DEEP WATER- NOTE- MAKING

1. Introduction

1.1 autobiography

1.2 author‘s fear of water- when, why

1.3 how he finally overcame it.

1.4 moral

2. Author‘s Aversion to Water

2.1 started when he was three or four yrs. old.

2.1.1 beach in California with his father when 4 yrs old

2.1.2 knocked down by waves

2.1.3 buried in water, breath gone, frightened

2.2 `Misadventure‘ at the YMCA

2.2.1 thrown in pool

2.2.2 couldn‘t come up

2.2.3 almost drowned

3. Impact of YMCA event

3.1 weak and trembling

3.2 shook and cried when he lay on his bed

3.3 for days a haunting fear remained in his heart.

3.4 slightest exertion upset his stomach, made him wobbly in the knee and sick in the stomach

3.5 never went back to pool

4. Subsequent fears

4.1 fear remained in a river or pool; legs would become paralyzed.

4.2 icy horror would grab his heart.

4.3 deprived Douglas of enjoying

4.3.1 water sports, fishing trips, canoeing

5. Conquering his fear

5.1 Engaged an instr. to learn swimming.

5.2 instr made him practice five days a week, an hour every day

5.3 put a belt around him.

5.4 a rope attached to the belt went through a pulley that ran on an overhead cable

5.5 instr. held on to the end of the rope.

5.6 the author went back and forth several times each day.

5.7 took 3 mths. to learn

5.8 instr. taught him to put his face under water and exhale

5.9 to raise his nose and inhale

5.10 instr. made him kick with his legs

5.11 piece by piece he finally learnt how to swim

6. Final victory over fear

6.1 learnt to swim, felt that the old fear would grip him again.

6.2 Went to lake. Wentworth-swam two miles across the lake.

6.3 swam the crawl, breaststroke, sidestroke and backstroke.

6.4 old sensation returned in miniature.

6.5 went up the Tieton to Conrad Meadows, up the Conrad Creek Trail to Meade Glacier,

camped by the Warm Lake.

6.6 swam across to the other shore and back

7. Draws a larger meaning from this exp.

7.1 in death there is peace

7.2 there is terror only in the fear of death

7.3 experienced both the sensation of dying and the terror that fear it can produce;

7.4 will to live grew in him.

Abbreviations to be listed

Summary to be developed from notes in 100 words.

DEEP WATER

The story has been taken from the author‘s autobiography- ‗Of Men and Mountains‘.

Theme

The lesson Deep Water is to acquaint the readers that it is not death but the fear of death that
scares one and all.We must fight the fear otherwise it will overpower us.. Moreover, past
memories can leave an indelible impact on human mind.

‗Deep Water‘ deals with the childhood fear of Douglas. A misadventure at the YMCA pool
developed an aversion of water in him and he suffered from hydrophobia. The chapter focuses on
the fact that childhood fear must never be treated lightly. If they are not tackled, then they make
deep inroads into one‘s psychology. Douglas analyses his fear and finally determines to
overcome it.
Justification of Title

This extract is appropriately entitled ―Deep Water‖. The author recounts his fear of swimming
following an incident in which he had been swept away by a wave. Another incident which
further aggravated his fear was when a bully pushed him into the deep side of a swimming pool
and he nearly drowned. But slowly he overcomes his fear through determination and strong will.
He even took the services of an instructor. He swam in different pools and lakes to overcome his
fear. The title also signifies that the author‘s fear was a deep-rooted one. In short, the title is
appropriate.

Message of the lesson

The story ―Deep Waters‖ tells us how the writer overcame his fear of water and learned
swimming through sheer determination and willpower. He had developed a terror of water since
childhood. William Douglas was able to overcome his fear by sheer determination. The message
conveyed by this story is that it is not death but the fear of death that creates terror in our mind.

Gist of the lesson

 William Douglas with a great passion for water wants to learn swimming.
 He had a childhood fear of water because of a particular incident.
 At the age of 3 or 4, when he was surfing on a beach in California, he was knocked by a
huge wave. This set a fear for water within the boy.
 After a few years when he longed to swim in the ―Yakima River‖, his mother told him
that the river was dangerous and treacherous.
 The YMCA pool was considered to be the safest place for swimming by William
Douglas because it was only nine feet deep and was tiled at the bottom. He started
swimming in the YMCA pool by copying other boys.
 Douglas swallowed water and went straight down to the bottom of the pool.
 It seemed a long way down. Those nine feet were more like ninety, and before he touched
the bottom his lungs were ready to burst.
 While going down he planned to make a big jump upwards but came up slowly. Tried to
shout but could not. Then his eyes and nose came out of the water — but not his mouth.
 As he went down the pool second time, tried to bring his legs up, but they hung as dead
weights, paralysed and rigid. A great force was pulling him under he tried to jump
upwards but it was a waste of energy.
 He screamed but his voice did not go out of the water. Once again, William started going
down towards the bottom of the pool.
 Terror held him deeper and deeper.
 During the third trial he sucked water instead of air. The yellowish light was going out. T
all effort ceased- relaxed.
  legs felt like limp and a blackness swept over his brain. It wiped out fear; it wiped out
terror. There was no more panic. It was quiet and peaceful.
 So he ceased all efforts and he became unconscious.
 He crossed to oblivion.
 When revived he found himself vomiting beside the pool.
 He was in grip of fear of water and it deprived him of the joys of canoeing, boating
swimming and fishing.
 Hired an instructor to learn swimming.
 The instructor taught him swimming piece by piece.
 He went to different lakes to swim and found tiny vestiges of fear still gripped him.
 He challenged the fear and swam.
 Swimming up and down the Warm Lake he finally overcame his fear of water.
 He realized that in death there is peace and there is terror only in fear of death.

