Chapter 23 of Looking Forward is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of Looking Forward is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Fine Arts in 1999. The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920. The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art. The doom of cheap chromos. Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
Chapter 23 of Looking Forward is here in full — 66 sentences across 14 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/13 · 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.
plural of “artist” — a person whose creative work shows sensitivity and imagination
From this reading “The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.”
studies intended to provide general knowledge and intellectual skills (rather than occupational or professional skills)
From this reading “The Fine Arts in 1999.”
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading “The doom of cheap chromos.”
decree or designate beforehand
From this reading “The doom of cheap chromos.”
plural of “paint” — a substance used as a coating to protect or decorate a surface (especially a mixture of pigment suspended in a liquid); dries to form a hard coating
From this reading “Nature paints her own matchless pictures.”
(of plans, ideas, etc.) perfectly formed
From this reading “The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.”
someone who sees an event and reports what happened
From this reading “The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.”
possessive form of “world” — everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.”
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.
the study and creation of visual works of art
In this reading “The Fine Arts in 1999.”
In this reading “The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Fine Arts in 1999.
an old form of “are”, used with “thou”
From this reading The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.
plural of “artist” — a person whose creative work shows sensitivity and imagination
From this reading The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.
studies intended to provide general knowledge and intellectual skills (rather than occupational or professional skills)
From this reading The Fine Arts in 1999.
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading The doom of cheap chromos.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The doom of cheap chromos.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.
decree or designate beforehand
From this reading The doom of cheap chromos.
being satisfactory or in satisfactory condition
From this reading The Fine Arts in 1999.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The Fine Arts in 1999.
eminent beyond or above comparison
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
plural of “paint” — a substance used as a coating to protect or decorate a surface (especially a mixture of pigment suspended in a liquid); dries to form a hard coating
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
(of plans, ideas, etc.) perfectly formed
From this reading The art of Color-photography perfected in 1920.
plural of “picture” — a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading Nature paints her own matchless pictures.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Fine Arts in 1999.
someone who sees an event and reports what happened
From this reading The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.
possessive form of “world” — everything that exists anywhere
From this reading The world's great artists witness the death-knell of art.
Chapter 23 of Looking Forward by Arthur Bird holds 66 sentences, grouped into 14 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 23 holds 66 sentences of Looking Forward, unabridged, divided into 14 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of Looking Forward by Arthur Bird exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 66 sentences, grouped into 14 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 14 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 14 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 23 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 Looking Forward by Arthur Bird on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2288 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50148 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50148, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 190 minutes of reading across 458 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Looking Forward section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Looking Forward 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 Looking Forward, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
