His First Flight

Introduction:

The story by “Liam O’ Flaherty” is about a young seagull that is afraid to fly for the first time. He believes that his wings would not support him. Despite his younger siblings flying fearlessly with much shorter wings, he could not gather enough courage to try. He was punished to stay hungry if he did not fly. His mother compelled him to fly by using food as a trap. The story tells us how we hesitate to take the first step in attempting something new. We should trust our abilities.  Fear is the root cause of failure.

Summary (in brief):

The story “His First Flight” by “Liam O’ Flaherty” is about a young seagull. He is afraid to fly. Even though his younger siblings have much shorter wings, they are flying fearlessly while he could not gather the courage to trust his own wings. He was sad as he saw his parents teaching and perfecting his siblings the art of flying. His parents scolded and taunted him for not even trying. Finally, they threaten him that he should be alone and hungry if he didn’t fly. The nest day, he was left alone on his ledge. He felt hungry and tried to get the attention of his family members. His mother noticed him. The young seagull cries out of hunger hoping his mother would feed him. He got excited as his mother came to him with some food. His mother used food as a tool to make him fly. He noticed that his mother had stopped mid-way. He was maddened at the sight of food as he was very hungry and took a dive at the fish. At last, he took his first flight. All the family members celebrate his victory by cheering and dancing around him. He also floated in the sea that he was once afraid of. Thus, he overcame his fear.

Summary (in detail):

The story is about a young seagull. Unlike his younger brothers and sisters, he is too afraid to fly. When the siblings went for flying for the first time, everyone succeeded except him, succeeded. He could not trust his wings. He got terrified by the vast sea and got convinced that he could never fly. As a result, he was ashamed and disheartened. His younger siblings managed to take their first flight despite their wings being shorter than his, but he could not get the courage though he tried desperately. He was scolded by his parents for not trying again but he was terrified of flying.

As he was alone on his ledge suffering from hunger, his parents were helping his siblings master the art of flying and diving to catch fish. His elder brother even caught his first fish. His parents taunted him for being a coward. The sun had now risen and he was feeling the heat more than ever because he was empty-stomach since the night before. He stepped out of his ledge and pretended to sleep on one leg to gain the attention of his family. Still, no one noticed him. His siblings were sleeping, his father was cleaning his feathers with his beak and his mother was standing on a hump of a plateau tearing a fish. She noticed him. The seagull got mad at the sight of the fish because he was very hungry. He cried in hunger to his mom while his mother screamed back angrily but he kept on crying. He screamed joyfully as his mother was flying towards him with the piece of fish. But she stopped short of him. Out of his excitement and hunger, he dived at the fish forgetting all about his fear of flying.

He plunged headlong downwards. He was shocked and afraid. But it only for a moment and soon, his feathers opened as he flew. He could feel the wind against his breast feathers, stomach and his wings. He could feel himself cutting through the air. He was not afraid anymore. He was just a bit nervous but then his mother accompanied him. The whole family screamed out of excitement, thus, celebrating his victory over fear.

Once he overcame his fear, he forgot that he was once afraid of it. He did all those things he once feared. He flew straight over the sea and could see the greenery and the mountains beneath him. He screamed out of joy as he enjoyed the victory. When he landed, his family landed along with him as a gesture that they were proud of. He was scared as his feet sank in the sea. He tried to fly off but he was too tired. As he calmed down, he started floating in the sea. His family was celebrating in excitement and offered him food as praise. Finally, he had conquered his fear and had made his first flight.

Theme:

The theme of the story “His first flight” is about courage and self-confidence. The story is about a seagull who is on its stage of learning how to fly. It also deals with the theme of how to overcome fears and move forward. The mother seagull seemed to be cruel but her intention was good. She wanted her son to overcome his fear of flying.

In this parable, the seagulls convey the message of self-confidence, motivation and self-reliance. The mother seagull motivates the young one enough to get him to learn flying. The baby seagull realizes the importance of belief and faith.

Vocabulary:

ledge = a narrow horizontal shelf projecting from a wall or (here) a cliff

fly (v1) – flew (v2) – flown (v3)

brink = end, edge

flap = (of a bird) move (its wings) up and down when flying or preparing to fly.

expanse = a wide continuous area of something

bend (v1) – bent (v2) – bent (v3)

run (v1) – ran (v2) – run(v3)

sleep (v1) –slept (v2) – slept(v3)

muster = gather

plunge= jump or dive

desperate = feeling or showing a hopeless sense of a situation

shrilly =  with a high pitched and piercing voice or sound

upbraiding  = scolding

threaten = frighten, scare

starve = suffer or die or cause to suffer or die from hunger

for the life of (one) = despite one's best efforts [idiom]