Word Meaning

1. Drop – slope from the shallow area to the deep area

2. Water wings - A pair of inflatable waterproof bags designed so that one can be attached
to each arm, especially of a child learning to swim
3. Skinny – thin
4. Subdued – to overcome
5. Pride – self-respect
6. Aversion – dislike
7. Surf – wave of the sea
8. Knocked me down – threw him down
9. Revived – brought back to mind
10. Aping - copying
11. To feel at ease – to feel comfortable
12. Bruiser - a person who is tough and aggressive and enjoys a fight or argument
13. Specimen – example
14. Skinny – a thin person
15. Ducked - push or plunge someone under water
16. Tossed – threw
17. Wits – intelligence
18. Summoned – gathered
19. Spring – push
20. Bob – jump
21. Tinge – touch of colour
22. Suffocating – unable to breathe due to lack of air
 23. Yell – scream
24. Flailed – waved his hands
25. Choked – unable to breathe
26. Rigid – hard
27. Expending – losing, giving out
28. Ached – pained
29. Throbbed – felt pain in a series of beats
30. Dizzy – faint, unsteady
31. Strategy – plan of action
32. Strike out – extend
33. Thrash – hit with force
34. Stark – severe
35. Seized – gripped
36. Shrieking – screaming
37. Paralysed – incapable of movement
38. Pounding – repeated beating
39. Ceased – ended
40. Limp – lifeless
41. Oblivion - the state of being unaware or unconscious of what is happening around one
42. Curtain of life fell – life came to an end
43. Wobbly – weak
44. Cascades – waterfall
45. Handicap - a circumstance that makes progress or success difficult
46. Canoes – small boats
47. Ruined – destroyed
48. Deprived – to take away
49. Cable – thick rope
50. Slack – to reduce
51. Shed – removed
52. Panic – fear
53. Seized – gripped

QUESTION BASED ON EXTRACT

―This handicap stayed with me as the years rolled by.‖

a) Who is the speaker?

b) What is the handicap being talked about in the given lines?

c) How did this handicap affect him?

d) How did he overcome the handicap?

Answers

a)William Douglas is the speaker

b)The handicap being referred to is the fear of water Douglas had developed due to unfortunate
incidents in his childhood.

c) The fear of water haunted him everywhere and ruined his fishing trips. It deprived him of the
joys of canoeing, boating and swimming.

d) He engaged an instructor and practised with him. It helped him to get rid of his fear.

Questions and Answers

Q.1 Why was Douglas determined to get over his fear of water?

A.1 The misadventure of having a near-drowning experience left an indelible mark on Douglas's
mind. This marred all his joys of enjoying different water sports like fishing, canoeing, boating
and swimming. He did not want to live this helpless life, so he determined to overcome the fear
of swimming at any cost.

Q.2 Why did mother warn Douglas against River Yakima?

A.2 Mother warned Douglas against River Yakima, as it was treacherous. There were several
incidence of drowning in the river earlier and she did not want her children to go near it.

Q.3 What complex did Douglas have when he had to get into the pool? What did he do
about it?

A.3:- Douglas was a skinny child with under developed muscles. He was ashamed to expose his
lean and thin legs while walking into the pool. He subdued his pride and walked into the pool.

Q.4:- What is the misadventure that William Douglas speaks about? What were the series
of emotions and fears that Douglas experienced when he was thrown into the pool? What
plans did he make to come to the surface?

A.4:- William Douglas speaks about a terrifying childhood experience when he had a close
shave with death. As a young boy of ten or eleven, Douglas was tossed into a 9 feet deep
swimming pool by a big bruiser when he was learning swimming. Douglas experienced the stark
terror of sensation of dying when he was going down into the pool. He planned to push himself
up with all his force, and then on coming to the surface he would paddle to the edge of the pool.
The strategy didn't work out as rather than popping out of the water like a cork, he came slowly.
He struggled at the surface but couldn't-bring his legs to paddle as his legs hung like lifeless
objects. The vast expanse of water all over suffocated him. With a pounding heart, throbbing
head and bursting lungs he went to the bottom of the water a couple of more times. His crying
was inaudible to the world outside the pool. At last he was tired and went out of wits and left his
body floating and became unconscious, after that he was rescued.

Q.5 How did the instructor 'build a swimmer' out of Douglas?

