USPC JAIN PUBLIC SCHOOL

SUBJECT-ENGLISH
CHAPTER-2
IMPORTANT NOTES
WE'RE NOT AFRAID TO DIE IF WE CAN ALL BE TOGETHER
BOOK- HORNBILL
CLASS – XI

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gordon Cook is a two-time Canadian Olympic sailor. He sails for the Royal Canadian Yacht
Club. He is the son of Stephen Cook and Linda Cook. Cook is a graduate of the Engineering
Physics program at Queen's University.
THEME
The story “We are not afraid to die if we can all be together” is an example of the fact that
courage, bravery, and togetherness can be a remedy for any illness of the world. The story is
about a family who decides to set forth their journey around the world in their ship
Wavewalker. The family comprised of the narrator, his wife Mary, son Jonathan and daughter
Suzanne who their set sail from Plymouth, England along with two experienced sailors – Larry
Vigil, an American and Herb Seigler. In the midst of their journey, they faced a very heavy
storm in which they have almost predicted that they would not see the morning of the next day.
On the other hand, the two children were so optimistic that they said that they are not afraid of
any hardship if the whole family is together. This thought of the children made the elders work
more hard to save their lives. In the end, they overcame the trouble and landed to an island
where they relaxed and thanked God for saving them.

CHARACTERS
• The Narrator
The narrator was a 37-year-old businessman. He proved as a great captain and father during the
challenging and trying times after the irreparable damage done to Wavewalker by keeping his
composure and wits. It won’t be wrong to say that the all lives on the boat could be saved just
because of his seafaring skills.

• Mary
Mary was the narrator’s wife. She was a courageous and brave woman. She stood by her
husband after the wave badly damaged the boat. She steered the boat according to her
husband’s instructions. She gave lots of emotional support to the narrator.

• Suzanne
Suzanne was narrator’s seven year old daughter. She was very brave. She was critically injured
at the time the huge wave struck the boat. Her eyes were terribly swollen because of the head
injury. There was a cut on her arm also; however, she did not cry. She repeatedly told her father
she was alright; the truth was she was not. She had to undergo six minor operations to remove
the blood clotting from her brain.

• Jonathan
Jonathan was Gordon Cook’s 6 year old son who had accompanied him on the round-the-world-
journey. After the Wavewalker was terribly broken by the colossal wave, he also behaved very
courageously. He gave a new strength to his father when he said he was not afraid to die if he
could be together with the family. These words filled the author with new determination and
courage. He resolved to fight till the end to save his family from being drowned in the stormy
sea.

• Larry Vigil and Herb Seigler

Larry Vigil and Herb Seigler were two professional sailors whom the narrator hired at Cape
Town to tackle one of the world’s roughest seas, the southern Indian Ocean. They proved to be
real saviours when the ship had been flooded with the sea water. They pumped like madmen to
keep the water levels reasonably low.

