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Sons and Fathers
Sons and Fathers

Chapter XVII

Chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers is here in full — 258 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

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Context Illustration Reading 1/51 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.
Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.
He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.
And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.
The young man precipitated the crisis.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Sons and Fathers

Chapter XVII

Chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers is here in full — 258 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/51 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.
/ðə ˈproʊfaɪl ɑːn ðə muːn/
Line 2
Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.
Line 3
He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.
/hiː hæd kʌm ɑːn ə ˌsaɪənˈtɪfɪk ˈerənd ənd faʊnd hɪmˈself plʌndʒd ˈɪntuː ə ˈtrædʒədi/
Line 4
And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.
Line 5
The young man precipitated the crisis.
/ðə jʌŋ mæn prɪˈsɪpɪteɪtɪd ðə ˈkraɪsəs/

Learner Dictionary

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.

attendant noun US /əˈtendənt/

someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another

From this reading “And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.”

crisis noun US /ˈkraɪsəs/

an unstable situation of extreme danger or difficulty

From this reading “The young man precipitated the crisis.”

errand noun US /ˈerənd/

a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission

From this reading “He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.”

precipitated verb US /prɪˈsɪpɪteɪtɪd/

past form of “precipitate” — bring about abruptly

From this reading “The young man precipitated the crisis.”

profile noun US /ˈproʊfaɪl/

an analysis (often in graphical form) representing the extent to which something exhibits various characteristics

From this reading “THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.”

responsibilities noun US /riˌspɑːnsəˈbɪlətiz/

plural of “responsibility” — the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force

From this reading “And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.”

revelation noun US /ˌrevəˈleɪʃən/

the speech act of making something evident

From this reading “And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.”

scientific adjective US /ˌsaɪənˈtɪfɪk/

of or relating to the practice of science

From this reading “He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

plunged into verb + particle counted as “plunge into”

In this reading “He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.”

young man adjective + noun

a teenager or a young adult male

In this reading “The young man precipitated the crisis.”

most serious adverb + adjective

In this reading “And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.”

All words in this reading · 39

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

attendantnounUS /əˈtendənt/

someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

comeverbUS /kʌm/

move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

crisisnounUS /ˈkraɪsəs/

an unstable situation of extreme danger or difficulty

From this reading The young man precipitated the crisis.

errandnounUS /ˈerənd/

a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

feltverbUS /felt/

mat together and make felt-like

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

foundverbUS /faʊnd/

set up or found

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

Gerald

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

himselfpronounUS /hɪmˈself/

used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading The young man precipitated the crisis.

MOONnounUS /muːn/

the natural satellite of the Earth

From this reading THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.

mostadverbUS /moʊst/

used to form the superlative

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

occurredverbUS /əˈkɜːrd/

inflected form of “occur” — come to pass

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

ONprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.

plungedverbUS /plʌndʒd/

past form of “plunge” — thrust or throw into

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

positionnounUS /pəˈzɪʃən/

the particular portion of space occupied by something

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

precipitatedverbUS /prɪˈsɪpɪteɪtɪd/

past form of “precipitate” — bring about abruptly

From this reading The young man precipitated the crisis.

PROFILEnounUS /ˈproʊfaɪl/

an analysis (often in graphical form) representing the extent to which something exhibits various characteristics

From this reading THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.

responsibilitiesnounUS /riˌspɑːnsəˈbɪlətiz/

plural of “responsibility” — the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

responsibilitynounUS /riˌspɑːnsəˈbɪləti/

the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

revelationnounUS /ˌrevəˈleɪʃən/

the speech act of making something evident

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

scientificadjectiveUS /ˌsaɪənˈtɪfɪk/

of or relating to the practice of science

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

seriousadjectiveUS /ˈsɪriəs/

concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE PROFILE ON THE MOON.

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

tragedynounUS /ˈtrædʒədi/

an event resulting in great loss and misfortune

From this reading He had come on a scientific errand and found himself plunged into a tragedy.

Virdow

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Virdow felt the responsibility of his position.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading And there were attendant responsibilities, the most serious of which was the revelation to Gerald of what had occurred.

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth

From this reading The young man precipitated the crisis.

Chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers by Harry Stillwell Edwards holds 258 sentences, grouped into 52 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.

What does chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers contain?

Chapter 17 holds 258 sentences of Sons and Fathers, unabridged, divided into 52 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers by Harry Stillwell Edwards exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 258 sentences, grouped into 52 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.

How do I study chapter 17 of Sons and Fathers?

Work through the 52 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 52 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.

Can chapter 17 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 17 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.

Questions about reading Sons and Fathers

Common questions about reading Sons and Fathers by Harry Stillwell Edwards on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Sons and Fathers?

Yes. All 8769 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36112 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Sons and Fathers is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #36112, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Sons and Fathers take to read?

About 600 minutes of reading across 1754 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Sons and Fathers section by section

How to work through Sons and Fathers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

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  2. Read one section

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  3. Listen and tap

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Vocabulary met early in Sons and Fathers

Words and structures a reader meets early in Sons and Fathers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

First-prize
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sons and Fathers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Story
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sons and Fathers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Chicago
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sons and Fathers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Record's
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sons and Fathers; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.