. But all his tactics failed. Only his mother took notice of him. All others ignored him.

21. What was the mother doing standing on a little high hump on the plateau?

Ans. All others ignored the hungry young seagull. Only his mother was looking at him. She was standing on a little high hump. Now and again, she tore a piece of fish. The fish lay at her feet. Then she scrapped each side of her beak on the rock, The sight of the food maddened the young seagull. He loved to tear the food that way.

22. Why did the young seagull cry “Ga, ga, ga”? Did her mother oblige him?

Ans. When he saw his mother holding a piece of a fish in her beak, the young seagull became almost mad with hunger. He cried “Ga, ga, ga”. He begged her mother to bring him some food. When he saw his mother flying across to him with a piece of fish, he uttered a joyful scream. He started tapping the rock with his feet impatiently. He was almost within the reach of the fish but failed to get at it.

23. What did the young seagull do when he was maddened by hunger? Did hunger motivate him to dive at the fish in the air?

Ans. The young seagull saw his mother flying around him with a piece of fish in her beak. Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish. With a loud scream, he fell outwards and downwards into space. Then he was seized with fear and his heart stood still. But the fear lasted only for a minute. The very next moment he felt his wings spread outwards. Truly, hunger motivated him to dive at the fish and flap his wings into space.

24. How did the young seagull overcome his fear and soared gradually towards the sea during his first flight?

Ans. The young seagull had taken the final plunge. Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish which his mother was carrying in her beak. With a loud scream, he fell outwards and downwards. He was seized with fear and his heart stood still. But the fear lasted only for a minute. He overcame it. The next moment he felt his wings spread outwards. Now he was soaring downwards over the blue sea.

25. Describe the seagull’s first flight.

Ans. The young seagull was very hungry. So he dived at the fish that was in his mother’s beak. But he fell into space and became terribly afraid. His heart stood still. He could hear nothing. But it only lasted for a minute. The next moment he felt his wings spread outwards. He began to fly and was no longer afraid.

26. How did his parents, two brothers and sister celebrate the first flight of the young seagull?

Ans. The family saw the young seagull making his first flight. When they saw him floating on the ocean, they flew and landed on the water just ahead of him. They were beckoning to him calling shrilly. They were praising and rewarding him by offering scraps of fish to him.

27. What is the message that Liam 0′ Flaherty wants to give to the readers through the lesson ‘His first Flight’?

Ans. Success can’t be taken for granted. One has to struggle and finally to win it. The story of the young seagull is the story of overcoming hesitations, doubts and fears that stand between us and our success. Hunger makes him take the final plunge. This leads him to make his first flight and soar into space.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. Compare and contrast the young seagull in the beginning and at the end of the lesson. You can use the words given in the following box.

Q.2. Describe the methods used by the seagull family to help the young seagull overcome his fear and fly. Ans. In the beginning, the seagull is a coward. He lacks confidence. The time has come when he should fly. His parents try to teach him how to fly. But he is too afraid to fly. He refuses to fly. His parents leave him alone on the ledge. They threaten him that he would starve. His brothers and sister make fun of him. They call him a coward. Even then the seagull does not fly. However, he falls from the rock when he tries to get the fish from his mother. The next moment he flaps his wings and starts flying. Now he is full of confidence. He starts crying with joy. He flies higher and higher. He is no longer afraid. He overcomes his fear of the water also. He finds that he can float on the surface of the seta. His family members praise him and give him pieces of fish to eat. In this way, there is a difference in the behaviour of the seagull at the beginning and end of the story.

 Ans. This story is about a young seagull. The time had come when he should fly like his parents and brothers and sister. But he was afraid to fly. His parents tried their best to teach him how to fly. But he refused to fly. They left him alone on his ledge. They threatened him that he would starve. Even then he was too afraid to fly. His brothers and sister made fun of him. They laughed at his cowardice. At last, his mother thought of a plan. She took a piece of fish in her beak and flew towards him. She came near him but did not land on the ledge. The young seagull was very hungry. He came to the brink of the ledge. In order to get food, he dived at the fish. But he fell from the rock. He became terrified. But it was only for a moment. The next moment, he flapped his wings and started flying. In this way, his mother was able to make him fly.

Q.3. What message does the story ‘His First Flight’ convey?

 Ans. This is an imaginary story. The story conveys the message that we learn by taking courage and not by sitting idle. A young seagull is fed lovingly by his parents. But when the time comes for him to fly, he feels afraid. His parents try many tricks to teach him to fly. But he is so afraid that he refuses to fly. At last, his mother hits upon a plan. She tempts him with food in her beak. But she only flies near his ledge and does not land there. In order to get food, the hungry seagull comes to the edge of the rock and falls from it. At first, he is terrified but then he opens his wings and starts flying. He is happy to note that he did not fall in the sea. In this way, the young seagull makes the first flight of his life when he takes courage.

Q.4. When did the seagull’s flight begin and where did it end?

