UP Board Class 10 English Chapter 3 – Two Stories about Flying (Prose)

(Liam O’Flaherty)

This story is about a family of seagulls. In the story, the young seagull could not fly due to the fear of falling. While his siblings confidently fly, he remains on his ledge, unable to gain the courage to fly with them. His parents encourage him, but he is too afraid. He felt that his wings would not support him. So, he ran back to his hole on the ledge. His father and mother tried to persuade him to fly but the young seagull did not move.

He saw his brother catch the first herring and his parents praised him. As time passed the young seagull felt very hungry. The young seagull could not tolerate the hunger and the heat. His two brothers and his sister were sleeping and his father was cleaning his feather.

Realising his madness for the food, his mother tried to tempt him with the pieces of fish. His mother flew nearer to him which filled the young seagull with joy. However, the mother stopped near the edge of the ledge. The young seagull ran towards his mother and dived for the fish.

Initially, the seagull was scared and screamed with fear when he dived. Soon his wings spread outwards and he began to fly slowly. His family cheers him on as he tries to land on the water, but he feels tired and hungry.

In the end, he conquers his fear, completes his first flight, and discovers the joy of flying alongside his supportive family.

यह कहानी एक सीगल के परिवार के बारे में है। कहानी में, एक नन्हा सीगल, गिरने के डर से उड़ नहीं पा रहा था। जब उसके भाई-बहन आत्मविश्वास के साथ उड़ रहे होते थे, वह उनके साथ उड़ने का साहस ना जुटा पाने के कारण, अपनी चट्टान पर ही रहता था। उसके माता-पिता उसे प्रोत्साहित करते हैं, किन्तु वह बहुत डरता है। उसे लगता है कि उसके पंख उसकी सहायता नहीं करेंगे, इसलिए वह चट्टान पर बने हुए अपने छिद्र में वापस चला जाता है। उसके माता-पिता उसे उड़ने के लिए मनाने का प्रयत्न करते हैं लेकिन नन्हा सीगल नहीं मानता।

वह देखता है कि उसके भाई ने अपनी पहली हिलसा मछली पकड़ी है और उसके माता-पिता उसकी प्रशंसा कर रहे हैं। समय के साथ-साथ नन्हे सीगल को बहुत भूख लगने लगती है। नन्हा सीगल भूख और गर्मी को सहन करने में असमर्थ हो जाता है। उसके दो भाई और एक बहन सो रहे थे और उसके पिता अपने पंख साफ कर रहे थे।

भोजन के प्रति उसके पागलपन का अनुभव करते हुए, उसकी माँ उसे मछली के टुकड़े के द्वारा लुभाने का प्रयास करती है। उसकी माँ उड़कर उसके पास आ जाती है जिससे नन्हा सीगल अत्यंत खुश हो जाता है। हालाँकि, उसकी माँ उसके चट्टान के किनारे के पास आकर रुक जाती है। नन्हा सीगल मछली देखकर अपनी माँ की तरफ दौड़ता है और मछली के लिए नीचे गोता लगाता है अर्थात् चट्टान से कूद जाता है।

प्रारम्भ में, जब वह नीचे गोता लगाता है, तो नन्हा सीगल डर जाता है और भयभीत होकर चीखता है। शीघ्र ही उसके पंख फैल जाते हैं और वह धीरे- धीरे उड़ना प्रारम्भ कर देता है। उसका परिवार उसे प्रोत्साहित करता है, फिर वह पानी पर उतरने का प्रयास करता है, लेकिन उसे बहुत थकान व भूख महसूस होती है।

अन्त में, वह अपने डर पर विजय प्राप्त करके, अपनी प्रथम उड़ान पूर्ण करता है और अपने सहायक परिवार के साथ उड़ने का आनन्द खोज लेता है।

परीक्षा में पाठ्यपुस्तक Prose के पाठों से एक Extract दिया जाएगा तथा उस पर आधारित 2 Multiple Choice Questions पूछे जाएँगे, जिनके उत्तर विद्यार्थी को देने होते हैं। यहाँ पर हमने Extracts के साथ 2 अधिक Questions दिए हैं, जो केवल विद्यार्थियों के सम्पूर्ण अभ्यास के लिए हैं। परीक्षा में 1-1 अंकों के 2 ही Questions पूछे जाते हैं।

(a) To perfect the art of flying

(b) To skim the waves

(c) To dive for fish

(d) All of these

Ans. (d) All of these

(a) Because he was rude

(a) He had caught his first herring. .

(b) He was flying

(c) He was taunting him.

(d) He was eating his fish.

Ans. (a) He had caught his first herring.

(a) She was mad at him.

(b) To get him to fly out of hunger.

(c) She didn’t want to give him the fish.

