His First Flight by Liam O'Flaherty
Quick answer: His First Flight by Liam O'Flaherty, Class 10 First Flight: summary with the ending, the young seagull's fear and hunger, themes of courage, craft notes and exam answers.
A young seagull stands alone on a ledge a day after his brothers and sister have flown, convinced his wings will not hold him, while his parents circle and refuse to bring food. Liam O'Flaherty's His First Flight is the first of the Two Stories about Flying in Class 10 First Flight.
The story in brief
The siblings launched themselves the day before; the youngest could not. Each time he ran to the edge and looked at the sea, fear pinned him back. His parents scold, threaten, and leave him to starve while he watches them feed the others and teach them to skim the waves. Twenty-four hours pass without food. He pretends to sleep, hoping for pity, and gets none.
At last his mother flies close with a piece of fish and hovers just out of reach. Maddened by hunger, he dives at it, falls, screams, and then feels the air press up under his wings; he is flying. His family swoop round him, and he lands on the water, sinks a little, panics, and floats. They call to him and offer scraps of dogfish.
The characters
Themes and meaning
Exams want courage, hunger and necessity overcoming fear, and parental toughness as love. The sharper observation is that the seagull never decides to fly. He decides to eat, and flying is the side effect. O'Flaherty's claim about courage is specific: it rarely comes from resolve and usually from wanting something more than you fear.
The craft
The turn is the dive at the fish, delayed by description of the bird's body: legs, wings, the hanging over the edge. The limited point of view makes the ledge the whole world and the sea below death, so that when the wings catch the air the relief belongs to the reader too. The technique to copy is the withheld reward: keep the need visible and unmet until action makes it available.
For the exam
Summary in 100 words: A young seagull is left alone on his ledge after his brothers and sister have learned to fly. Afraid that his wings will not support him, he refuses to leap despite his parents' scolding. They stop feeding him, and for a whole day he watches his family eat and fly. Starving, he sees his mother approach with a piece of fish, stopping just beyond reach. He dives at it and falls, then feels the air hold his wings and realises he is flying. His family joins him, and he lands on the sea, floating at last, his fear gone.
What writers can take from this
- Say that hunger, not courage, triggers the flight; examiners reward the precise cause.
- Use the twenty-four hours without food as your detail for the parents' method.
- Note the limited point of view; the story never leaves the young bird's mind.
- Writers: give your character a need, and keep it visible and unmet until the moment of action.
- Describe fear through the body, not through the word fear.
Try it yourself
Write a story in which a character finally does the thing they are terrified of, but only because they want something ordinary, food, sleep, shelter, more than they fear the act; never let them decide to be brave.
Questions
Why was the young seagull afraid to fly?
He looked down at the sea from his ledge and was certain his wings would not support him. His siblings had flown, but each time he ran to the edge, fear stopped him.
How did the young seagull finally fly in His First Flight?
After a day without food, his mother hovered near him holding a piece of fish just out of reach. Driven by hunger he dived at it, fell, and found the air holding his wings.
What is the theme of His First Flight?
Courage comes from necessity and action. The story shows fear overcome by hunger and by parents who withhold help so that their child learns to trust himself.
By the Writory editorial team, reviewed by working writers. Updated September 2026.
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