Two Stories about Flying Question Answer – Class 10 English

Before You Read

I. A young seagull is afraid to fly. How does he conquer his fear?

The young seagull conquers his fear because hunger forces him to act. His mother flies towards him with a piece of fish but stops just out of his reach. Maddened by hunger, he dives at the fish and falls into space. At once his wings spread out, the wind supports him, and he discovers that he can fly. His fear disappears and he joins his family in the air.

II. A pilot is lost in storm clouds. Does he arrive safe? Who helps him?

Yes, the pilot arrives safely at an airport. He is helped by the pilot of a strange black aeroplane with no lights, who signals "Follow me" and guides him through the storm. However, the woman in the control centre says that no other aeroplane was flying that night, so the identity of the helper remains a mystery.

I. His First Flight — Thinking about the Text

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?

The young seagull was afraid to fly because the sea below looked like a "great expanse" and the drop seemed "miles down". He felt certain that "his wings would never support him", so every time he ran to the brink of the ledge he lost courage and ran back to his hole.

Probably every young bird feels some fear before its first flight, because it is doing something completely new and risky. But some birds are more timid than others. The seagull's brothers and even his little sister, whose wings were shorter than his, flew away without much trouble, while he could not.

A human baby also finds it a challenge to take its first steps. It falls many times, feels unsure of its balance and needs the support and encouragement of its parents. Like the seagull, it succeeds only when it gathers courage and keeps trying.

2. "The sight of the food maddened him." What does this suggest? What compelled the young seagull to finally fly?

This line suggests that the young seagull was extremely hungry. He had not eaten since the previous nightfall, and seeing his mother tearing at a piece of fish made his hunger unbearable. He could no longer think of anything but food.

It was this hunger that compelled him to fly. His mother picked up a piece of fish and flew towards him, but she stopped just opposite him, holding the fish "almost within reach of his beak". Maddened by hunger, he forgot his fear and dived at the fish. As he fell, his wings spread out naturally and he found himself flying. So hunger, together with his mother's clever trick, made him take the plunge.

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

The seagull's parents threatened and cajoled him because they wanted him to become independent. A seagull must fly in order to find food and survive; it cannot stay on a ledge for ever. When he refused to fly, they scolded him, threatened "to let him starve on his ledge" and ignored him for a whole day, while the rest of the family taunted him for his cowardice. Later his mother tempted him with food. These threats and coaxing were not cruel. They were a loving way of pushing him to overcome his fear, because the parents knew that he was able to fly and only needed courage.

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

Yes. When I was in Class VI, I was chosen to recite a poem at the school's Independence Day function, but I was terrified of standing on the stage in front of the whole school. I told my parents that I would pretend to be ill. My mother did not scold me; she made me practise the poem every evening in front of the family. My father reminded me that even good speakers feel nervous at first. On the day, my legs were shaking when I began, but after the first few lines I felt confident and finished well. Everyone clapped, and I realised that my fear had been much bigger than the task itself. Like the young seagull, I only needed a push to discover what I could do.

You may also talk about learning to swim, riding a bicycle, travelling alone for the first time or taking part in a competition.

5. 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?

My success was not guaranteed. I might have forgotten the lines or been laughed at. Unlike a bird, which is made by nature to fly, a person has no certainty of success when trying something new. What mattered was that I tried in spite of the possibility of failure. Even if I had made mistakes, I would have learnt from them and done better the next time. If I had not tried at all, I would have lost the chance completely and my fear would have grown stronger. So it is important to make an honest attempt regardless of the result, because courage and effort, not certainty, lead to success.

I. His First Flight — Speaking

We have just read about the first flight of a young seagull. Your teacher will now divide the class into groups. Each group will work on one of the following topics. Prepare a presentation with your group members and then present it to the entire class.

• Progression of Models of Airplanes
• Progression of Models of Motorcars
• Birds and Their Wing Span
• Migratory Birds — Tracing Their Flights

Model presentation: Progression of Models of Airplanes

Good morning, teacher and friends. Our group will present the story of how aeroplanes developed.

