Chapter 10 of The Descent of Man and Other Stories is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of The Descent of Man and Other Stories is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate. That was the feeling that survived. He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him. Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could. I gave up the struggle.
Chapter 10 of The Descent of Man and Other Stories is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
a youthful male person
From this reading “He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.”
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading “That was the feeling that survived.”
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading “"Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.”
at the same time but in another place
From this reading “Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.”
a magnitude or frequency relative to a time unit
From this reading “"Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.”
a male human offspring
From this reading “He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.”
make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading “I gave up the struggle.”
past form of “survive” — continue to live and avoid dying
From this reading “That was the feeling that survived.”
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.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
a youthful male person
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading That was the feeling that survived.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading I gave up the struggle.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
at the same time but in another place
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Meanwhile the old life must go on as it could.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
a magnitude or frequency relative to a time unit
From this reading "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
a male human offspring
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
make a strenuous or labored effort
From this reading I gave up the struggle.
past form of “survive” — continue to live and avoid dying
From this reading That was the feeling that survived.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That was the feeling that survived.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading That was the feeling that survived.
up to a particular time
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading I gave up the struggle.
precisely as stated
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That was the feeling that survived.
(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 "Well--I _had_ kept him, at any rate.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading He was my boy, my son, my very own--till some other woman took him.
Chapter 10 of The Descent of Man and Other Stories by Edith Wharton holds 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 10 holds 394 sentences of The Descent of Man and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of The Descent of Man and Other Stories by Edith Wharton exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 10 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 The Descent of Man and Other Stories by Edith Wharton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4069 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4519 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4519, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 339 minutes of reading across 814 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Descent of Man and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The Descent of Man and Other Stories 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 The Descent of Man and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
