Chapter 2 of The nigger of the "Narcissus" is here in full — 458 sentences across 92 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The nigger of the "Narcissus" is here in full — 458 sentences across 92 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern. He was contemptuously angry. “I tried to get a wink of sleep. You know I can’t sleep o’ nights. And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
Chapter 2 of The nigger of the "Narcissus" is here in full — 458 sentences across 92 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 45/91 · 5 reading units · Lines 221–225
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.
the organic process of bearing flowers
From this reading “And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....”
A large, vast underground cave, often filled with forgotten ancient treasures.
From this reading “He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.”
without respect; in a disdainful manner
From this reading “He was contemptuously angry.”
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading “He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.”
not solid; having a space or gap or cavity
From this reading “He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.”
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading “You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.”
inflected form of “ring” — sound loudly and sonorously
From this reading “He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.”
signal by winking
From this reading ““I tried to get a wink of sleep.”
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 tried to get a wink of sleep.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
feeling or showing anger
From this reading He was contemptuously angry.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
the organic process of bearing flowers
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.
A large, vast underground cave, often filled with forgotten ancient treasures.
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
without respect; in a disdainful manner
From this reading He was contemptuously angry.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
make void or empty of contents
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
not solid; having a space or gap or cavity
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
rapid and indistinct speech
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
(often followed by “of”) a large number or amount or extent
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.
not any; not one
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
inflected form of “ring” — sound loudly and sonorously
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
in spite of the fact that
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading He gasped no more, and his voice rang, hollow and loud, as though he had been talking in an empty cavern.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was contemptuously angry.
signal by winking
From this reading “I tried to get a wink of sleep.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading And you come jabbering near the door here like a blooming lot of old women....
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You know I can’t sleep o’ nights.
Chapter 2 of The nigger of the "Narcissus" by Joseph Conrad holds 458 sentences, grouped into 92 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 458 sentences of The nigger of the "Narcissus", unabridged, divided into 92 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The nigger of the "Narcissus" by Joseph Conrad exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 458 sentences, grouped into 92 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 92 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 92 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 The nigger of the "Narcissus" by Joseph Conrad on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3518 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17731 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17731, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 293 minutes of reading across 704 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The nigger of the "Narcissus" section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The nigger of the "Narcissus" 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 nigger of the "Narcissus", each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