1. The dream of flight: For centuries people watched birds and tried to fly with wings tied to their arms. Leonardo da Vinci drew designs of flying machines in the fifteenth century.
2. Balloons and gliders: In 1783 the Montgolfier brothers of France sent up a hot-air balloon carrying people. Later, gliders were built that could float on the wind but had no engine.
3. The first powered flight: On 17 December 1903, the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, flew their aeroplane, the Flyer, at Kitty Hawk in the USA. The first flight lasted only 12 seconds, but it changed the world.
4. War and progress: During the two World Wars, aeroplanes became faster and stronger. Metal bodies replaced wood and cloth. The Douglas DC-3, or Dakota, the type of plane flown in "The Black Aeroplane", became a famous passenger and cargo plane.
5. The jet age: Jet engines made flight much faster. Passenger jets such as the Boeing 747 could carry hundreds of people across continents. The Concorde even flew faster than sound.
6. Today and tomorrow: Modern aircraft use computers, lighter materials and less fuel. Drones and electric aeroplanes are being developed for the future.

In just over a hundred years, the human dream of flying like a bird has become an everyday reality. Thank you.

Tips for the other topics: For motorcars, trace the steam car, Karl Benz's first petrol car (1886), Henry Ford's Model T and assembly line, and today's electric cars. For birds and their wing span, compare small birds such as sparrows with large ones such as eagles and the wandering albatross, whose wings can measure over three metres, and explain how wing span helps gliding. For migratory birds, describe birds such as the Siberian crane, the bar-headed goose and the Amur falcon, which passes through North-East India, and show their routes on a map.

I. His First Flight — Writing

Write a short composition on your initial attempts at learning a skill. You could describe the challenges of learning to ride a bicycle or learning to swim. Make it as humorous as possible.

My Battle with the Bicycle

When I was nine, my uncle gave me a shining red bicycle. I was sure I would be riding it like a champion within an hour. The bicycle had other plans.

On the first morning, my elder brother held the seat and told me to pedal. I pedalled bravely, looked back to smile at him and discovered that he had let go long ago. The bicycle discovered it too, and gently laid me down in our neighbour's flower bed. The neighbour's goat, which was eating those flowers, looked at me as if I had disturbed its breakfast.

The next day I decided that the problem was the road, so I practised in the school field. The field was wide and empty except for one small tree. I rode straight into that tree, as if it were a magnet. My friends said I was the only person who could hit the only tree in a whole field.

For a week I collected bruises the way other children collect stamps. My knees turned blue, my mother ran out of plaster, and our dog started hiding whenever I brought out the bicycle. But slowly I learnt to keep my eyes ahead, to balance and to brake before, not after, a crash.

On the tenth day I rode all the way round the field without falling. I rang the bell so loudly that the goat ran away. I learnt that a skill comes only after many falls, and that the only real failure is refusing to get up again.

II. The Black Aeroplane — Thinking about the Text

1. "I'll take the risk." What is the risk? Why does the narrator take it?

The risk was flying his old Dakota straight into huge storm clouds that "looked like black mountains" in front of him. He could not fly over them, and he did not have enough fuel to fly around them to the north or south. Flying through such a storm could damage the plane, confuse his instruments and make him lose his way, so it was very dangerous.

The narrator takes the risk because he wants to get home quickly. He knows he "ought to go back to Paris", but he is longing to be with his family after his holiday and to enjoy "a good big English breakfast". His eagerness to reach home makes him ignore the danger.

2. Describe the narrator's experience as he flew the aeroplane into the storm.

As soon as the narrator flew into the storm, everything became black and he could see nothing outside the aeroplane. The old Dakota "jumped and twisted in the air". When he looked at the compass, he could not believe his eyes: it was turning round and round and was dead. The other instruments failed too. He tried to call Paris Control, but the radio was also dead. He was lost in the storm with no radio, no compass and no view of where he was.

Then he saw another aeroplane without lights flying close to him. Its pilot waved and signalled "Follow me". The narrator gladly followed it "like an obedient child". After half an hour there was fuel for only "five or ten minutes more" and he grew frightened again, but the black aeroplane started to go down and he followed it. Suddenly he came out of the clouds and saw "two long straight lines of lights", a runway. He landed safely.