A.5:- Douglas was determined to learn swimming to overcome his fear of water. Hence he
decided to get an instructor and learn to swim. The instructor built a swimmer out of him bit by
bit. First he put a belt round him and attached it securely to a pulley that ran on an overhead
cable. For three months he was repeatedly made to go back and forth across the pool. Next he
was taught to put his face under water and exhale and also to raise his nose and inhale. Later he
was made to kick with legs at the side of pool. Thus inch by inch a swimmer was built.

Q.6 'All we have to fear is fear itself'.Comment?

A.6:- The author William Douglas when at last get rid of his fear of water, he remembers the
words said by Roosevelt that there is terror only in the fear of death. 'All we have to fear is fear
itself' means we actually fear in our heart. If we are determined we can overcome the fear. If
there is no fear in our heart or mind then there would be no fear at all.

Q7. How did Hydrophobia spoil narrator‟s life completely?

A.7. Douglas had two misadventures in his life which spoiled him completely. At first, he was
hit by a strong wave at California beach and secondly he was tossed into the deepest end of the
pool by a hale & hearty boy. Those two incidents shook him inside out and made him lame by
his attitude. He felt the everlasting attacks of hydrophobia time to time which did not let him go
out of his home. He could neither enjoy water activities with his friends nor put his feet into
water. As a result, he had to stay at home through out the time. He got the nervous attacks which
reminded him of his both the misadventures. His friends would make fun of him & he would
have to bear all the embarrassment. In this way, hydrophobia not only spoiled his life but made
him homesick and dependent.

Q8.“This handicap stayed with me as the years rolled by.” Which handicap does the author
refer to? How did this handicap influence his life?

A8.The fear of water that had possessed Douglas first on the California Beach and later at the
YMCA Pool crippled his mind and courage. This fear of water had become something more like
a phobia for him. He could not enjoy his water sports and fishing trips. Whenever he went with
his friends for fishing, boating or rafting, he failed to enjoy the thrill of the sports due to the deep
rooted fear in his mind.

Q9.Why did Douglas decide to get a professional trainer?

After the misadventure at the YMCA Pool, Douglas found his fears for water assuming alarming
heights. If he didn‘t overcome his fear of water, he could no longer enjoy his adolescence as the
other boys did. He realized that the only solution was to get aside his fear of water. Thus, to
overcome his hear of water that ruined his life‘s best time, he decided to overcome this fear by
getting effective training from a professional trainer.

Q10.“But I was not finished.” What was unfinished for Douglas?

At the end of his rigorous training to swim, Douglas‘ trainer informed him that his job was
completed. Yet Douglas was not entirely satisfied. He had his own fears and anxieties regarding
his swimming skills. He wanted to overcome the last bit of fear from his mind.

Q11.Only once did the terror return. When did the terror return?”

When William Douglas was just three or four years, his father took him to a beach in California.
While playing in the surf/waves, Douglas was knocked down by a huge wave. Though his father
laughed at it, little Douglas caught a fear of water. When he was a teenager, he tried to learn
swimming in the YMCA Pool at Yakima but got drowned in the pool, instead. He was but not
ready to accept his defeat. With the help of an instructor he learnt swimming and finally kept his
fears aside.

Q12.“The instructor was finished but I was not finished.” Explain the significance of this
line in connection with the great determination that Douglas possessed.

Although the professional instructor saw that Douglas had become a trained swimmer who could
face any challenges while swimming, Douglas appeared to have residual (leftover) fears that he
had to himself fight back.

Q13.“Thus, piece by piece, he built a swimmer.” How does this statement describe the
trainer‟s amazing skills in training a person like Douglas?

Starting – William Douglas was a difficult stuff to train. His heart was full of fear of water –
once at California beach and later at the YMCA Pool. (Continue)

Self Training

After the instructor was done, Douglas started a self training. He went to the following rivers and
lakes:

Lake Wentworth (New Hampshire)

Triggs Islands

Stamp Act Island

Tieton – Conrad Meadows

Conrad Creek Trail – Meade Glacier

Warm lake

He conquered the fear of water for ever.

Q14.What did Roosevelt mean when he said, „All we have to fear is fear itself?‟ How did
Douglas realize this in his own life?

President Roosevelt believed that it is fear all we have to fear. People are afraid of fear. Even
when the mind wills to do certain acts, fear stops us from doing that. In the case of Douglas, too,
he never feared water. On the contrary he had great attachment to water. What he feared was the
fear for water.

Q15.Love for water could never die in Douglas. How did this statement come true to
Douglas in the years that followed?

Water was very cruel with Douglas since his childhood. Even though he had been frightened
twice, Douglas‘ love for water was long lasting. After having undergone a fatal experience at the
YMCA pool Douglas didn‘t give up his desire to learn swimming. He waited for his time and
overcame the fear of water and made himself a good swimmer.

Q16.“Trying to scare me, eh? Well, here is to you.”What is the significance of Douglas
monologue here?

This shows how determined and steadfast William Douglas was. His untiring endeavors to learn
swimming made him quite successful in life. He was not ready to run away defeated but he was
full of will power and determination.

LESSON AT A GLANCE