DEEP WATER
By William O Douglas
RTC
Q1. Next he held me at the side of the pool and had me kick with my legs. For weeks I did just that. At first my legs refused to work. But they gradually relaxed: and finally I could command them. Thus, piece by piece, he built a swimmer. And when he had perfected each piece, he put them together into an integrated whole. In April he said, “Now you can swim. Dive off and swim the length of the pool, crawl stroke.”
Q1. (a). What did the author do for weeks?
Ans. For weeks, the author‟s instructor held him at the side of the pool and had him kick with his legs.
(b). Was he able to do?
Ans. Initially, his legs refused to work, but gradually, they relaxed and later he could easily command them.
(c). Who built a swimmer?
Ans. The instructor built a swimmer out of the author, piece by piece.
(d). When did he put together into an integrated whole?
Ans. When the instructor perfected each piece of the author, he put them together into an integrated whole.
Q2. „I laughed and said, "Well, Mr. Terror, what do you think you can do to me?" It fled and I swam on.
(a)Who is 'I' here? Who is being addressed to as Mr. Terror?‟
Ans 'I' here is William Douglas. 'Mr. Terror 'is author's fear of water.
(b)Why has Mr. Terror been addressed so?
Ans The fear of water has been addressed as 'Mr. Terror' because the author had personified it as his enemy who wanted to defeat him.
(c) Why did the narrator laugh?
Ans The narrator laughed because he had learnt to deal with his fear.
(d)Why did Mr. Terror leave?
Ans The terror left because it knew it could not scare the narrator any more; he had learnt to deal with it through practice.
Short answers
1. Why did mother warn Douglas against River Yakima?
Mother warned Douglas -river Yakima- treacherous-apparently harmless- had claimed several lives- her son should not go to this river.
2. Why did Douglas have an initial aversion to water?
At the age of 3- Douglas knocked down by the waves at California beach- waves swept over him- buried under them - overpowering force of water terrorized him.
3. What factors made Douglas decide in favour of YMCA pool?
Douglas decided in favour of the YMCA pool –it was safe- the shallow end only 2-3 feet deep - the drop to the deeper end gradual.
4. „And then in the midst of the terror came a touch of reason.‟ What did Douglas mean by„touch of reason‟?
Douglas went down into the water- felt totally helpless. His legs refused to obey -suddenly„came a touch of reason‟. should jump the moment he hit the bottom- jump made no difference.- was extremely terrified- reason failed to help
5. „I jumped with everything I had‟. Why did Douglas jump? Did the jump make any difference?
Keeping his wits intact Douglas jumped with all the force at his command- expected to push him out to the surface- disappointed –rather that bouncing up speedily- came up slowly-efforts futile.
6. Why did he decide to engage an instructor?
YMCA incident terror was too much- to get over the fear –needed professional help- engaged
an instructor to help him conquer his phobia of water.
7. How did the instructor build a swimmer out of Douglas?
Instructor attached a rope to a belt Douglas which went through a pulley- that ran on an overhead cable- holding the end of the rope made him go back and forth- without any sense of fear- practice continued -four months-taught him breathing techniques -different swimming styles - was a confident swimmer.
8. When did he feel he had completely conquered his fear of water?
Went up to Conrad Meadows-up the Conrad Glacier and camped by the Warm Lake- next day morning - swam across to the other shore- and back- shouted with joy -had conquered his fear of water.
9. What larger meaning did the experience have for Douglas?
Taught him death itself was not terrifying- instead peaceful- fear of death more torturousimperative to get over fear- or man has to die many times before the end of life.
10.What proves that the narrator found himself in the grip of fear of water even when he grew up?
grip of fear even on growing up - found himself unable to enjoy canoeing, boating and swimming. Neither the fishing trips nor bathing in warm Lake afforded him any joy. continued to be haunted by the same icy horror -Y.M.C.A pool.
Please click on below link to download CBSE Class 12 English Deep Water Worksheet Set B
