---
title: With what manner of argument does the young seal challenge Kotick in… — The Jungle Book, The White Seal, part… · tree and pragmatics
description: With what manner of argument does the young seal challenge Kotick in the course of the passage? Exam question 2 of lesson 619 «The Jungle Book, The White Seal, part 20: Kotick finds a safe island and wins a fight for the seals» of the books course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree a
---

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# Exam question 2 · The Jungle Book, The White Seal, part 20: Kotick finds a s…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
With what manner of argument does the young seal challenge Kotick in the course of the passage?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **What happens:** do · **To what, where:** young seal challenge, course

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 619 «The Jungle Book, The White Seal, part 20: Kotick finds a safe island and wins a fight for the seals» 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/619-pg236-part20/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:619-pg236-part20:e2:1
# text = With what manner of argument does the young seal challenge Kotick in the course of the passage?
1	With	with	ADP	IN	_	3	case	_	_
2	what	what	DET	WDT	PronType=Int	3	det	_	_
3	manner	manner	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
5	argument	argument	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
6	does	do	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
8	young	young	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	amod	_	_
9	seal	seal	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	challenge	challenge	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
11	Kotick	Kotick	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	appos	_	_
12	in	in	ADP	IN	_	14	case	_	_
13	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	course	course	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
15	of	of	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
16	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	passage	passage	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **do** | present |  | the young seal challenge |  | the course of the passage |  | with what manner of argument | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent challenge=Eventuality |

<!-- .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 -->
He insults Kotick's appearance and refuses any contest between them.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:619-pg236-part20:e2:o1:1
# text = He insults Kotick's appearance and refuses any contest between them.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	insults	insult	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	Kotick	Kotick	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	's	's	PART	POS	_	3	case	_	_
5	appearance	appearance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
7	refuses	refuse	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
8	any	any	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	9	det	_	_
9	contest	contest	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
10	between	between	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **insult** | present | He | Kotick's appearance |  |  |  |  | vn amuse-31.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Stimulus appearance=Experiencer |
| 2 | **refuse** | present | He *not said here* | any contest |  |  |  | between them *= they* | vn reject-77.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent contest=Theme |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He publicly ridicules Kotick's lack of fighting experience, then demands a formal duel and agrees to forfeit his mate if he loses.

<!-- fold The tree, 23 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:619-pg236-part20:e2:o2:1
# text = He publicly ridicules Kotick's lack of fighting experience, then demands a formal duel and agrees to forfeit his mate if he loses.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj	_	_
2	publicly	publicly	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
3	ridicules	ridicule	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	Kotick	Kotick	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	's	PART	POS	_	4	case	_	_
6	lack	lack	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	fighting	fighting	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	experience	experience	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	then	then	ADV	RB	PronType=Dem	12	advmod	_	_
12	demands	demand	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
14	formal	formal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	15	amod	_	_
15	duel	duel	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	obj	_	_
16	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	17	cc	_	_
17	agrees	agree	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	conj	_	_
18	to	to	PART	TO	_	19	mark	_	_
19	forfeit	forfeit	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	17	xcomp	_	_
20	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	21	nmod:poss	_	_
21	mate	mate	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obj	_	_
22	if	if	SCONJ	IN	_	24	mark	_	_
23	he	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	24	nsubj	_	_
24	loses	lose	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	19	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
25	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ridicule** | present | He | Kotick's lack of fighting experience |  |  |  | publicly *property* | vn judgment-33.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent lack=Theme |
| 2 | **demand** *speech: request* | present | He *not said here* | a formal duel |  |  | then |  | vn require-103-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Theme duel=Precondition |
| 3 | **agree** *speech: agree* | present | He *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn correspond-36.1-1 «NP V what S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 4 | **forfeit** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | He *not said here* | Kotick's mate |  |  |  |  | vn contribute-13.2-1-1 «NP V NP.theme (PP)»: agent=Agent mate=Theme |
| 5 | **lose** *a condition, not said to happen* | present | Kotick |  |  |  |  |  | vn succeed-74-3-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 6 | **lack** |  | Kotick | fighting experience |  |  |  |  | nom lack «state transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He laughs at Kotick's ignorance of the nurseries, dismisses his claims as foolish, and insists on settling the matter with a wager made before the whole herd.

<!-- fold The tree, 28 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:619-pg236-part20:e2:o3:1
# text = He laughs at Kotick's ignorance of the nurseries, dismisses his claims as foolish, and insists on settling the matter with a wager made before the whole herd.
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	laughs	laugh	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	Kotick	Kotick	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	's	's	PART	POS	_	4	case	_	_
6	ignorance	ignorance	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	nurseries	nursery	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
11	dismisses	dismiss	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
12	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	13	nmod:poss	_	_
13	claims	claim	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	11	obj	_	_
14	as	as	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	foolish	foolish	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	11	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
17	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
18	insists	insist	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
19	on	on	SCONJ	IN	_	20	mark	_	_
20	settling	settle	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	18	advcl	_	_
21	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
22	matter	matter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obj	_	_
23	with	with	ADP	IN	_	25	case	_	_
24	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	25	det	_	_
25	wager	wager	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obl	_	_
26	made	make	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	25	acl	_	_
27	before	before	ADP	IN	_	30	case	_	_
28	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	30	det	_	_
29	whole	whole	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	30	amod	_	_
30	herd	herd	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	26	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
31	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **laugh** | present | He |  |  | Kotick's ignorance of the nurseries |  |  | vn nonverbal\_expression-40.2 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **dismiss** | present | He *not said here* | Kotick's claims |  |  |  | as foolish | vn fire-10.10 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Agent claim=Theme as foolish=Attribute |
| 3 | **insist** *speech: other* | present | He *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1 «NP V how S»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **settle** | gerund | He *not said here* | the matter |  |  |  | with a wager | vn odge-46-1 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent matter=Theme with wager=Location |
| 5 | **make** | participle |  | a wager *not said here* |  |  | before the whole herd |  | vn build-26.1-1 «NP.asset V NP»: agent=Asset |
| 6 | **ignore** |  | Kotick | the nurseries |  |  |  |  | nom ignorance «cognition transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |
| 7 | **claim** |  | Kotick |  |  |  |  |  | nom claim «communication transitive»: poss=agent |

### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
He mocks Kotick's absence from the nurseries and accepts a wager on the outcome

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = question:books:619-pg236-part20:e2:o4:1
# text = He mocks Kotick's absence from the nurseries and accepts a wager on the outcome
1	He	he	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	mocks	mock	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	Kotick	Kotick	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	5	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
4	's	's	PART	POS	_	3	case	_	_
5	absence	absence	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	from	from	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	nurseries	nursery	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	obl	_	_
9	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	10	cc	_	_
10	accepts	accept	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	conj	_	_
11	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	wager	wager	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	_
13	on	on	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
14	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	15	det	_	_
15	outcome	outcome	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **mock** | present | He | Kotick's absence |  | the nurseries |  |  | vn judgment-33.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent absence=Theme |
| 2 | **accept** | present | He *not said here* | a wager |  | the outcome |  |  | vn obtain-13.5.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent wager=Theme |
| 3 | **absent** |  | Kotick |  |  |  |  |  | nom absence «state transitive»: poss=agent |

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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.

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- ↑ back to [The Jungle Book, The White Seal, part 20: Kotick finds a safe island and wins a fight for the seals](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/books/619-pg236-part20/)