Read the following passage and choose the option with the most appropriate…
2021
Read the following passage and choose the option with the most appropriate answer to the question asked:
The wounded falcon wished to fly once more. Somehow gathering its courage it took to the air, and after fluttering its wings for a little while it fell back down. The snake too came out of its hollow set high up, let itself loose into the sky, and dropped down. The snake began to say –
“So this is the joy of flying – well, I have had my fill of it! Birds are such fools. Knowing nothing of the comforts of the earth, they wished to measure the heights of the sky. But now I have realised that there is nothing in the sky. Apart from a heap of light there is nothing there – no place to support the body, no foothold. Then on what strength do those birds brag so much, and why do they think the creatures of the earth so small? Now I shall never be deceived again; I have seen the sky, and seen it thoroughly. The falcon used to talk so grandly, never tired of singing the praises of the sky. It was on his words that I leapt into the sky. May God do good – I barely escaped with my life. Now I am even more certain that there is no greater comfort anywhere than my own hollow. I crawl upon the earth; that is more than enough for me. What have I to do with the freedom of the sky? There is no roof there, no walls, no ground to crawl upon. My head begins to spin, my heart trembles. What kind of cleverness is it to put one’s own life in danger?”
The snake began to think that the falcon was unfortunate, for it had staked its very life in trying to attain the freedom of the sky.
But a little while later the snake’s astonishment knew no bounds. It heard, rising from beneath the rocks, the sound of a sweet, mysterious song. At first it did not believe its ears. But after a while the notes of the song began to be heard more clearly. It came out of its cave and peered down from the rock. In the golden rays of the sun the blue water of the sea was shimmering. People were singing together –
“O fearless falcon! Fighting your enemies you have shed your precious blood. But the time is not far off when every single drop of your blood will spread light in the darkness of life and will kindle, in brave, valiant hearts, a love for freedom and light.
You sacrificed your life, yet still you are immortal. Whenever songs of courage and valour are sung, your name will be taken with great pride and reverence.”
Even though it was wounded, the falcon took flight, because –
Answer: C. It cherished the unfettered freedom of the open sky. — ConceptIn a literary comprehension question of the “why did the character act” type, the answer is the motive the passage itself establishes through its…
- A.
Flying was a compulsion forced upon it.
- B.
By doing so it could recover quickly.
- C.
It cherished the unfettered freedom of the open sky.
- D.
It had to give proof of its fearlessness.
Attempted by 87 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept
In a literary comprehension question of the “why did the character act” type, the answer is the motive the passage itself establishes through its imagery and tone — not an external practical reason the reader supplies. The correct choice is the one the whole text supports, while distractors usually attach a plausible-sounding but unsupported motive.
Application
This passage is built on a single contrast — the snake’s love of the safe, enclosed hollow versus the falcon’s love of the boundless, open sky. The snake explicitly rejects the sky because it has “no roof, no walls, no ground to crawl upon,” and asks, “What have I to do with the freedom of the sky?” The closing song answers that very question for the falcon: it shed its blood and staked its life to attain the sky’s freedom, and its sacrifice will “kindle in brave hearts a love for freedom and light.” So the wounded falcon rises again out of a cherished love for the unfettered freedom of the open sky.
Why not the others
“Flying was a forced compulsion” — nothing forces the falcon; the song honours a free, willing act of courage, not duress.
“It could recover quickly” — the passage offers no healing or medical motive; flight brings the wounded bird no physical benefit.
“It had to prove its fearlessness” — this makes the flight a display for others, but the motive is an inner longing; the falcon proves nothing to anyone, and others praise its valour only afterward.
Result
The flight springs from the falcon’s love of the sky’s open freedom — the answer is “It cherished the unfettered freedom of the open sky.”