Chapter 2 of Poor Folk is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of Poor Folk is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest? I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much. Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now. Why, then, should I complain in my old age? I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
Chapter 2 of Poor Folk is here in full — 177 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
wearing boots
From this reading “I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.”
a state of being relaxed and feeling no pain
From this reading “Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?”
providing or experiencing physical well-being or relief (“comfy” is informal)
From this reading “Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.”
express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading “Why, then, should I complain in my old age?”
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading “I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.”
take in solid food
From this reading “I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.”
giving careful attention to detail; hard to please; excessively concerned with cleanliness
From this reading “I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.”
third-person singular of “require” — require as useful, just, or proper
From this reading “I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.”
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 I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
how long something has existed
From this reading Why, then, should I complain in my old age?
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
wearing boots
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
a state of being relaxed and feeling no pain
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
providing or experiencing physical well-being or relief (“comfy” is informal)
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading Why, then, should I complain in my old age?
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
take in solid food
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
giving careful attention to detail; hard to please; excessively concerned with cleanliness
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Why, then, should I complain in my old age?
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
the state prevailing during the absence of war
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
third-person singular of “require” — require as useful, just, or proper
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading Why, then, should I complain in my old age?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Never in my life have I been so comfortable as now.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Why, then, should I complain in my old age?
(used to introduce a logical conclusion) from that fact or reason or as a result
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading I have enough to eat, I am well dressed and booted.
which person or people
From this reading I am not a fastidious man, nor one who requires much.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
produce a literary work
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Why do you write thus about “comfort” and “peace” and the rest?
Chapter 2 of Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoyevsky holds 177 sentences, grouped into 36 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 177 sentences of Poor Folk, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoyevsky exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 177 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoyevsky on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3043 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2302 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2302, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 253 minutes of reading across 609 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Poor Folk section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Poor Folk 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 Poor Folk, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