(a) he fell off the cliff

(b) he was drowning

(c) he started flying flying

(d) he was happy

Ans. (c) he started

(a) with a loud scream

(b) monstrous terror seized him

(c) his heart stood still

(d) he could hear nothing

Ans. (b) monstrous terror seized him

(a) To fly in the sky

(b) To land in the sea

(c) To fly over vast sea

(d) To catch fish

Ans. (a) To fly in the sky

(a) to never talk to him

(b) to punish him

(c) to starve him

(d) to abandon him

Ans. (c) to starve him

(a) Little hole under the ledge

(b) On the brink of the cliff

(c) On a tree

(d) In his mother’s wings

Ans. (a) Little hole under the ledge

(a) His two brothers

(b) His sister

(c) His parents

(d) He was alone

Ans. (d) He was alone

(a) he was feeling sleepy

(b) it was a natural habit of seagulls

(c) he wanted to get the attention of his family

(d) he was afraid of his family

Ans. (c) he wanted to get the attention of his family

(a) When he denied for flying

(b) When he acted sleeping

(c) When he begged her for food

(d) None of the above

Ans. (c) When he begged her for food

Ans. The young seagull’s parents tried hard to make him fly. They scolded him and threatend him to let him starve. But the young seagull could not gain courage to fly. Then, they taunted him. Finally, the young seagull’s mother tempted him with food which resulted in making him fly.

Ans. The day before, the young seagull had watched his parents making his brothers and his sister perfect in the art of flying. They were teaching them how to skim the waves and how to dive for fish.

Ans. The young seagull got over his fear of flying over the sea when his mother taught him a bitter lesson. His family left him alone on the ledge to starve. His mother was tearing pieces of fish. On seeing his mother with food, his hunger increased. He was forced to attempt his first flight.

Ans. As the young seagull fell from the ledge, he was filled with fear. But soon, his wings spread out and he found himself flying. Upon realising that he was finally flying, the young seagull was overjoyed. He screamed with joy as he was no longer afraid of flying.

Ans. When the young seagull started flying, he was filled with joy and delight. His family came near him. They were flying around him. They celebrated the young seagull’s first flight. They screamed with joy and praised him. They even offered him pieces of dog fish to eat.

Ans. The phrase “The sight of the food maddened him” suggests that the young seagull was very hungry. As the young seagull was afraid to fly, his parents refused to give him any food. So, when he saw food, his hunger increased.

Ans. Unlike his siblings, the poor seagull could not gather enough courage to take his first flight. Thus, his parents taunted him for being a coward. They threatened and cajoled him so that he might also take his first flight. They thought that hunger would make him fly looking for his food. They did this to remove his fear of flight.

Ans. A seagull is a bird. The central theme of the lesson “His First Flight” revolves around overcoming fear and embracing courage. The story portrays a young seagull which learns to overcome fear and finds courage as he attempts to fly for the first time.

Ans. The young seagull was afraid to fly because he felt that his wings would not support him and he would fall from a great height. As a result, he would die. This fear kept him from flying was overwhelned with the fear.

Ans. Introduction The young seagull was the central character of story. His fear of flying does not let him be brave and start flying. At last, after his family’s support and mother seagull’s trick, he learnt to fly and thus overcame his fear of flying.

Afraid of Flying He was afraid of flying because he thought that if he flew, his wings would not support him and he would fall down in the sea. Even after being threatened by his parents, he did not fly.

Lonely He was all alone on the ledge as his family left him there. He looked at his siblings enjoying swimming, diving into the sea and eating fish, but no one came near him to offer food.

Hungry The young seagull was dying of hunger because he had not eaten anything for past 24 hours. His mother tempted him with pieces of fish. He begged and cried for food.

Dive for Food Out of hunger, the young seagull dived. He began to fall down with a scream.

His first Flight He was afraid of drowning, so he tried to spread his wings outwards and began his first flight.

Conclusion Hunger, encouragement and self-determination made the young seagull fly. He overcame his fear of flying and successfully made his first flight.

Ans. The Sun was ascending in the sky, blazing on his ledge that faced the South. The young seagull felt the heat because he had not eaten since the previous nightfall. He stepped out slowly to the brink of the ledge and standing on one leg with the other leg hidden under its wing, he closed one eye after the another and pretended to sleep. His two brothers and sister were lying on the plateau dozing with their heads sunk into their necks. His father was preening the feathers on his white back. Only his mother was looking at him standing on a high hump on the plateau. She was tearing a piece of fish now and then, and scrapped each side of the beak on the rock. The sight of food maddened the seagull and he requested his mother to give him some fish but she only flew close to him with the fish and he dived to catch it. Hence, this results in him making his first flight.

