Valperga Volume 1 (of 3)

Chapter VIII

Chapter 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley • Curated US English Learning Edition

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This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

Narrator

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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.

Chapter VIII Reading 1/27

Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Chapter VIII

Chapter 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

_Milan.--Court of the Emperor Henry.--Arrigo Guinigi.--Sack of Cremona.--Benedetto Pepi._ After several days travelling, he arrived at Milan; and his first care was to hasten to the palace of Matteo Visconti. This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor. Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan. It was a scene of gaiety and splendour. The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

Valperga Volume 1 (of 3)

Chapter VIII

Chapter 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 139 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/27 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

Line 2

This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

/ðɪs tʃiːf wɑːz ɡɔːn tuː ðə ˈmiːtɪŋ ʌv ðə ˈsenət dɪˈlɪbəreɪtɪŋ wɪð ðə ˈnoʊbəlz ʌv məˈlɑːn ɑːn ðə sʌm ʌv ˈmʌni wɪtʃ ʃʊd biː ˈvoʊtɪd fɔːr ðə juːs ʌv ðə ˈempərər/

Line 3

Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

Line 4

It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

Line 5

The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

/ðə jʌŋ ˈnoʊbəlz wɜːr priˈperɪŋ tuː əˈtend ɑːn ðə ˈempərər ɪn ə ˈrɔɪəl hʌnt/

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.

deliberating verb US /dɪˈlɪbəreɪtɪŋ/

-ing form of “deliberate” — think about carefully; weigh

From this reading “This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.”

hasten verb US /ˈheɪsən/

act or move at high speed

From this reading “_Milan.--Court of the Emperor Henry.--Arrigo Guinigi.--Sack of Cremona.--Benedetto Pepi._ After several days travelling, he arrived at Milan; and his first care was to hasten to the palace of Matteo Visconti.”

Milan noun US /məˈlɑːn/

the capital of Lombardy in northern Italy; has been an international center of trade and industry since the Middle Ages

nobility noun US /noʊˈbɪləti/

a privileged class holding hereditary titles

From this reading “Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.”

nobles noun US /ˈnoʊbəlz/

plural of “noble” — a titled peer of the realm

From this reading “This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.”

senate noun US /ˈsenət/

assembly possessing high legislative powers

From this reading “This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.”

Visconti noun US /viˈskoʊnti/

Italian filmmaker (1906-1976)

voted verb US /ˈvoʊtɪd/

past form of “vote” — express one's preference for a candidate or for a measure or resolution; cast a vote

From this reading “This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.”

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.

several days adjective + noun

In this reading “_Milan.--Court of the Emperor Henry.--Arrigo Guinigi.--Sack of Cremona.--Benedetto Pepi._ After several days travelling, he arrived at Milan; and his first care was to hasten to the palace of Matteo Visconti.”

arrived at verb + particle counted as “arrive at”

reach a destination, either real or abstract

in the hall preposition + article + noun counted as “in … hall”

In this reading “Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.”

All words in this reading · 71

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 It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

AfterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading _Milan.--Court of the Emperor Henry.--Arrigo Guinigi.--Sack of Cremona.--Benedetto Pepi._ After several days travelling, he arrived at Milan; and his first care was to hasten to the palace of Matteo Visconti.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

Arrigo

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

arrivedverbUS /ərˈaɪvd/

past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

attendverbUS /əˈtend/

be present at (meetings, church services, university), etc.

From this reading The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

Benedetto

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

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

carenounUS /ker/

the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something

Castruccio

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

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

chiefnounUS /tʃiːf/

a person who is in charge

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

CourtnounUS /kɔːrt/

an assembly (including one or more judges) to conduct judicial business

Cremonanoun

a city in Lombardy on the Po River; noted for the manufacture of fine violins from the 16th to the 18th centuries

daysnounUS /deɪz/

the time during which someone's life continues

deliberatingverbUS /dɪˈlɪbəreɪtɪŋ/

-ing form of “deliberate” — think about carefully; weigh

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

EmperornounUS /ˈempərər/

the male ruler of an empire

firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/

preceding all others in time or space or degree

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

gaietynoun

a gay feeling

From this reading It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

Galeazzo

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

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

Ghibeline

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

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

goneadjectiveUS /ɡɔːn/

destroyed or killed

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

Guinigi

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

hallnounUS /hɔːl/

an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

hastenverbUS /ˈheɪsən/

act or move at high speed

hepronounUS /hiː/

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

HenrynounUS /ˈhenri/

a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

huntverbUS /hʌnt/

pursue for food or sport (as of wild animals)

From this reading The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

introducedverbUS /ˌɪntrəˈduːst/

past form of “introduce” — cause to come to know personally

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

Matteo

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

meetingnounUS /ˈmiːtɪŋ/

a formally arranged gathering

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

MilannounUS /məˈlɑːn/

the capital of Lombardy in northern Italy; has been an international center of trade and industry since the Middle Ages

moneynounUS /ˈmʌni/

the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

nobilitynounUS /noʊˈbɪləti/

a privileged class holding hereditary titles

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

noblesnounUS /ˈnoʊbəlz/

plural of “noble” — a titled peer of the realm

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

palacenounUS /ˈpæləs/

a large and stately mansion

Pepi

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

preparingverbUS /priˈperɪŋ/

-ing form of “prepare” — make ready or suitable or equip in advance for a particular purpose or for some use, event, etc

From this reading The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

royaladjectiveUS /ˈrɔɪəl/

of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch

From this reading The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

SacknounUS /sæk/

a bag made of paper or plastic for holding customer's purchases

scenenounUS /siːn/

the place where some action occurs

From this reading It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

senatenounUS /ˈsenət/

assembly possessing high legislative powers

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

severaladjectiveUS /ˈsevrəl/

(used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many

shouldmodal verbUS /ʃʊd/

used to say what is right, expected, or advisable

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

sonnounUS /sʌn/

a male human offspring

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

splendournoun

a quality that outshines the usual

From this reading It was a scene of gaiety and splendour.

sumnounUS /sʌm/

a quantity of money

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

surroundedadjectiveUS /sərˈaʊndɪd/

confined on all sides

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

thenadverbUS /ðen/

subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

thereforeadverbUS /ˈðerfɔːr/

for that reason; as a result

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

travellingnounUS /ˈtrævəlɪŋ/

the act of going from one place to another

usenounUS /juːs/

the act of using

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

ViscontinounUS /viˈskoʊnti/

Italian filmmaker (1906-1976)

votedverbUS /ˈvoʊtɪd/

past form of “vote” — express one's preference for a candidate or for a measure or resolution; cast a vote

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

From this reading The young nobles were preparing to attend on the emperor in a royal hunt.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading This chief was gone to the meeting of the senate, deliberating with the nobles of Milan on the sum of money which should be voted for the use of the emperor.

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

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

From this reading Castruccio was therefore introduced to his son, Galeazzo, who was then in the hall of the palace, surrounded by all the young Ghibeline nobility of Milan.

Chapter 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley holds 139 sentences, grouped into 28 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 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) contain?

Chapter 8 holds 139 sentences of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3), unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 139 sentences, grouped into 28 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 8 of Valperga Volume 1 (of 3)?

Work through the 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 28 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 8 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.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #63337, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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Chapter VIII

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