 Ans. The seagull was very hungry. When he saw his mother bringing food in her beak, he dived towards her. But he fell from the brink of the ledge. He screamed with fear. But his fear lasted only for a moment. The next moment, he felt that his wings spread outwards. He was flying now. Now he screamed with joy. The seagull was very happy as he had learnt how to fly. He kept flying for some time. His parents, brothers and sister flew around him. Then they landed on the sea surface. The seagull also came down. When he tried to land, his legs sank into the sea. He cried with fear again. But then his belly touched the water. He did not drown. He started floating on the surface of the sea. Thus the seagull made the first flight of his life.

Q.5. What happened after the seagull had learnt how to fly?

 Ans. The seagull came to the brink of the ledge in order to get the fish from his mother. But his mother remained in the air. a little away from the ledge. The seagull dived at the fish. But he fell from the rock into space. He cried with fear. But this fear lasted only a moment. The next moment, he flapped his wings. He was surprised to find that he was flying. He screamed with joy. He soared higher and higher. His parents flew around him. They praised him for learning how to fly. Then his parents, brothers and sister landed on the sea. They beckoned the young seagull to come to them. The seagull dropped his legs and came down on the surface of the sea. He had thought that the surface of the sea was green flooring. But his legs started sinking into the water. He again screamed with fear. However, his belly touched the water and he did not drown. He started floating on the water. His family members were also happy. They gave him pieces of a fish to eat.

 Q.6.The young seagull found it difficult to fly for the first time. lie felt that his wings would never support him. Was it not in his attitude to accept the challenges? Did he lack courage? Discuss the values that can help people accept challenges in life.

Ans. The young seagull’s brothers and sisters had started flying the previous day. However, he himself was unable to muster the courage to fly. He lacked confidence and felt that his wings wouldn’t support him. However, I do not think that facing challenges was a problem for him. Still, he did lack courage. To accept and successfully face challenges, one must be fearless, determined and have clarity of thought and action. Also, the support of those around us can play a big role, as in the seagull’s case.

Q.7. The mother of young seagull picked up a piece of fish but still did not come nearer to give him. Why did she do so? Did she lack love for her son or she wanted to make him courageous? What values does the mother depict through her act? Write in 100-120 words.

Ans. The young seagull was terribly afraid to fly. His parents encouraged him to make his first flight. But he could not do so. Then, the mother picked up a piece of fish but did not go near to give him. The seagull was extremely hungry. He started crying so that his mother would give him some food. But after coming towards him, the mother stopped opposite to him but almost within his reach. When the seagull dived to get the piece, she swooped upwards. Maddened by hunger, the young seagull spread his wings upwards and started flying. This shows that the mother wanted her son to become courageous. This shows that sometimes parents take such harsh steps for their kids which may appear wrong at that time but later prove to be beneficial for their kids.

8. Was the young seagull same at the beginning and at the end of the lesson? Compare and contrast the two kinds of the same seagull in the lesson.

Ans. No, the young seagull was not the same bird at the beginning and at the end of the lesson. In the beginning, the young seagull used to be all alone on his ledge. His two brothers and his sister had flown away the day before. He had been afraid of flying with them. Whenever he tried to flap his wings, he was seized with fear. He felt certain that his wings would never support him. His father and mother flew around calling to him shrilly. They were constantly scolding and taunting him. They were threatening to let him starve on his ledge unless he flew away.

 However, the young seagull was more confident and sure of his success in the end. Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish. After trials and errors, his wings spread outwards. He was soaring gradually downwards forgetting all his hesitations and fears. He could float on the ocean now. His success was welcomed by his family. They were praising him now and their beaks were offering him their scraps of dog-fish.

9. ‘All parental acts are for the betterment of the children.’ It is true. However, one has to make efforts through trials and errors shedding off one’s early hesitations and fears to succeed in any enterprise. Justify this statement by taking points from the lesson ‘His First Flight’.

Ans. There is no doubt about it ‘All parental acts are for the betterment of the children’. It is the ardent wish of every parent that they may teach all skills to their young ones so that they may succeed in life. First of all, they can learn all the things which their parents have taught in life. If the young ones don’t act then they also indulge in scolding, taunting and humiliating them to shed off their hesitations and fears. This is exactly what the parents of the young seagull did. They were successful in teaching the art of flying to his two brothers and sister. They also tried their best to embolden him to take the plunge. Particularly, the mother-seagull went on flying around him with a piece of fish in her beak. It was her attempt to tempt her starving son to dive at the fish. And she succeeded in her aim. The young seagull did dive at the fish and it led to his success in the end.

10. ‘Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish,’ says the narrator about the young seagull. Do you feel hunger was the main motivating force that made the young seagull take the plunge that taught him how to fly in the air?

Ans. Food is the most essential ingredient that sustains all life — of humans, animals as well as birds. Hunger motivates many of their actions. The young seagull used to sit all alone on his ledge. Whenever he tried to flap his wings to fly, he was seized with fear. He felt certain that his wings would never support him. He had seen his older brother catch his first herring and devour it. It compounded his helplessness even more. He uttered a joyful scream when he saw his mother holding a piece of fish in her beak and flying quite near him. He wondered why she didn’t come to him and offer that piece of fish to him. Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish. With a loud scream, he fell outwards and downwards into space. Then a monstrous terror seized him but only for a minute. The next moment he felt his wings spread outwards. He began to soar downwards towards the sea. The fear left him. He began to float on the sea. His admiring family offered him pieces of fish flying around him.