The story “The Black Aeroplane’ describes a dangerous journey taken by a pilot flying his old Dakota aeroplane from France back to England. He was dreaming of his holiday and looking forward to be with his family. However, his journey took an unexpected turn when he encountered storm clouds ahead. Despite the danger ahead, the pilot didn’t turn back to Paris. He was determined to go home for breakfast. So, he flew into the storm, hoping to reach England successfully.

Inside the dark clouds, he couldn’t see anything and his instruments stopped working. He was lost and scared when he saw another black aeroplane flying next to him, signalling for him to follow. The narrator obediently followed the mysterious black aeroplane through the storm. The black plane led him down and out of the clouds, revealing a runway below. Soon, the pilot landed safely and wanted to thank the other plane. But the black plane was nowhere to be found. When he asked a woman in the control tower, she looked at him very strangely and laughed. She told him that there was no other plane flying except his on such a stormy night. The narrator was surprised at this.

“The Black Aeroplane´ कहानी एक वायुयान चालक द्वारा अपने पुराने डकोटा हवाई जाहज को फ्रांस से वापस इंग्लैण्ड तक उड़ाने की एक खतरनाक यात्रा का वर्णन करती है। वह अपनी छुट्टियों के सपने देख रहा था और अपने परिवार के साथ होने के बारे में सोच रहा था। हालाँकि, उसकी यात्रा में एक अप्रत्याशित मोड़ आ जाता है, जब उसका सामना तूफानी बादलों से हुआ। सामने खतरा होने के बावजूद, विमान चालक वापस पेरिस की ओर नहीं मुड़ा । उसने नाश्ते के लिए घर पहुँचने का निश्चय किया था। वह सफलतापूर्वक इंग्लैण्ड पहुँचने की आशा से तूफान में उड़ रहा था।

काले बादलों में, उसे कुछ भी दिखाई नहीं देता और उसके उपकरणों भी काम करना बन्द कर दिया। वह तब डर गया, जब स्वयं के पास एक और काले हवाई जहाज को उड़ता हुआ देखा है, जो उसे अपने पीछे आने का संकेत दे रहा था। कथावाचक आज्ञाकारी बनकर तूफान में रहस्यमयी काले हवाई जहाज का पीछा किया। काला हवाई जहाज उसे बादलों से नीचे बाहर की ओर ले गया, उसके बाद, उसे नीचे एक विमान पट्टिका दिखाई दी। शीघ्र ही, विमान चालक विमान को सुरक्षित नीचे उतारा है और दूसरे जहाज को (काले हवाई जहाज को) धन्यवाद कहना चाहता था। लेकिन, उसे काला विमान कहीं भी नहीं मिला। जब वह नियन्त्रण कक्ष में महिला से पूछता है, तो वह उसे बहुत अजीब ढंग से देखा और हंसने लगी। उसने उसे बताया कि इतनी तूफानी रात में उसके जहाज के अतिरिक्त अन्य कोई दूसरा जहाज नहीं उड़ रहा था। कथावाचक इस पर आश्चर्यचकित था ।

परीक्षा में पाठ्यपुस्तक के Prose के पाठों से एक Extract दिया जाएगा तथा उस पर आधारित 2 Multiple Choice Questions पूछे जाएँगे, जिनके उत्तर विद्यार्थी को देने होते हैं। यहाँ पर हमने Extracts के साथ 2 अधिक Questions दिए हैं, जो केवल विद्यार्थियों के सम्पूर्ण अभ्यास के लिए हैं। परीक्षा में 1-1 अंकों के 2 ही Questions पूछे जाते हैं।

Read the following extracts carefully and answer the questions that follow.

(a) That it was night time and everybody was sleeping.

(b) That it was night time and everything was normal.

(c) That it was night time and stars were shining in the clear sky.

(d) None of the above

Ans. (a) That it was night time and everybody was sleeping.

(a) Clear sky with ideal climatic conditions.

(b) It was raining heavily.

(c) There were a lot of clouds.

(d) All of the above

Ans. (a) Clear sky with ideal climatic conditions.

(a) Nurse

(b) Pilot

(c) Air hostess

(d) Doctor

Ans. (b) Pilot

(a) As there were hailstorms outside

(b) As there were dark clouds all around.

(c) It was night time

(d) All of the above

Ans. (b) As there were dark clouds all around.

(a) It was perfectly working.

(b) It was going down.

(c) It had stopped working.

(d) It was moving in a zig-zag manner.

Ans. (b) It was going down.

(a) It broke apart

(b) It was accurate

(c) It malfunctioned

(d) It was precise

Ans. (c) It malfunctioned

(a) No bird was visible in the sky.

(b) There was no other aeroplane in the sky.

(c) The weather was stormy, therefore empty.

(d) The black aeroplane had landed.

Ans. (b) There was no other aeroplane in the sky.

