Two Stories About Flying

 

TWO STORIES ABOUT FLYING

 

Question 1: 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 steps?
Answer: The young seagull was afraid to fly because it was its first flight. It is a well known fact that doing something for the first time is challenging. Some take it as an adventure while some are scared . Similarly, a human baby would also find it a challenge to take its first step.

 

Question 2: “The sight of the food maddened him.” What does this suggest? What compelled the young seagull to finally fly?
Answer: The young seagull was very hungry. It was this hunger that ultimately compelled it to fly. Its hunger only intensified when it saw its mother tearing at a piece of fish that lay at her feet. It cried to her, begging her to get some food. When its mother came towards it with food in her beak, it screamed with joy and anticipation. However, she stopped midway. Not being able to resist or control its hunger any longer, the young seagull dived at the food in its mother’s beak. At that moment, his hunger overpowered his apprehension of the great expanse of sea beneath the cliff. Finally, this plunge was followed by the natural reaction of its body, i.e., to fly.

 

Question 3: “They were beckoning to him, calling shrilly. “Why did the seagull’s father and mother threaten him and cajole him to fly?
Answer: The young seagull was afraid to fly. Even when it saw its brothers and sisters flying, and its parents helping and teaching them, it could not gather enough courage to make that first flight. That is why its father and mother were calling to it shrilly and scolding it. They threatened to let it starve on its ledge if it did not fly. They did so because they wanted it to leave its fear behind and learn to fly.

 

Question 4: “I’ll take the risk.” What is the risk? Why does the narrator take it?
Answer: The risk was to fly through the black storm clouds. The narrator took the risk because his home was beckoning him. He was dreaming of his holiday and looking forward to be with his family. He also wanted to get home in time to enjoy a good English breakfast.

 

Question 5: Describe the narrator’s experience as he flew the aeroplane into the storm.
Answer: As he flew into the storm, everything went black. It was impossible to see anything outside the plane. It jumped and twisted in the air. When he looked at his compass, he saw that it was turning round and round. It was dead. Along with it, the other instruments, including the radio, were also dead. Suddenly, he saw another aeroplane. Its pilot waved at him, asking him to follow. He was glad to find a helper. He was using his last fuel tank and there was only enough fuel to fly five or ten minutes. Then, the other pilot started to go down and he followed. He suddenly came out of the clouds and saw the runway, on which he then landed his plane safely.

 

Question 6: Why does the narrator say, “I landed and was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota…”?
Answer: After landing, the narrator was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota because he had a horrific and scary experience flying that plane. He was happy that he had landed the plane safely. That is why he was not sorry to walk away. Instead, he wanted to know where he was and who the other pilot was.

 

Question 7: What made the woman in the control centre look at the narrator strangely?
Answer: The narrator had asked the woman in the control centre about the identity of the other pilot. She looked at him strangely as there was no other plane in the storm. She told him that no other plane was flying that night. His was the only plane she could see on the radar.

 

Question 8: Who do you think helped the narrator to reach safely? Discuss this among yourselves and give reasons for your answer.
Answer: Probably, it was the narrator’s own self that helped him through the storm. There was no other plane in the storm as the woman at the control centre could see only his plane on the radar. Also, no other plane was flying that night. In his fear, he might have been hallucinating. He was a good pilot, and it might have been his own self that came to his help.
~

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. They were screaming, praising him and offering him scraps of dog fish in their beaks.

 

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

Ans. The seagull was afraid to fly. It wasn’t prepared for its first flight physically or mentally. He thought that his wings would not support his body. That is why it felt exhausted.

 

3. 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.

 

4. While alone on the ledge, how did the little seagull try to draw the attention of his family?                  

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.

 

  5. 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.

 

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

 Ans.  The story conveys the message that we learn by taking courage and not by sitting idle. Hesitations and fears play necessary parts in human life but we get success in any enterprise only when we overcome our doubts, hesitations and fears. 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.

 

7.The young seagull found it difficult to fly for the first time. lt 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. 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.

 

8.  ‘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. But sometimes parents have to resort to harsh measures to teach important lessons to their children. 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.

 

9. Describe the humiliation and taunting that the young seagull faced from his family when he used to sit alone on his ledge without mustering his courage to fly in the air.

Ans. The young seagull used to sit on .the ledge all alone. He used to see his two brothers and sister flying around him. They had learnt flying only the day before. His brothers and sister had far shorter wings than his own. But they succeeded flapping their wings and flew away. He failed to muster his courage to take the plunge. His father and mother flew around him scolding and taunting him. They also threatened to let him starve on his ledge unless he flew away. The thing that compounded his agony was that his elder brother had caught his first herring and devoured it. His parents circled around his brother raising a proud cackle. On the other hand, the family had walked down the opposite cliff taunting him with his cowardice.

 

PART II

 

Short Answer Type Important Questions

1. What happened when the author turned the aeroplane twelve degrees west towards England?  

Ans. The author saw the huge storm clouds that looked like black mountains standing in front of him across the sky.

