Two Stories About Flying (Part 1st), His First Flight -By Liam O'

 

Two Stories About Flying (Part 1st), His First Flight 

                              -By Liam O' Flaherty

Topics Covered:

1- Introduction 

2- About The Writer 

3- Chapter Summary 

4- Vocabulary Building 

5- Textbook Exercises 

6- Short Question/Answers 

7- Multiple-Choice Questions 

8- To Recapitulate 

1- Introduction 

This Chapter consists of two stories written by two different writers. In this Article I would cover first story i.e. 'His First Flight' written by Liam O' Flaherty.  This story is about Seagull birds who reside near the sea. And they extract food ( fish ) from sea itself. The story highlights how to overcome our fears. We need to believe in ourselves, then only we can overcome the hurdles of our lifes.

2- About The Writer 

• He was an Irish novelist and short-story writer. 

• He was author by Occupation. 

• He was also the foremost socialist writer in the 1st part of the 20th century. 

• His work combine brutal naturalism, poetry and biting satire with an abiding respect for the courage of the Irish.

3- Chapter Summary 

This story is about young seagull bird. They were six members in a family. Father, mother, two brothers, sister and the young seagull. 

Young seagull (bird) was all alone on his cliff( rock face). He was afraid to fly because according to him his wings will not support him. He was also afraid of the long stretch and depth of the sea. His father and mother tried to push him to fly. They even scolded and threatened him. But all in vain. His parents got the fear that if he does not fly, he would die of hunger. As we all know when birds grow up, they have to fly and find food for themselves. They have to live alone. As birds are born to fly and live alone.

Parents left him alone

His parents and siblings left him alone and nobody came near him. All the day, young seagull watched his parents teaching his siblings ( brothers and sisters) how to fly. They also taught his siblings how to dive and catch the fish. His elder brother caught the first sea fish. At this his parents praised him.  

Mothers plan for Young Seagull 

Gradually, the young Seagull started feeling hungry. He could not tolerate the hunger. He also pretends to fall asleep in order to grasp the attention of his family, but of no use.

His two brothers and sister were sleeping. His father was cleaning his feathers. But his mother noticed him. She was standing high on the hill with fish in her beak. When young Seagull saw the fish, he felt more hunger. She tore the fish in the same manner the young Seagull loved to eat. Then, she flew nearer to him. However, she stopped near the edge of the cliff. At that moment, he forgot about his fear and out of hunger he ran towards the mother and dived for the fish.

His First Flight Celebration

Soon he spread his Wings and began to fly downwards and upwards. All his fear of flying vanished. Soon his family members joined him in his first flight. They all landed on the green sea. Young Seagull's legs sank into green sea. He tried to fly again but he was tired. Finally, his belly touched the sea water and he was floating on it. The family members praised him and offered him pieces of dog-fish in the form of reward for his first flight. 

4- Vocabulary Building 

• Ledge - shelf, horizontal surface of cliff

• Cliff - rock face(chat tan)

• Flap - to move wings up and down 

• Plunge - dive

• Herring - kind of fish

• Cowardice - lack of courage 

• Dozing - light sleep

• Tapping - beating lightly

• Halted - stopped 

• Seized - caught

• Commended - praised

• Cawed - to utter a cry

• Timid - fearful, scared

5- Textbook Exercises 

i- Why was the young Seagull afraid to fly? Do you think all young birds are afraid to make their first flight, or are some birds more timid than others? Do you think a human baby also finds it a challenge to take its first step? C.B.S.E. Board (2019)

Ans- The young Seagull was afraid to fly because he fear of falling from a great height. 

Yes, something done at first time is always a but more difficult and challenging. However, some birds are more timid( fearful) than the other and take more time to fly.

Similarly, a human baby is also afraid of taking the first step. 

ii- " The sight of the food maddened him". What does this suggest? What compelled the young Seagull to finally fly? 

Ans- This suggest his hungerness increased when he saw the food.

It was his hunger that finally compelled him to fly. When he saw his mother at some distance away with fish in her beak. He was unable to control his hunger and dived for food. Naturally, his wings spread and he began to fly.

iii- 'They were beckoning to him, calling shrilly'. Why did the seagull's father and mother threaten him and cajole him to fly?

Ans- The young Seagull could not gather enough courage to fly unlike his siblings. Therefore his parents taunted him and called him coward. They threaten and cajole him as they want him to fly. 

iv- Have you ever had a similar experience, where your parents encouraged you to do something that you were too scared to try?

Ans- Yes, I had a similar experience when I was 10 years old. I tried to learn bicycle. Initially, I fell down every time and developed a fear. At that time my parents encouraged me to overcome the fear and helped me to learn cycling. Thus, I overcome my fear of cycling and learned cycling. 

v- In the case of a bird flying. It seems a natural act, and a foregone conclusion that it should succeed. In the examples you have given in answer to the previous question, was your success guaranteed, or was it important for you to try, regardless of a possibility of failure?

Ans- According to my point of view, if we have firm faith then we can easily achieve whatever we desire. As when someone is determined, success is assured.

6- Short Question/Answers 

i- How did the seagull's parents try to make him fly?(C.B.S.E 2019)

Ans- The trick applied by them worked well. The young Seagull's mother tempted him with food that resulted in his first flight. 

ii- What was the young Seagull's experience during his first flight?

Ans- He was overjoyed during his first flight, as he was no longer afraid of flying. He began to fly slowly downwards and upwards. 

iii- How did the young seagull and his family celebrate his first flight? (C.B.S.E 2016)

Ans- His family accompany him during his first flight. They screamed with joy and praised him. They also offered him pieces of dog-fish to eat.

iv- " The sight of the food maddened him". What does this suggest? (C.B.S.E 2020)

Ans- The phrase suggest his hungerness increased when he saw the food. His parents refused to offer him food because, he was afraid to fly. With time his hunger increased. 

7- Multiple-Choice Questions 

i- What were his parents teaching his brothers and sister?

a- to dive for fish

b- to skim the waves

c- art if flying 

d- all of the above 

Ans- d( all of the above )

ii- He couldn't fly like his brothers and sister because 

a- he was scared of flying 

b- he didn't like to fly

c- he was lethargic 

d- none of the above 

Ans- a( he was scared of flying )

iii- The Seagull had been feeling 

a- angry

b- hungry

c- sorry

d- tired

Ans- b( hungry )

iv- The phrase 'his Wings spread outwards' means

a- he was drowning 

b- he started flying 

c- he fell from the height 

d- he was sad

Ans- b( he Started flying )

v- What had his Elder brother done?

a- he was flying 

b- he was sleeping 

c- he had caught his first fish

d- none of the above 

Ans- c( he had caught his first fish )

8- To Recapitulate 

I have tried my best to cover all the important exercises. Hope this article would be a great help in your upcoming Exams. If any doubts you can reach me through the comment section box. 

All THE VERY BEST FOR YOUR EXAMS.....

Thank You.