Chapter 2 of Milton is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Milton is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JOURNEY TO ITALY. Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian. His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry. The language grew to be loved for its own sake. Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
Chapter 2 of Milton is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
past form of “attract” — direct toward itself or oneself by means of some psychological power or physical attributes
From this reading “His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.”
an Italian poet famous for writing the Divine Comedy that describes a journey through Hell and purgatory and paradise guided by Virgil and his idealized Beatrice (1265-1321)
From this reading “Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.”
plural of “impression” — a vague idea in which some confidence is placed
From this reading “His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.”
English poet; remembered primarily as the author of an epic poem describing humanity's fall from grace (1608-1674)
From this reading “Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.”
uniquely or characteristically
From this reading “His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.”
being the most concentrated solution possible at a given temperature; unable to dissolve still more of a substance
From this reading “Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.”
Italian poet who wrote an epic poem about the capture of Jerusalem during the First Crusade (1544-1595)
From this reading “Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.”
a resident of Tuscany
From this reading “Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.”
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 Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
inflected form of “arise” — come into existence; take on form or shape
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
past form of “attract” — direct toward itself or oneself by means of some psychological power or physical attributes
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
Bound written or printed works.
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
an Italian poet famous for writing the Divine Comedy that describes a journey through Hell and purgatory and paradise guided by Virgil and his idealized Beatrice (1265-1321)
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
the feeling that accompanies an unsatisfied state
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
take in liquids
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
plural of “impression” — a vague idea in which some confidence is placed
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
a native or inhabitant of Italy
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
a republic in southern Europe on the Italian Peninsula; was the core of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the 5th century AD
From this reading JOURNEY TO ITALY.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
undertake a journey or trip
From this reading JOURNEY TO ITALY.
and nothing more
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
held dear
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
English poet; remembered primarily as the author of an epic poem describing humanity's fall from grace (1608-1674)
From this reading Before 1632 Milton had begun to learn Italian.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
uniquely or characteristically
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
an Italian poet famous for love lyrics (1304-1374)
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
literature in metrical form
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
a reason for wanting something done
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
being the most concentrated solution possible at a given temperature; unable to dissolve still more of a substance
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
plural of “side” — a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
Italian poet who wrote an epic poem about the capture of Jerusalem during the First Crusade (1544-1595)
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The language grew to be loved for its own sake.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading JOURNEY TO ITALY.
a resident of Tuscany
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His mind, just then open on all sides to impressions from books, was peculiarly attracted by Italian poetry.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Saturated as he was with Dante and Petrarch, Tasso and Ariosto, the desire arose to let the ear drink in the music of Tuscan speech.
Chapter 2 of Milton by Mark Pattison holds 125 sentences, grouped into 25 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 2 holds 125 sentences of Milton, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Milton by Mark Pattison exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 125 sentences, grouped into 25 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 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 25 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 2 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 Milton by Mark Pattison on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2517 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8770 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8770, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 209 minutes of reading across 504 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Milton section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Milton 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 Milton, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
