27 pages • 54 minutes read
Richard BachJonathan Livingston Seagull
Richard BachFiction | Novella | YA | Published in 1970A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 1Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 1 Summary
One morning, while a flock of seagulls is flying around a fishing boat trying to snatch little pieces of food, a young gull named Jonathan is flying all by himself, adjusting his beak, body, and wings to learn how to fly as high and as fast as possible. This sets him apart from other gulls, who normally only learn as much flying as they need to find food; even Jonathan’s own mother and father chide him for not being more like the rest of the Flock.
Jonathan tries to listen to his parents, but he finds flight hard to resist; within a few days, he is once again away from the Flock and hard at practice. He begins diving from great heights in an attempt to fly faster than any other gull; he eventually breaks 90 miles per hour, but loses control while pulling out of a dive and crashes into the ocean. When he comes to, Jonathan is in despair and nearly gives up on his dream. However, while flying back to shore, he suddenly notices he is flying at night—something seagulls never do.
