Deep Water-Questions-Answers-William Douglas-English for Class XII

 3.  Deep Water (William Douglas)

Passages for Comprehension / Very Small Ans. type questions

1.  P (23) “I had decided to learn to swim ........... the drop was gradual”

Q.1    Name the lesson and the writer.

Ans.   The name of the lesson is Deep Water and the writer’s name is William Douglas.

Q.2    What does Y.M.C.A. stand for?

Ans.   Youngmen Christian Association.

Q.3    What would the mother warn the writer about?

Ans.   About Yakima river being treacherous.

Q.4    How was the YMCA pool safe?

Ans.   (i) It was 2-3 feet deep at the shallow end (ii) it was nine feet deep at the other end (iii) the drop was gradual (iv) all the above.

Ans.   All the above

Q.5    Which river was treacherous?

Ans.   Yakima

Q.6    When did the narrator decide to learn to swim?

Ans.   At the age of ten or eleven.

2. P (25) From the beginning ........... force of the waves”

Q.1    What aversion did the writer have?

Ans.   Aversion (strong dislike) to water

Q.2    Why did the writer hang on to his father?

Ans.   Because he feared the waves would knock him down.

Q.3    What made the father laugh?

Ans.   To see how the waves knocked him (child) down.

Q.4    What filled the writer with terror?

Ans.   The overpowering force of waves.

Q.5    Where did the writer’s father take him to?

Ans.   To the beach in California.

Q.6    What was the writer’s age at that time?

Ans.   Three or four years old.

Q.7    Whom did the waves knock down?

Ans.   The writer

3.  (P 25-26)  It seemed a long way ............... yellow tinge do it”

Q.1    What ‘long way down’ is the writer talking of?

Ans. The depth of the Y.M.C.A. pool.

Q.2    What did the writer do when his feet hit the bottom?

Ans.   He tried to spring (jump) upwards.

Q.3    What did the writer see when he opened his eyes?

Ans.   He saw nothing but water all around.

Q.4    Where did this incident occur?

Ans.   At the Y.M.C.A. pool.

Q.5    What was the effect on his lungs?

Ans.   They were about to burst.

Q.6    What did he imagine?

Ans.   He imagined that he would come up to the surface like a cork.

Q.7    What colour was of water?

Ans.   A dirty yellow tinge.

4.  (P-27)  “The next I remember ............. sick to my stomach.”

Q.1    What happened to the writer?

Ans.   He was nearly drowned and was unconscious.

Q.2    What next did the writer remember?

Ans.   He was lying beside the pool, vomiting.

Q.3    Who had made the writer lie on his stomach?

Ans.   The boy who threw him into the pool.

Q.4    Why was the writer made to lie on his stomach?

Ans.   …so that water may come out of it.

Q.5    What did the boy who threw the writer into the narrator say?

Ans.  “But I was only fooling”

Q.6    What did someone say?

Ans.   “The kid nearly died .......... “

Q.7    How was the writer feeling as he went home?

Ans.   He was weak and trembling.

Q.8    What made him wobbly (feeling about falling down)?

Ans.   The slightest exertion.

Q.9    What was the deep effect of this incident on the writer’s mind?

Ans.   He feared water.

5.  (P-29)   The experience had a deep meaning for me ........... grew in intensity”

Q.1    What experience is the writer talking about here?

Ans.   The incident at the Y.M.C.A. pool.

Q.2    What had the writer learned from the experience he talks of?

Ans.   (i) That in death there is peace

          (ii) That there is terror only in the fear of death.

          (iii) Both of these             (iv) Neither of these

Ans.   (iii)

Q.3    What had Roosevelt said?

Ans.   He had said, “All we have to fear is fear itself.”

Q.4    What had the writer experienced?

Ans.   (i) The sensation of dying (ii) The terror that fear of death can produce.

Ans.   Both of these

Some other Questions/Ans.

Q.1    Why did the writer hate to walk naked?

Ans.   He didn’t want to show his skinny (thin) legs.

Q.2    Why did the writer sit on the side of the pool?

Ans.   He was afraid of going into the pool alone.

Q.3    Who threw the writer into deep water of the pool?

Ans.   A big boy of eighteen

Q.4    What did the writer plan while going down the water of the pool?

Ans.   To make a big jump by touching the bottom.

Short Answer Type questions :

Q.1    Describe the writer’s experience when he was of three or four years.

OR

          Which incident created water aversion in the writer’s mind?

Ans.   The writer’s father took him to the beach in California. Both of them were in sea water.  The writer hung on to his father. Then a wave is knocked him down. It swept over the writer and buried him in water. His breath was gone. The incident created an aversion to water in the writer’s mid.

Q.2    What did the 18-years old boy do the writer and why?

