---
title: What is the principal theme of the sketch, and which character is it… — Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part… · tree and pragmatics
description: What is the principal theme of the sketch, and which character is its chief comic speaker? Exam question 4 of lesson 597 «Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part 33: an old jug makes the newspaper men tease Uncle Remus» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmat
---

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# Exam question 4 · Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part 33: an old jug makes…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
What is the principal theme of the sketch, and which character is its chief comic speaker?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** character · **What happens:** be · **To what, where:** principal theme, chief comic speaker

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This is exam question 4 of lesson 597 «Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part 33: an old jug makes the newspaper men tease Uncle Remus» of the books course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: [the test at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/books/597-pg2306-part33/#e4).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:597-pg2306-part33:e4:1
# text = What is the principal theme of the sketch, and which character is its chief comic speaker?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	principal	principal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	theme	theme	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	sketch	sketch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
10	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
11	which	which	DET	WDT	PronType=Int	12	det	_	_
12	character	character	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	17	nsubj	_	_
13	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	17	cop	_	_
14	its	its	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	17	nmod:poss	_	_
15	chief	chief	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
16	comic	comic	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	17	amod	_	_
17	speaker	speaker	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	parataxis	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present |  | the principal theme |  |  |  | of the sketch | tree rules |
| 2 | **is a** | present | which character | character's chief comic speaker |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The jug's false wind; Brer John Henry

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:597-pg2306-part33:e4:o1:1
# text = The jug's false wind; Brer John Henry
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	jug	jug	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	false	false	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	wind	wind	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	7	punct	_	_
7	Brer	Brer	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	appos	_	_
8	John	John	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	appos	_	_
9	Henry	Henry	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	flat	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **wind** |  |  | the jug |  |  |  |  | nom wind «phenomenon transitive»: poss=patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The jug's supposed trickery, which the editors mock all day; Uncle Remus, who grins through it

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:597-pg2306-part33:e4:o2:1
# text = The jug's supposed trickery, which the editors mock all day; Uncle Remus, who grins through it
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	jug	jug	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	supposed	suppose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	amod	_	_
5	trickery	trickery	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	10	punct	_	_
7	which	which	PRON	WDT	PronType=Rel	10	obj	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	editors	editor	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nsubj	_	_
10	mock	mock	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	conj	_	_
11	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	12	det	_	_
12	day	day	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl:unmarked	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	;	;	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
14	Uncle	Uncle	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	15	compound	_	_
15	Remus	Remus	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	appos	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
17	who	who	PRON	WP	PronType=Rel	18	nsubj	_	_
18	grins	grin	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	parataxis	_	_
19	through	through	ADP	IN	_	20	case	_	_
20	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **suppose** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn consider-29.9-2 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **mock** | present | the editors | the jug's supposed trickery |  |  | day |  | vn judgment-33.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent which=Theme |
| 3 | **grin** | present | the jug's supposed trickery |  |  | trickery |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **trick** |  |  | the jug |  |  |  |  | nom trickery «communication transitive»: poss=patient |

### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The jug's supposed trickery; Uncle Remus

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:597-pg2306-part33:e4:o3:1
# text = The jug's supposed trickery; Uncle Remus
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	jug	jug	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	's	's	PART	POS	_	2	case	_	_
4	supposed	suppose	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	amod	_	_
5	trickery	trickery	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	8	punct	_	_
7	Uncle	Uncle	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	Remus	Remus	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	appos	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **suppose** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn consider-29.9-2 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **trick** |  |  | the jug |  |  |  |  | nom trickery «communication transitive»: poss=patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Trickery; Remus

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:597-pg2306-part33:e4:o4:1
# text = Trickery; Remus
1	Trickery	trickery	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	;	;	PUNCT	:	_	3	punct	_	_
3	Remus	Remus	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	1	appos	_	_
```

<!-- .note -->
The frames reader finds no event or fact in this sentence.

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**Text:** the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (`world/data/school/`), as the course runner gave them to the student. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

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- ← previous: [Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part…, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/597-pg2306-part33/e3/)
- next →: [Uncle Remus, The Florida Watermelon, p…, test 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/598-pg2306-part34/t1/)
- ↑ back to [Uncle Remus, That Deceitful Jug, part 33: an old jug makes the newspaper men tease Uncle Remus](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/597-pg2306-part33/)