Deep Water | Summary| CBSE

The author had an aversion for water since his childhood. When author was three or four years old, his father took him to beach in California. He hung on to his father.  But, the waves knocked him down and

swept over him. He was frightened and waves created a fear in author’s mind.

He decided to learn to swim at ten or eleven years old, in pool at Y.M.C.A in Yakima. A big eighteen-years-old boy threw the author into pool. The author thought that when his touched bottom of the pool, he would make a jump upwards and would came to surface. But, when he went down, nine feet seemed like ninety to him. When his feet touched bottom, he came up rather slowly. 

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Whenever, he opened his eyes, he saw nothing but water. He was suffocating. He became panicky. He tried to cry but no words came out. His legs seemed paralysed. Instead of coming up, he went down and down. A great force seemed to pull him under water. Only his heart showed that he was alive. He looked for ropes, ladder but there was nothing except water. And then he felt that his eyes and nose were out of water but still his mouth was under water. Then, he gain found himself going down and thought that he was going to die. After some time, Douglas regained consciousness. He found himself lying on his stomach near pool and vomiting.

In order to overcome his fear, the author went to Lake Went worth in New Hampshire. He dived off a dock at Triggs Island. He swam two miles across the lake to Stamp Act Island. Thus, finally he was able to conquer his fear of water an swimming.

It conveys a deep meaning that there is peace in death and terror in fear of death. It also conveys that one should not accept defeat and if one tries one  can conquer one’s fear through sheer will and determination.

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