ABE�S FIRST SPEECH

Abraham Lincoln is one of the greatest of American Statesmen. He is known for his
celebrated speeches. This lesson is the story of his first speech as a little boy.
One day Little Abe and his companion Dennis Hanks attended a political meeting.
Both boys were unhappy with the views of the speaker. Dennis told Abe that he could
make a better speech than the campaign orator. Then Abe decided to stand on a dry
goods box and delivered a speech. That speech attracted the attention of the crowd
and won him great applause. Here Abe�s friend Dennis encouraged him and it helped
him to get confidence.
We can see everybody has some potential in them. The reasons why some people are
unable to showcase them are because of 1. Lack of opportunity 2. Lack of confidence
3. Lack of training in public speaking 4. Lack of encouragement from friends 5.
Lack of reading habits

Q1. Do you think greatness as an innate trait? Is it acquired by the successful or

thrust upon them?

According to me most great people have an innate trait of greatness. If you read
the biography of great people like Abraham Lincoln, Helen Keller and Thomas Alwa
Edison we can see they possessed the traits of curiosity. They had so much
determination and the will power to achieve greatness. Greatness is acquired by
most people. Gandhi for instance was an extremely shy person as a student. In the
beginning he was a failure as a lawyer. But because of his determination and hard
work he developed certain skills. Those skills helped him to be a great man.
Gradually he became a great leader of the country. He is now respected by people
all over the world. But some of the Kings and politicians have greatness thrust
upon them simply because they are born in a well-known family. In my opinion, truly
great people should possess certain traits like hard work, perseverance,
determination and honesty.

Q2. Write some qualities which will make the people great.

A) Hard work, creative thinking, determination, perseverance, initiative and

confidence

HIS FIRST FLIGHT by LIAM O� FLAHERTY

The short story �His First Flight� by Irish author Liam O� Flaherty is
about a family of seagulls. He narrates vividly how a frightened seagull learns to
fly. This story is a metaphorical representation of a human�s need to be
independent and confident. This story highlights the importance of independence and
self confidence. At the same time it emphasizes the utmost need of living beings to
remain involved in family life.
Once a young seagull was standing alone on a rock in the sea. He was very much
afraid of flying. His parents taught his sister and two brothers how to fly and
dive for fish. They tried their level best to teach the young seagull to fly but in
vain. One day his parents thought a plan to teach him the art of flying. All the
members of the family flew away to another rock and left him alone. They did not
give him anything to eat. The young
seagull was maddened with hunger. He even tried to walk to the edge of the rock.
He stood there on one leg and closed his eyes to attract the attention of his
family. He saw his mother tearing a piece of fish. He begged his mother to give him
food. But mother was putting him alone only to teach him a lesson. After some time
she took a piece of fish in her beak and came flying over him. When she reached
over him she became motionless in the air. She did not get down on the rock. She
wanted to give the young seagull an incentive to fly. The young seagull bent
forward and jumped at the fish. But his mother flew upward. So he lost his balance
and flew down from the rock into the space. He became very much frightened. After a
moment he felt his wings spreading upwards. He flapped his wings and soared
upwards. His parents and siblings flew around him to encourage him. They were
extremely happy and they all expressed their joy on his successful flight. Through
this wonderful story, the author provides a psychological insight into life�s
problems and the ways of overcoming them. This story relates the importance of
independence and self confidence.
�To dominate the Fear� is the central idea of this story. Flaherty is a great Irish
novelist and essayist and short story writer. He was a keen observer and was
interested in sea-life. He spent much time on sea shore and studied the life of
seagulls quite closely. Through this story the writer conveys the moral of having
self-confidence and self-reliance. The parents can support us to a certain extent
but not forever. So we all should try to become independent in our own way.

1. Why was the young seagull afraid to fly?

>>> The young seagull was afraid to fly, due to lack of self confidence.

2. What did the parents do to motivate the young bird when it failed to muster up
enough courage to fly?

>>> The parents came to him calling him shrilly, scolding him, and threatening to
let him starve on the ledge.

3. How did the parents support and encourage the young seagull's brothers and
sister?

>>> They perfected them, in the art of flying. They taught them how to skim the
waves and how to dive for fish. When his brother caught his first herring, the
parents circled around raising a proud cackle.