Ans.   The writer was afraid of going into the pool alone. So he was waiting for someone to come. Then a boy of eighteen came there. First, he made fun of the writer. He called him skinny. After that, he picked him up and threw into deep water. He did it just out of fun.

Q.3    Why was the writer at first not much frightened when he was thrown into the pool?

Ans.   The writer was hopeful to come at the surface very soon. While going down into the water, he made a plan. He would spring up as soon as his feet touched the bottom of the pool. So he was not frightened.

Q.4    How did the writer feel when he stopped all efforts to save himself?

Ans.   The writer felt relaxed. Even his legs became inactive. He felt darkness in his brain. There was no fear and panic. All was quiet and peaceful. He felt drowsy. He was too tired to jump. Those were the moments of giving up all to God.

Q.5    What did the writer remember as he came to his senses after the misadventure at the pool?

Ans.   He remembered that he was lying on his stomach. He was vomiting. The boy who had thrown him into the pool was also there. He was saying that he had done that only as fun. Another person was saying that the kid had nearly died.

Q.6    How was the writer affected by his misadventure at the pool?

Ans.   It affected the writer badly. It created fear from water in his mind. After that, he never went to the pool On that night, he reached home trembling. He could not eat that night. Thus the misadventure affected him physically and mentally.

Q.7    Why was Douglas determined to get over his fear of water?

Ans.   The writer wanted to bathe in warm lakes and cascades or wade in Tieton or Bumping river. But the fear of water would paralyse his legs. His heart would freeze. Sometimes he wished fishing, boating, and swimming. So the writer determined to get over his fear of water.

Q.8    How did Douglas overcome his fear of water?

Ans.   First, he got training from an instructor. He taught him swimming piece by piece. He continued to practice swimming for four months. Then he swam two miles in Wentworth lake. Fear of water came off and on. But he did not case for it. Finally, in the warm lake, he succeeded in overcoming the fear of water.

Q.9    How did Douglas make sure that he had conquered the old terror?

Ans.   After training of swimming, the writer wanted to make sure that he had conquered the old terror. For this, he practiced swimming alone in the pool. Then he went to Wentworth Lake. He swam into it for two miles. Finally, he conquered the fear of water in a warm lake.

Q.10  The writer says, “The instructor was finished. But I was  not finished.” Why?

Ans.   The writer’s instructor trained him in swimming. Then he said his job was finished. But the writer’s job was still unfinished. He was to finish his fear of water by practising swimming alone. That is the reason why the writer says “ ..... I was not finished.”

General Answer :

         The writer Douglas, had fear of water since childhood. But he had a strong desire for swimming. The swimming pool of Y.M.C.A was safe for swimming. So the writer bought a pair of water wings. He tried to swim into the pool three or four times. One day a misadventure happened. A boy of 18 threw him into deep water just for fun. He was nearly drowned. That incident created almost permanent fear in his mind. The terror for water became stranger in is mind. Whenever he put his feet into the water, the fear of water made him weak. But he wanted to conquer fear in order to enjoy swimming, bathing, fishing, and boating. He got training of swimming. After that, he practised swimming for months alone. He swam alone in the Y.M.C.A. pool and in Wentworth lake. He swam in the lake for two miles. Finally, he conquered fear in the warm lake. Now he got full confidence in swimming. Thus, his strong willpower and his instructor’s training made him a perfect swimmer.

Q.1    How did Douglas overcome /conquer his fear of water?

Q.2    How did the instructor make a swimmer out of Douglas?

Ans.  For Q.1 & Q. 2, see answer above (General)

Q.3    How does Douglas describe the panic that gripped him as he was almost drowned? What makes the description so vivid (clear)?

OR

          Narrate briefly the writer’s emotions and fears when he was thrown into the pool. What plans did he make to come to the surface?

OR

          What was the misadventure’ the Y.M.C.A. pool that the writer William Douglas speaks about?

Ans.   The writer had a strong desire for swimming. He got a pair of water wings. He tried to swim in the Y.M.C.A. pool three or four times on different days. One day, he was waiting for someone to come. He was afraid of swimming alone in the pool. Then a big boy of eighteen came. He picked up the writer and threw him into the deep water of the pool. In the beginning, he was not so much afraid. He had a plan in his mind. As soon as his feet touched the bottom of the pool he would spring up and come to the surface. But he failed to do so. He felt weak. His legs and arms would not move. He became panicky. Twice he tried to come up, but in vain his effort proved.  He tried to cry; he tried to call his mother, but all was dark before his eyes. At last, his efforts stopped. He left everything to God. He became unconscious when he came to his senses, he found himself lying on his stomach and he was vomiting Thus he was nearly drowned.