Jonathan Livingston Seagull

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**Jonathan Livingston Seagull**
Book cover for Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Author	Richard Bach
Illustrator	Russel Munson
Language	English
Subject(s)	life of Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Genre(s)	Spiritual Self-Help Novella
Publisher	Avon Books
Publication date	1970
Media type	Print (Paperback)
Pages	127 pp (paperback edition)
ISBN	ISBN 0-380-01286-3 (paperback edition)

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, written by Richard Bach, is a fable in novella form about a seagull learning about life and flight, and a homily about self-perfection and self-sacrifice. First published in 1970 as "Jonathan Livingston Seagull — a story", it became a favorite on American university campuses. By the end of 1972, over a million copies were in print, Reader's Digest had published a condensed version, and the book reached the top of the New York Times bestseller list where it remained for 38 weeks. It is still in print as of 2007.

1 Plot summary
2 Interpretation
3 In Other Media
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

The novel tells the story of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, a seagull who is bored with the daily squabbles over food and seized by a passion for flight. He pushes himself, learning everything he can about flying, until finally his unwillingness to conform results in his expulsion from his flock. An outcast, he continues to learn, becoming increasingly pleased with his abilities as he leads an idyllic life.

One day, Jonathan is met by two gulls who take him to a "higher plane of existence", where he meets other gulls who love to fly. He discovers that his sheer tenacity and desire to learn make him "a gull in a million". Jonathan befriends the wisest gull in this new place, named Chiang, who takes him beyond his previous learning, teaching him how to move instantaneously to anywhere else in the universe. The secret, Chiang says, is to "begin by knowing that you have already arrived".

Not satisfied with his new life, Jonathan returns to Earth to find others like him, to bring them his learning and to spread his love for flight. His mission is successful, gathering around him others who have been outlawed for not conforming. Ultimately, one of his students, Fletcher Lynd Seagull, becomes a teacher in his own right and Jonathan leaves to continue his learning.

Bach said the title of the book was inspired by John H. "Johnny" Livingston, a prominent gay rights activist during the 1920s and 1930s. Other than that its a book open to interpretation by everyone.^[1]

Film: Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull inspired the production of a motion picture of the same title, with a soundtrack by Neil Diamond. The film was made by Hall Bartlett many years before computer-generated effects were available. In order to make seagulls act on cue and perform aerobatics, Mark Smith of Escondido, California built radio-controlled gliders that looked remarkably like real seagulls from a few feet away. Bach was so unimpressed with the treatment of the film that he sued the film company for negligence. Critics blasted the film, calling it "for the birds." Previously only available on VHS, it was released on DVD in October 2007.
Ballet: There is also a ballet based on Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
Spoken Word: The Irish actor Richard Harris won a Grammy in 1973 for the spoken-word album Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
Parody novels:
- Jonathan Segal Chicken (1973, Pinnacle Books, New York) written by Sol Weinstein and Howard Albrechi revolves around a cocky Jewish-American super chicken who flies the coop to New York City.
- David Lines' Jonathan Livingston Trafalgar Square Pigeon (1998) features a cynical pigeon looking to the London Underground for inspiration.
Other:
- Shui On Group, a large property group based in Hong Kong, uses Jonathan the Seagull as their company motto and logo [1] because the Group's Founder Vincent Lo was inspired by the story.
- Jonathan Seagull is mentioned in the James Gang song "Ride the Wind".
- MC Paul Barman includes a nod to the seagull in his lyrics from "Excuse You" ("I keep it more gully than Jonathan Livingston").
- It has been said that Swedish pop group ABBA's 1977 song "Eagle" was partially inspired by Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
- Canadian singer-songwriter Danny Michel wrote a song about Jonathan Livingston Seagull called “Jonathan Gull” on his 2001 album, In the Belly of a Whale.
- Korean rock group Cherry Filter wrote a song called "Jonathan the Seagull".
- Korean hip-hop artist MC Mong wrote a song, "Jonathan (갈매기의 꿈 [A Seagull's Dream]}".
- In an episode of the Korean Drama 'Goong' (Princess Hours) the poem is mentioned in Chaekyung's classroom.