4. Cite an instance which shows the pathetic condition of the young bird.

>>> When the family of the young seagull left him alone on the ledge, he felt
hungry. He hadn't eaten anything, since the previous nightfall. He searched
everywhere for food. At first, he got a mackerel's tail. Later he searched every
inch of the ledge, even among his nest. He even gnawed at the dried pieces of his
own egg shell.

5. How did the bird try to reach its parents without having to fly?

>>> He walked back and forth from one edge of the ledge to the other,trying to find
some means of reaching his 'arents without flying.

6. Why could the seagull not succeed in his attempt?

>>> The young seagull tried to find some means of reaching his parents without
having to fly. But on each side of him, the ledge ended in a sheer fall of
precipice. And there was the sea beneath him. There was nothing for him to walk on.
There was no ledge and he was not able to fly.

7. Do you think that the young seagull's parents were cruel?

>>> No. They were only tempting him to fly at least out of hunger.

8. Can you justify the attitude of the parents?

Yes. This is only one of the methods by which they tried to make their son fly.The
parents were right in what they did. They wanted to teach him the importance of
confidence and self-reliance. One can�t depend on the parents all over the life for
his/her livelihood.

9. Your parents sometimes behave in the same manner. The may seem cruel and
unrelenting. Does it mean that they do not love you?

No. They have a larger objective in doing so. We should not judge them by their
actions, but by their motives.

10. What prompted the young seagull to fly finally?

His extreme hunger.

11. Why was the young bird terrified? How did he overcome his fear?

When he jumped for food , at first he fell headlong into the sea. But when he
opened his wings and flew, his fear disappeared.

12. How did the family support the seagull?

They flew around him crying, swooping, soaring and diving.

13. Why couldn't the young seagull stand on the green sea?

He was very tired and weak.

14. Do you think that the bird's parents loved him? Why?

Yes. They loved, encouraged and forced him to make his first flight.

ACTIVITY 1
Q: what is the theme of story?

>>> 'His First Flight� highlights the importance of independence, self-belief and
confidence, and the need for motivation to attain goals. Necessity is always the
mother of invention, but it sometimes needs an initial spark from outside.The
importance of �family� as a source of inspiration and motivation is also the
central idea conveyed through the story of the seagull .

Q:What do you think is the real crisis faced by the young bird?
>>> The real crisis faced by the little bird is the fear of making its first
flight.

Before the bird�s first flight, it is engulfed by the fear of falling being
completely unaware of the capacity of its wings.

It feels dilemma and lacks self-confidence, thinking if its wings will support it
or not.

Q: What is your impression of the reaction of the parents in the story?

>>> The parents were unrelenting because they wanted to make the young bird
confident. They inspire, motivate and promote him. They give the first �push�. They
love the young seagull, and when he backs out they show him anger.They were
portrayed as tough but motivating
characters. They understood that their little one needed a lot of motivation to
achieve its goal of flying.
Q4:>>>Movement �Flap his wings.
Take that plunge
Sound-loud cackle
Attitude- desperate
Description of place-the vast expansion of sea

I WILL FLY by Dr. APJ ABDUL KALAM

�I Will Fly� is an adapted version of Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam�s speech delivered in
2011 at Paravur Village near Kochi. Dr. Kalam believes that the ignited mind of the
youth is the most powerful resource on the earth, under the earth and above the
earth. He inaugurated a programme called �Sasthrayaan� which means the propagation
of science. The mission of Sasthrayaan was to ensure the preparation of about two
thousand students from different schools to make them eligible for engineers,
scientists, doctors and civil servants. Kalam�s inaugural address was on the topic
�Science Empowers the Nation�. After the address, many raised their hands to ask
questions. Abdul Kalam shares in this unit the relevance of a question asked by a
teenager. The boy expressed his fear to talk to his teachers and friends. He
admitted that he had not yet asked any question in his class. The boy really wanted
to become a marine engineer. Dr. Kalam was completely surprised. He appreciated the
boy for asking that question and recited a beautiful poem named �I Will Fly�. He
instilled courage and confidence in the boy by reciting that poem. He asked him to
fly using his wings of goodness, trust, potentialities, greatness and confidence.
He also encouraged all of them to be unique by fighting the hardest battle in life.
Surely all these things will help us to reach the destined place in a unique way.

