English (First Flight) · CBSE Class 10 · His First Flight & The Black Aeroplane · Poems by Carolyn Wells & John Berryman · 25 Quiz
Two Stories about Flying — Summaries, Authors, Themes & Word-Meanings
I. His First Flight — About the Author & Summary
Author: Liam O’Flaherty (Irish writer). Theme: overcoming fear and gaining confidence; the first step is the hardest. Summary: A young seagull is alone on his ledge, too afraid to fly, though his brothers and sister have already flown. His parents coax, scold and even threaten to starve him. After 24 hours without food, he is maddened by hunger. When his mother flies near with a piece of fish but stops just out of reach, he dives at the fish and falls into space — and suddenly his wings catch the air and he is flying! His whole family celebrates as he makes his first flight and lands safely on the green sea. The story shows that fear is conquered when we are pushed to take the first plunge.
II. The Black Aeroplane — About the Author & Summary
Author: Frederick Forsyth (English writer). Theme: a mysterious, almost supernatural experience; courage, help from an unknown source. Summary: A pilot flying his old Dakota from Paris to England dreams of a good breakfast with his family. Suddenly he faces huge storm clouds. Instead of turning back, he takes a risk and flies straight in. Inside, everything turns black — his compass, instruments and radio all go dead and he is lost. Then a black aeroplane with no lights appears and its pilot signals ‘Follow me’. It guides him safely to a runway and vanishes. On landing, the woman in the control tower tells him that no other plane was flying that night — his was the only one on radar. The identity of the mysterious helper remains an unsolved mystery.
Poem 1 — How to Tell Wild Animals (Carolyn Wells)
A humorous poem that gives funny and dangerous ‘ways’ to identify wild animals — you recognise the Asian Lion when it roars as you’re dying, the Bengal Tiger (black stripes on yellow) when it eats you, the Leopard (spotted hide) when it leaps on you, the Bear when it hugs you hard, and you tell a Hyena (merry smile) from a Crocodile (weeps as it eats). The Chameleon is a tiny, ear-less, wing-less lizard — if you see nothing on a tree, it’s there! The humour comes from the idea (you identify the animal only as it attacks) and from the playful, ‘incorrect’ use of language for rhyme.
Poem 2 — The Ball Poem (John Berryman)
A boy loses his ball in the water and is deeply upset. The poet does not offer money for a new ball, because the loss is not about the ball’s cost — the boy is learning his first responsibility in a world of possessions and the ‘epistemology of loss’ (understanding what it means to lose). The poem teaches that in life things and people will be lost, money cannot buy them back, and one must learn to accept loss and ‘stand up’ again.
Word-Meanings
ledge = a narrow shelf on a cliff; brink = edge; upbraiding = scolding; herring = a sea fish; skim = move lightly over a surface; preening = tidying feathers; derisively = mockingly; plaintively = sadly; whet = to sharpen; curveting = leaping; banking = flying with one wing higher. (Black Aeroplane) Dakota = an old type of aeroplane; compass = direction instrument; runway = airport strip for landing. (Poems) tawny = brownish-yellow; discern = identify; hide = animal skin; peppered = covered with spots; caress = gentle touch; novice = a beginner; nonplussed = puzzled; rigid = stiff; intrude = enter where unwelcome; dime = ten cents; epistemology = the study of the nature of knowledge.
NCERT Textbook Solutions (His First Flight · The Black Aeroplane · How to Tell Wild Animals · The Ball Poem)
HF-1Why was the young seagull afraid to fly? Are some birds more timid? Does a human baby find its first steps a challenge?
The young seagull was afraid because the vast sea stretched far below him — miles down — and he felt certain his wings would never support him. Yes, some birds are naturally more timid than others. And just like the seagull, a human baby too finds taking its first steps a real challenge, often needing encouragement.
HF-2“The sight of the food maddened him.” What does this suggest? What compelled the young seagull to finally fly?