3. Why does the narrator say, "I landed and was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota..."?

The narrator says this because the flight had been a frightening and nearly fatal experience. In the storm the old Dakota had jumped and twisted, its compass, radio and other instruments had stopped working, and its last fuel tank was almost empty. He had come very close to crashing. After landing, he was relieved to be safe on the ground, and he felt glad to get away from the old aeroplane that had failed him and put his life in danger.

4. What made the woman in the control centre look at the narrator strangely?

The woman looked at the narrator strangely because he asked her about "the other pilot" who had helped him. According to her, no other aeroplane had been flying that night in such a storm. The narrator's Dakota was "the only one" she could see on the radar. So his question about another aeroplane seemed very odd to her, and she probably thought he was confused or imagining things after his frightening flight. That is why she looked at him strangely and then laughed.

5. Who do you think helped the narrator to reach safely? Discuss this among yourselves and give reasons for your answer.

The story does not give a clear answer, and it ends with the narrator's own question about the pilot of the black aeroplane. There are two likely explanations.

First, it may have been a supernatural helper, such as a ghost pilot or a guardian angel. The aeroplane had no lights, did not appear on the radar, and disappeared as soon as the narrator was safe. No ordinary plane could do this.

Second, it may have been the narrator's own mind. Under great fear, his inner courage and instinct may have taken the shape of another pilot and guided him. In a desperate situation the mind often finds strength that we do not know we have.

I think the first explanation fits the mood of the story better. The strange details are meant to suggest that some unknown, kind power came to save a man in danger.

II. The Black Aeroplane — Thinking about Language

I. Now, try to guess the meanings of the word 'black' in the sentences given below. Check the meanings in the dictionary and find out whether you have guessed right.

1. Go and have a bath; your hands and face are absolutely black.

Very dirty; covered with dirt.

2. The taxi-driver gave Ratan a black look as he crossed the road when the traffic light was green.

An angry look; full of anger or dislike.

**3. The bombardment of Hiroshima is one of the blackest crimes against humanity.**

Most evil or wicked; very terrible.

4. Very few people enjoy Harold Pinter's black comedy.

Comedy that treats serious or unpleasant subjects, such as death, cruelty or suffering, in a humorous way.

5. Sometimes shopkeepers store essential goods to create false scarcity and then sell these in black.

Illegally, at a higher price than the fixed price (that is, on the black market).

6. Villagers had beaten the criminal black and blue.

Very badly, so that the body was covered with bruises.

II. Match the phrases given under Column A with their meanings given under Column B.

III. We know that the word 'fly' (of birds/insects) means to move through air using wings. Tick the words which have the same or nearly the same meaning.

The words with the same or nearly the same meaning as 'fly' are:

swoop, flit, flutter, float, skim, dart, hover, glide, soar, shoot, sail, flap

The remaining words do not mean moving through the air with wings: paddle and ride refer to water or vehicles; sink, descend and fall mean only going down; ascend means only going up (it is used for stairs, hills and roads too); spring means to jump; stay means to remain in one place.

Some teachers also accept ascend and descend, since a bird does rise and come down through the air, but these words only show direction and do not by themselves mean flying.

II. The Black Aeroplane — Writing

Have you ever been alone or away from home during a thunderstorm? Narrate your experience in a paragraph.

Last June I was returning home alone from my tuition class in the evening when the sky suddenly turned dark. Within minutes a strong wind began to blow, and heavy drops of rain started falling. I was still two kilometres from home and had no umbrella. Lightning flashed across the sky, followed by thunder so loud that I jumped with fright. The road was soon flooded, and the streetlights went off because of a power cut. I took shelter in the veranda of a small closed shop, shivering in my wet clothes. Every flash of lightning showed swaying trees and water rushing along the road, and I wondered how I would get home. After almost an hour, an elderly shopkeeper from next door saw me and kindly offered me tea and a dry towel. When the storm weakened, he lent me his torch and walked with me to the main road, where my father met us. That evening taught me never to ignore the signs of bad weather, and it also reminded me, like the pilot in the story, that help sometimes comes from an unexpected stranger.