QUEST FOR A THEORY OF EVERYTHING BY Kitty Gail Ferguson

Stephen Hawking was born on January 8, 1942, in Oxford, England. At an early age,
Hawking showed a passion for science and the sky. At age 21, while studying
cosmology at the University of Cambridge, he was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral
Sclerosis. Despite his physical disabilities, he has done ground-breaking work in
physics and cosmology. His several books have helped to make science accessible to
everyone.
Born to Frank and Isabel Hawking, he had an ordinary childhood. But by the time he
was eight he was seriously thinking about becoming a scientist. In 1959, at the age
of seventeen, Hawking went to Oxford to study natural science and to specialize in
physics. Later he took a Ph.D from Cambridge specializing in theoretical physics.
At the age of twenty-one he contracted a rare disease, �amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis�. It was a terrible disease. There was no known cure for this. In 1965,
he got married to Jane .Jane liked his intelligent, eccentric and rather arrogant
nature. Besides he was interesting and witty. As a student in Cambridge, Hawking
used to ask unexpected and penetrating questions to the most distinguished
scientists.. His reputation as a �genius�, �another Einstein� began in his
Cambridge days. He started writing a book about the universe in 1980. Before
completing that book, he had to undergo a tracheotomy operation. After this
operation he could not make any vocal sound. Now he continues his work with the
help of a computer programme called Equalizer. This programme allowed Hawking to
select words from the screen. In 1988 he published his work, �A Brief History of
Time�. This book contains a number of paradoxes and unique ideas.
�IF��A Poem by Rudyard Kipling
The poem �If� is a didactic poem wriiten by Rudyard Kipling. It is a well-known
poem. It gives sound advice to young people for a successful life. It is considered
as the most beloved poem of Kipling. The poem is addressed to Kipling�s son John.
The theme of the poem is manhood and leadership. The word �if� is repeated to
describe each action that should or should not be done to achieve manhood in his
son�s life. Throughout the poem, Kipling combines contradicting ideas. Kipling
advises the younger generation to follow the cardinal virtue of patience, mental
equilibrium, courage, devotion and detachment for achieving success and honour in
worldly life.
The central idea of the poem �If� is that success comes from self-control and a
true sense of the values. In the first stanza, he shows his readers the ideal way
to act during times of acute crisis. A man must not lose heart because of doubts or
opposition. The poet advises the readers to be strong for taking the responsibility
of life bravely. He also advises not to indulge in blame games. A person must have
enough confidence to believe in himself and his potentials when everyone else hates
him. Thus this poem is about becoming mature and adult. The writer is putting his
own experiences into it. This poem compares and contrasts the right and wrong
decisions that one person can make in their journey to adulthood.
The second stanza reminds us the correct way to pursue one�s goals in life. He asks
his readers to dream because dreams are important. But at the same time, he advises
them that their dreams must not lose sight of reality. He also tells not to be
changed by victory or failure in life. He advises them that defeat should not
affect their life. He also tells to treat every defeat and tragedy as a chance to
learn another lesson. In the end of the second stanza, he reminds the readers that
the journey towards success is never an easy ride. The poet gives us courage saying
that strength lies in getting past the traps. We should not lose heart when we see
our words twisted by people. Thus he prepares his readers to have strength,
patience and courage in dealing with all these adversities.
In the third stanza, the poet says that risks must be taken in life and hopes must
not be lost if things do not work out the desired way. The poet says that a man
must be able to risk all his achievements while aiming towards bigger goals. He
gives the readers enough courage saying that if you don�t succeed �try again�,
without being discouraged.
Towards the last stanza, the poet says to stay true to ourselves and not to forget
who we are. He also instructs to make our actions and words meaningful and
powerful. Thus the poet wants his readers to become a true man who can fit well
with all sections of society. He asks his readers to mingle with the common crowd
without losing their individuality. Money often makes people stone-hearted. The
poet warns his readers against the evil effects of money.
The concluding lines say that� �if you do not waste time but spend each second
fruitfully then the earth is yours�. He also adds that �you will be successful in
life�. Time if wasted will never forgive you but if his readers can make the most
out of the time no force can stop them from conquering the world.
Thus the poem �If� is really an advice to the younger generation. This poem is
written in the tradition of �The Book of Proverbs� in the Holy Bible. All these
contain useful principles for a practical and successful life.
The poem employs iambic pentameter. Each line has five feet with one stressed and
one unstressed syllable. The tone of the poem is informative and didactic. The mood
of the poem is philosophic and reflective.