(to) skim = to move lightly just above a surface (here, the sea)

herring = a soft-finned sea fish

devour = eat quickly

cackle = laugh in a loud, harsh way

plateau = an area of fairly level high ground

taunt = provoke or challenge (someone) with insulting remarks

cowardice = lack of bravery

ascending = climbing up

pretend = behave so as to make it appear that something is the case when in fact it is not

doze = sleep lightly

preening = making an effort to maintain feathers

hump = a rounded raised mass of earth or land

scrapped = discard

madden = drive (someone or something) insane; make (someone) extremely annoyed

tear = pull (something) apart or to pieces with force

(to) whet  = to sharpen

derisively  = in a manner showing someone that she/he is stupid

plaintively = sadly, sorrowfully

uttered = make a sound with one’s voice

halted =  stopped

dive = plunge headfirst into water

monstrous = having the ugly or frightening appearance of a monster

terror = extreme fear

to last = to continue for a specified period of time

headlong = with the head foremost

soar = fly or rise high in the air

dizzy = an uncomfortable feeling of spinning around and losing one’s balance

swoop = (especially of a bird) move rapidly downwards through the air

curveting = leaping like a horse

banking = flying with one wing higher than the other

to commend = entrust someone or something to

shriek = utter a high-pitched piercing sound

ridges = a long, narrow hilltop, mountain range, or watershed

caw = to make a cawing sound

amuse =  to find something funny

beckoning = calling

fright = fear

exhaust = feel very tired

Short Answer Questions and Answers:

1. Why was the young seagull alone on his ledge?

The young seagull was alone on his ledge as he was afraid to fly. His siblings and parents had flown and he was left behind.

2. Why he was unable to fly?

He was afraid that his small wings might not support him. He was afraid and wasn’t confident. So, he was unable to fly.

3. How many members were in his family, who were they?

There were six members in his family. They were his parents, his two brothers, his sister and himself.

4. What did his father and mother do when he failed to fly?

His parents scolded him and taunted him for his cowardice. They warned him that he had to stay alone and hungry on his ledge if he failed to fly.

5. Why did his parents raise a proud cackle?

His parents raised a proud cackle as his elder brother had successfully caught a herring all by himself.

6. Why did he pretend to fall asleep?

He was tired and hungry. He was sad and lonely. He wanted sympathy and support from his family. In order to get their attention, he pretended to fall asleep.

7. What were his family members doing?

His siblings were dozing. His father was preening his wings. His mother was standing on a hump, tearing a fish. Only his mother was looking at him.

8. What maddened him?

The sight of the food, the fish being torn by his mother maddened him as he was very hungry.

9. Why he uttered a joyful scream?

He uttered a joyful scream because he thought that his mother was coming to feed him with the fish she was tearing.

10. Did his mother give him food?

No. She didn’t. She wanted to make her son overcome his fear of flying. She used food as a bite to make him fly.

11. What happened when he dived at the fish?

He was terrified and his heart stopped. He heard nothing for a while and soon his wings spread.

12. Why he was no longer afraid?

He was no longer afraid as he was able to fly and he overcame his fear of flying.

13. Describe the sea as he saw beneath him?

The sea beneath him was vast and green with little ridges moving over it.

14. Why did he scream with fright when he landed on the sea?

He thought of standing on the surface of the sea. As he landed on the sea, his feet sank into the sea. He was afraid and tried to fly off, but couldn’t as he was tired and hungry. So, he screamed with fright.

15. Why did the family offer him scraps of dog-fish?

The family offered him scraps of dogfish as he made his first flight and conquered his fear. They praised him by offering him scraps of dogfish.

Textual Questions and Answers:

Q1. 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?

The young seagull was afraid to fly because he never flew. He thought that his wings would not be able to support him. The thought made him timid. Moreover, he was on a ledge, which was high above the sea.

I think that all birds are afraid when they fly for the first time. Every bird may not have the same degree of fear. I feel that some birds are more timid than other birds.
Yes. I think that a human baby also finds it a challenge to take its first steps. In fact, even grown-up humans find it challenging to attempt something new.

Q2. “The sight of the food maddened him.” What does this suggest? What compelled the young seagull to finally fly?

The young seagull was alone and without food on his ledge for a long time. He was sad at his own inability to fly. He was not getting any attention from his family. He saw his mother tearing a fish. He too wanted to tear and scrap a fish like that. His hunger made him mad.

His hunger, his mother’s unwillingness to feed him compelled the young seagull finally to fly. In fact, this was what his mother wanted.

Q3. “They were beckoning to him, calling shrilly.” Why did the seagull’s father and mother threaten him and cajole him to fly?

A. Unlike his siblings, the young seagull could not gather enough courage to take his first flight. His parents weren’t happy as he was timid and not willing to take the risk. Therefore, his parents taunted him for being a coward. They even threatened him to let him starve if he did not try. They made him be alone on the ledge. They wanted him to learn how to hunt his own food. So, they threatened and cajoled him.

Q4. Have you ever had a similar experience, where your parents encouraged you to do something that you are too scared to try? (Discuss this in pairs or groups.)

Yes. I had a similar experience. I was afraid of riding a cycle. I had a bitter experience when I tried to ride a cycle for the first time. I fell down and injured. So, I was terrified at the thought of riding a cycle. My parents did their best to encourage me.

Q5. 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?

The example given by me is about my fear of riding a cycle. No, my success is not guaranteed because it is not a biological or natural skill. Riding a cycle needs a sense of balance and coordination. Regardless of the possibility of failure, it was important for me to try as all my classmates and cousins were riding cycles. I had to prove myself to all of them that I too could do it.