Chapter 4 of Demian is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Demian is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me. Everything was now quite changed. Childhood fell about me in ruins. My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment. My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
Chapter 4 of Demian is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
the time of person's life when they are a child
From this reading “Childhood fell about me in ruins.”
direct the course of; manage or control
From this reading “My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.”
additional proof that something that was believed (some fact or hypothesis or theory) is correct
From this reading “The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.”
the shame you feel when your inadequacy or guilt is made public
From this reading “My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.”
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading “My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.”
plural of “recollection” — the ability to recall past occurrences
From this reading “The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.”
plural of “ruin” — an irrecoverable state of devastation and destruction
From this reading “Childhood fell about me in ruins.”
plural of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.”
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.”
come to pass
In this reading “The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.”
In this reading “My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Childhood fell about me in ruins.
later than; following
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
definite but not specified or identified
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading Everything was now quite changed.
the time of person's life when they are a child
From this reading Childhood fell about me in ruins.
direct the course of; manage or control
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
additional proof that something that was believed (some fact or hypothesis or theory) is correct
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
the shame you feel when your inadequacy or guilt is made public
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading Everything was now quite changed.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading Childhood fell about me in ruins.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
of great significance or value
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Childhood fell about me in ruins.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
not any; not one
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Everything was now quite changed.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading Everything was now quite changed.
plural of “recollection” — the ability to recall past occurrences
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
plural of “ruin” — an irrecoverable state of devastation and destruction
From this reading Childhood fell about me in ruins.
plural of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
in the near future
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
in the direction of
From this reading My sisters had become quite strange in their conduct towards me.
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading My parents used to look at me with a certain embarrassment.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Everything was now quite changed.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The confirmation took place soon after, of which no important recollections remain with me.
Chapter 4 of Demian by Hermann Hesse holds 423 sentences, grouped into 85 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 4 holds 423 sentences of Demian, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Demian by Hermann Hesse exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 423 sentences, grouped into 85 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading Demian by Hermann Hesse on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3368 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #74222 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #74222, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 280 minutes of reading across 674 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Demian section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Demian to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Demian, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