(a) relieved to land safely at the airport

(b) scared how to reach the airport

(c) shocked to find the black plane missing

(d) sad to lose his friend in black aeroplane

Ans. (a) relieved to land safely at the airport.

(a) the black aeroplane

(b) the skyline of England

(c) the runway lights of an airport

(d) Paris control room

Ans. (c) the runway lights of an airport

(a) A town from where the pilot took off.

(b) A town where the pilot landed.

(c) The name of the plane that the pilot had been flying.

(d) The other aeroplane

Ans. (c) The name of the plane that the pilot had been flying.

(a) He was going to meet his family.

(b) He was alone up in the sky.

(c) He was going to have an English breakfast the following day.

(d) All of the above

Ans. (d) All of the above

Ans. The narrator was feeling calm and contented while flying his aeroplane back to England. It was the only aeroplane in the sky above the quiet countryside and he was happy with it. He was enjoying the sight of the moon and the stars in the clear night sky. The narrator was also excited because he knew that if he reached on time, he would be able to have a good breakfast with his family.

Ans. The narrator followed the pilot of another aeroplane because he had lost his way in the storm clouds. Its pilot signalled him to follow him. He thought he was trying to help him. So, he followed the black aeroplane, to get out of the clouds safely.

Ans. The narrator wanted to meet the pilot of the black aeroplane because he wanted to thank its pilot. He had saved the narrator’s life by guiding him out of the storm clouds. He had landed safely at an airport.

Ans. The message that the narrator wanted to convey to his readers was to never lose hope in the most hopeless situation. The narrator was really in such a hopeless situation when he lost contact with Paris control and all his instruments were dead. It was the mysterious pilot who helped him and gave him hope to survive in such a situation.

Ans. The ‘strange’ black aeroplane’s pilot signalled the narrator to follow him and waved his hand towards the narrator. After flying for half an hour, he flew downwards and the narrator who was behind him saw the lights of a runway and landed safely. The ‘strange’ black aeroplane had appeared suddenly, it had no lights on it and it disappeared after saving the narrator’s life.

Ans. The risk referred to here is the decision of the narrator to fly through the storm clouds. The narrator took the risk because he wanted to go home and have breakfast with his family in England the next day.

Ans. The narrator had a very frightening experience in the storm. As he entered the storm, his plane started jumping and twisting. He could not see anything outside the plane as it was totally dark. When he looked at the compass and other instruments, they had stopped functioning. It was a terrible experience for him. Suddenly, he saw another black aeroplane by his side. The pilot of the plane signalled him to follow. The narrator followed it and soon landed safely.

Ans. The narrator said this because he had a terrible experience of flying. He had entered a storm cloud in his old Dakota aeroplane. While in the cloud, the plane jumped and twisted and all its equipments had stopped working. So when he landed safely, he was not sorry for leaving the plane. He was in fact relieved and happy.

Ans. The woman in the control centre looked at the narrator strangely because the narrator asked her about a black aeroplane, whereas the airport’s radar screen showed no plane except the narrator’s plane in the sky during that stormy night.

Ans. Introduction The narrator was the pilot of the old Dakota, DS 088.

The Trip to England The pilot was flying his aeroplane at night over France to England. He was eager to meet his family. He called Paris control to get instructed about the way.

Fear of Storm Everything was going well before he saw the storm clouds. He knew it was not possible to fly up and over those storm clouds.

His Risky but Brave Decision As everything was fearful at the moment, the pilot decided to take a risk and flew into the storm, but everything went out of control as none of the devices on the plane were working.

He was unable to see outside the plane as it was jumping and twisting in the air. He couldn’t contact Paris control either. He was lost in the storm.

The Strange Black Aeroplane Suddenly, the pilot saw another black aeroplane in the storm by his side. The pilot of the plane signalled him to follow and he did.

A Safe Landing The pilot was able to land safely which gave him a sigh of relief. It was a miracle.

The Greatest Surprise The narrator came out of his plane to thank the other pilot, but no one was there. When he inquired at the Control Tower, the woman there told him that there was no other plane except his.

Conclusion The pilot was a man of principles. He loved his family. He was a brave man and was not afraid of taking risks.

Ans. The narrator of this story is a pilot who was flying his old Dakota over France to England.

It was a starry night. The moon shone brightly and the sky was clear with no clouds. The narrator hoped to spend his holiday with his family.

He knew if he reached on time, he would be able to do so. It was one thirty in the morning. He was in a joyful mood and it was an easy journey. When he saw the lights of a big city in front of him, he thought of contacting the Paris control.

When he contacted them, they instructed him to turn twelve degrees West. He checked the map and the compass, switched to his second and last fuel tank and turned the plane excitedly as he realised that he will reach on time. That is when, he saw huge black clouds in front of him.