QUESTION-ANSWERS

Question 1.
I honing our seafaring skills
Ans. It refers to the efforts made by the narrator and his wife to perfect or sharpen their
knowledge of navigation, handling of the boat and equipment and other sea skills.
Question 2.
ominous silence
Ans. It refers to the silence just before an impending danger. The peace and quiet suggests that
something bad is going to happen.
Question 3.
Mayday calls
Ans. They are radio-telephonic calls which are given by aircraft or ships stuck in a disastrous
situation. They are distress calls made to secure help from other ships nearby.
Question 4.
pinpricks in the vast ocean
Ans. This phrase refers to tiny islands in the vast ocean.
They are so small that they appear like tiny pinheads on a map of the vast ocean.
Question 5.
a tousled head
Ans. It refers to hair in disarray or the disarranged hair of the author’s son. His hair was all
messed up and uncombed.
Question 6
List the steps taken by the captain
(i) to protect the ship when rough weather began.
(ii) to check the flooding of water in the ship.
Ans.(i) In order to protect the ship from rough weather, the captain decided to slow it down. So
he dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope in a loop across the stern. Then they
double-fastened everything and went through their life-raft drill, attached lifelines and donned
oilskins and life jackets.
(ii) To check the flooding of water in the ship, the captain made some repairs and stretched
waterproof oilskins in the openings. He secured waterproof hatch covers across the gaping holes
which diverted the water to the side. When the two handpumps were lost overboard and the
electric pump short-circuited, he found another electric pump and connected it to an out-pipe
and managed to pump out the water.
Question 7
How did the narrator celebrate Christmas and New Year’s Day during his voyage?
Ans. As the voyagers sailed eastward from Cape Town, the strong winds began to blow. The
rough weather went on for the next few days. But in spite of foul weather, the family celebrated
Christmas, complete with a Christmas tree. But there seemed no improvement in the weather
during the New Year too.
Question 8
What preparations did the narrator make to face the stormy sea on January 2?
Ans. On the morning of January 2, the waves were gigantic. The wind was screaming and their
boat rose to the top of each wave as it hit the boat. To slow the boat down, the narrator and his
crew dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope across the stern. Then they double
lashed everything, wore oilskins and life jackets and attached themselves with lifelines.
Question 9
What injuries did the narrator and his daughter suffer when the sea waves tossed them
about?
Ans. When the waves hit the boat, the narrator was tossed around the deck as if he were a rag
doll. His left ribs cracked, his teeth were broken and his mouth was filled with blood. But he just
held on to the guard rails fast and took charge of the wheel. His daughter Susan was hurt on the
head very badly.
Question 10
What information did Mary give about their problem?
Ans. Mary was in the lower part of the boat along with the children. The lid on the deck had
blown off and Mary reported that the boat was full of water, and they were sinking.

VALUE BASED QUESTION-ANSWER:

Question1.
How does the story suggest that optimism helps to endure “the direst stress”?
Answer:
The voyagers did not even once lose their hope or show any weakness.
When the waves were high, the hopeful crew slowed the ship down, fastened everything with a
mooring rope and went through the life-raft drill. When the storm struck their ship, the captain
was almost killed and the ship was nearly a wreck. However, he held onto the wheel. Water was
getting into the ship, but Larry and Herb kept pumping like madmen. This shows that they were
not willing to give in to danger and were ready to fight it.
They didn’t lose hope. Even the little girl was so brave that she didn’t inform her parents about
her injuries. The little boy, an epitome of courage, said that he was not afraid of dying. All this
gave the captain a new hope and a will to fight.
The narrator checked and calculated that their only chance of survival was a 65 kilometre wide
island in 150000 square kilometre of ocean. Still they set sail towards it. They were optimistic
about finding the small island in the vast ocean. Finally, they set foot on land and survived.
Their optimism paid off. All this shows that optimism was the key to their survival. It helped
them endure the direst stress.
Question 2
Describe the mental condition of the voyagers on 4th and 5th January.
Ans. On 4th January, the mental condition of the voyagers was vacillating between hope and
despair. After 36 hours of continuous pumping they could pump much of the water out. But
they had to keep pace with the water still coming in. However, their respite was only short-
lived. The storm started building up and the situation again became worse.
The narrator went to comfort the children. Jon asked innocently if they were ‘going to die’ but
added that he did not mind dying as long as all the family members were together. This
statement of the narrator’s child boosted his morale. He became resolute to fight the sea. Those
were critical moments for all of them. Mary and the narrator sat together holding each other’s
hands. They were scared and felt that their end was very near.
Question3
Comment on the title of the adventurous expedition by Gordon Cook and Alan East. What
message does it give?
Ans. The title of the adventure story is deeply moving. The words come from the mouth of the
little six-year-old boy Jonathan. They were all in trouble. They had almost accepted defeat. Death
seemed near and certain. The broken boat was filled with water. But the voyagers did all they
could to save the boat and also themselves. Sue, the little daughter did not complain of pain in
her head. The crewmen worked madly to pump out water. Jonathan said he was not afraid of
death provided they stayed together. The title of the story is an illustrious example of man’s
courage and optimism in the face of -approaching death. Will-power or the spirit of man often
proves stronger than any danger. The title displays a success Mantra—United we stand, divided
we fall. Even mountains yield a path to the indomitable spirit of men but the condition is that they
stand united.

Note: Students ,you have to note down all the question answers in your English notebook.