It suggests that the seagull was terribly hungry after not eating for a whole day. When his mother came near with a piece of fish but stopped just out of reach, hunger overcame his fear — he dived at the fish, fell into space, and his wings spread out, making him fly. So it was hunger that finally compelled him to fly.
HF-3“They were beckoning to him, calling shrilly.” Why did the seagull’s parents threaten and cajole him to fly?
The parents threatened (to starve him) and cajoled (the mother brought fish) because they wanted him to overcome his fear and learn to fly, which is essential for a seagull’s survival. Flying and catching fish are vital skills he had to master, so they used every method to make him take the plunge.
HF-4Have you had a similar experience where your parents encouraged you to do something you were scared to try?
(Sample) Yes. When I first learned to swim/ride a bicycle, I was very scared. My parents encouraged me, held me at first and then let go, pushing me to try on my own. Like the seagull, once I overcame my fear, I did it successfully and felt proud.
HF-5For a bird, flying is natural and success a foregone conclusion. In your own examples, was success guaranteed, or was it important to try despite possible failure?
(Sample) In my examples success was not guaranteed — I could have fallen or failed. But it was important to try regardless of the possibility of failure, because only by trying could I learn. Effort and courage mattered more than a guaranteed result.
BA-1“I’ll take the risk.” What is the risk? Why does the narrator take it?
The risk is flying the old Dakota straight into the huge, dangerous storm clouds instead of turning back to Paris. The narrator takes it because he was eager to get home to his family and enjoy a good English breakfast.
BA-2Describe the narrator’s experience as he flew the aeroplane into the storm.
Inside the storm everything turned black and he could see nothing outside. The old aeroplane jumped and twisted in the air. His compass, instruments and radio all went dead, and he was completely lost. Then a black aeroplane with no lights appeared; its pilot signalled ‘Follow me’ and guided him safely down to a runway before vanishing.
BA-3Why does the narrator say, “I landed and was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota…”?
He says this because the flight through the storm had been a terrifying, near-fatal ordeal — his instruments failed and he was nearly killed. He was so relieved to be safe on the ground that he was glad to leave the plane that had almost cost him his life.
BA-4What made the woman in the control centre look at the narrator strangely?
She looked at him strangely because when he asked about the other pilot in the black aeroplane, she told him that no other aeroplanes were flying that night — his Dakota was the only one she could see on the radar. The black aeroplane was a complete mystery.
BA-5Who do you think helped the narrator to reach safely?
(Sample) The helper remains a mystery. It may have been a guardian spirit or a supernatural power watching over him, or perhaps his own skill, instinct and sub-conscious mind guiding him through the storm. The story leaves it unexplained, which adds to its mysterious charm.
TL-1Guess the meanings of ‘black’ in the given sentences.
1. your hands and face are absolutely black → very dirty.
2. gave Ratan a black look → an angry/hostile look.
3. one of the blackest crimes → most wicked/evil.
4. black comedy → comedy about unpleasant/serious subjects treated humorously.
5. sell these in black → illegally (in the black market).
6. beaten the criminal black and blue → badly bruised / beaten severely.
TL-2Match the ‘fly’ phrases (Column A) with meanings (Column B).
1. Fly a flag → Display a flag on a long pole.
2. Fly into rage → Become suddenly very angry.
3. Fly along → Move quickly/suddenly.
4. Fly high → Be successful.
5. Fly the coop → Escape from a place.
TL-3Tick the words that mean the same / nearly the same as ‘fly’ (move through air using wings).
swoop, flit, flutter, ascend, float, skim, dart, hover, glide, soar, sail, flap. (NOT: paddle, ride, sink, descend, stay, fall.)
WA-1Does ‘dyin’’ really rhyme with ‘lion’? Can you say it so that it does?