 

2. Explain the statement: ‘I was very happy to go behind the strange aeroplane like an obedient child.

Ans. The pilot came across huge storm clouds. He could neither go above them nor go around them due to lack of fuel. His compass and radio stopped working and the pilot had no way of finding his way through the storm. Then, he saw a black plane without lights on wings, flying near his plane. Its pilot waved and signalled him to follow him. The pilot was relieved and happy that he had found help in these dire circumstances.

 

3. Why did the pilot think of going back to Paris?

Ans. The pilot came across huge storm clouds that seemed to him like black mountains. He could neither go above them nor go around them due to lack of fuel. That was when he thought of returning to Paris.

 

4. HOW did the black aeroplane rescue the first pilot?

Ans. The pilot of the black aeroplane waved his hand. He gestured the first pilot to follow him. The writer followed him. Suddenly, his plane was out of the clouds. He could see the lights of the airport and landed his aeroplane. In this way, the black aeroplane rescued the first pilot.

 

 

5. Was the pilot of the Dakota able to meet the pilot of the black?

Ans. No, he was not able to meet the pilot of the black aeroplane. When he was going to land his plane, he looked behind him. But the black plane was not there. The sky was empty. The woman at the control centre told him that no other planes were flying on that stormy night.

 

6.  Which two options did the narrator have before risking himself entering the storm clouds? Why didn’t he choose them?

Ans. The narrator could turn back and go to Paris which was about 150 kilometres behind him. Another option was to fly up and over the dark clouds. But he didn’t choose any of the options. He wanted to be in England to have his breakfast in time. He couldn’t fly around the clouds to the north or south as he didn’t have enough fuel to fly.

 

7.What is the message that Frederick wants to give to the readers through the lesson ‘The Black Aeroplane’?

Ans. Never say ‘die’ till the end. Never lose hope in the most hopeless situation. No one knows who may come to save you. The narrator was really in such a hopeless situation when he lost contact with Paris control and all his instruments and the compass were dead. Then came the mysterious pilot of the black aeroplane to guide the narrator to safety.

 

8. You are the pilot who was flying from Paris to England when you were lost in the storm clouds. Write your experience in the form of a diary entry describing how you were rescued by a strange black plane and its pilot. You may start like this

 

Dear Diary

The biggest blessing of my life has left me with a mystery I can’t explain…..

Ans      … I had the scariest experience today and no matter how hard I think, I am unable to solve this mystery.

 

I decided to fly back from Paris in my Dakota early in the morning today. The weather was fine and everything looked alright. Karen and the boys were waiting for me in England and I was looking forward to a hearty English breakfast. Suddenly I saw dark huge clouds looming ahead. I took the risk and though I could fly through the storm. But the moment I entered the storm, my equipment went dead and I was lost. With not enough fuel it was impossible for me to reach home. I was losing hope when suddenly I saw a black aeroplane beside mine. Like an angel, its pilot guided me to the runway and saved my life. I got down and went to thank my savior. But you know what? I found neither the aeroplane nor the pilot! When I asked the control about the strange black plane and its pilot, the reply was, no other plane was seen on the radar except my Dakota.

 

Then who rescued me? Was this my hallucination or did God send an angel to help me? Could it have been an alien or even a ghost? Nobody has answers to these questions but one lesson that I have learnt is that we should not lose hope till it is over. You never know when and from where help might come. Whoever it was, I will forever be grateful to the stranger who saved my life.

 

Fredrick

Q    Comment on the difference in the nature of help received by the pilot of the aeroplane and Lencho.

Ans: The pilot, in the Dakota and the baby seagull, both needed help. The pilot was stuck in a massive storm with all equipment malfunctioning. He was helped by a stranger in a black aeroplane. The stranger steered through the dark clouds and guided the Dakota pilot to safety. After landing, he was told that there was no other plane in the air.

In “A Letter to God”, Lencho wrote a letter to God asking for money. His conviction in God touched the postmaster so much that he raised money and sent it to Lencho. Lencho was so naïve, simple and firm in his faith that he accepted that the help came from God and blamed the post office staff for stealing from him even though they were the ones who had helped him.

In this first case, the pilot did not ask for help but he received it and he was thankful for it although he did not know who helped him. On the other hand, Lencho asked for help, received it but was still not satisfied as he felt that he had been cheated.

Q    Comment on the parenting approach of the mothers of the baby seagull and Amanda.

Ans:    One acknowledges that both parents, Amanda’s mother and baby seagull’s mother both have good intentions and want to better their children’s lives, however, the seagull’s mother seems to be more attuned to her child’s needs and abilities. She pushes him out of his comfort zone and encourages him to learn new skills. She understands that he was afraid of flying and she cajoles, motivates, threatens and finally cheats him so that he learns to fly.

In case of Amanda, her mother is a strict and criticizing figure who is presented as always correcting Amanda’s behaviour. She is constantly nit-picking her habits and creates an atmosphere of tension, anxiety, which makes Amanda feel worse about herself. She even seeks refuge in imaginary world.

I feel that though the seagull’s mother helped him in achieving his potential, she could have been more sensitive to her child’s fears and anxieties. Also, Amanda’s mother should focus on her daughter’s strengths rather than weaknesses and help her in building her self- esteem. The best approach for both parents would be to balance positive reinforcement with sensitivity to the child’s needs and limitations.