Grammatically no, but the poet makes them rhyme humorously. If we pronounce ‘dyin’’ as ‘die-in’ and ‘lion’ as ‘ly-in’, they rhyme — the poet deliberately distorts the pronunciation for a comic effect.
WA-2How does the poet suggest you identify the lion and the tiger? When can you do so?
The Asian Lion is ‘a large and tawny beast’ that roars at you as you are dying; the Bengal Tiger has ‘black stripes on a yellow ground’ and you should ‘notice if he eats you’. In both cases, humorously, you can identify them only when they are attacking and killing you — by then it is too late!
WA-3Are ‘lept’ and ‘lep’ in the third stanza spelt correctly? Why does the poet spell them like this?
No — the correct spellings are ‘leapt’ and ‘leap’. The poet spells them this way deliberately to maintain the rhyme and rhythm (with ‘Leopard’ and ‘peppered’) and to add to the humour of the poem.
WA-4Do you know what a ‘bearhug’ is? Are there similar expressions/popular ideas about wild animals in your language?
A ‘bearhug’ is a very tight, strong hug — like the deadly hug a bear is thought to give. (Sample) Yes, many languages have such ideas — e.g. ‘crocodile tears’ for false weeping, a ‘fox’ for cunning, a ‘lion-hearted’ person for bravery, etc.
WA-5Look at “A novice might nonplus.” How would you write this correctly? Why is the poet’s ‘incorrect’ line better here?
Correctly it would be ‘A novice might be nonplussed.’ The poet’s ‘incorrect’ version is better in the poem because it keeps the rhyme and metre (with ‘thus’) and adds to the light, humorous tone.
WA-6Can you find other examples of poets taking liberties with language, or humorous poems in your own language?
(Sample) Yes — many poets bend grammar, spelling or pronunciation for rhyme, rhythm or humour. There are plenty of funny poems and nonsense verses in Hindi and other Indian languages that play with words in the same way.
WA-7Much of the humour comes from the use of language. Share lines you especially like and say why.
(Sample) Lines like ‘Just notice if he eats you’ and ‘But if they weep they’re Crocodiles’ are especially funny — they combine a ridiculous, deadly ‘test’ with clever rhyme, making a dangerous situation sound comically casual.
BP-1Why does the poet say, “I would not intrude on him”? Why doesn’t he offer money to buy another ball?
The poet does not interfere because the boy must learn to cope with loss on his own. He does not offer money because a new ball cannot replace the lost one’s emotional/sentimental value, and buying a ball would rob the boy of an important lesson about loss and responsibility.
BP-2“…staring down / All his young days into the harbour…” Has the boy had the ball for a long time? Is it linked to his memories?
Yes. The phrase ‘staring down all his young days’ suggests the boy had the ball for a long time and that it is deeply linked to the happy memories of his childhood — so losing it feels like losing a part of those days.
BP-3What does “in the world of possessions” mean?
It means the material world in which we own things — a world where we gain and lose possessions. The boy is learning that in this world, things we own can be lost, and we must learn to deal with such losses.
BP-4Do you think the boy has lost anything earlier? Pick out words that suggest the answer.
It seems this is possibly his first real loss, but the poem hints he will face many more. Words such as ‘balls will be lost always’ and ‘how to stand up / Knowing what every man must one day know / And most know many days’ suggest that loss is a repeated part of life.
BP-5What does the poet say the boy is learning from the loss of the ball? Explain in your own words.
The boy is learning the ‘epistemology of loss’ — the true meaning of losing something. He is learning his first responsibility in a world of possessions: that things (and people) will be lost, that money cannot buy back what is truly gone, and that one must accept loss and ‘stand up’ bravely to face life. It is a lesson in growing up.
BP-6Have you ever lost something you liked very much? Describe how you felt and how you got over it.
(Sample) Yes — I once lost a gift given by my grandmother. I felt very sad and kept looking for it. In time I realised that although the object was gone, the love and memories behind it remained with me, and that helped me get over the loss.