--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 2: The River Bank (the picnic basket, the Wild Wood and the Wide World) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 2: The River Bank (the picnic basket, the Wild Wood and the Wide World)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: Before they set off, the Rat climbs up into his hole and co --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/) / The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, pa… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 2: The River Bank (the picnic basket, the Wild Wood and the Wide World) Lesson 26 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 27 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/0/) — Before they set off, the Rat climbs up into his hole and comes back staggering under a fat wicker picnic basket. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/1/) — When the Mole asks what's inside, the Rat rattles off a huge list of food all in one breath, and the Mole begs him to stop — it's too wonderful. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/2/) — Drifting along, the Mole trails a paw in the water and dreams. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/3/) — The Rat explains that the River is his whole world — his family, his food, his fun, in every season — and that the bank is so busy with otters, kingfishers and moorhens that he's never lonely. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/4/) — The Mole points to a dark wood on one side. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/6/) — Badger lives in the middle of it, and nobody bothers him — but there are weasels, stoats and foxes too, and «you can't really trust them». - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/7/) — The Mole, who knows it's bad manners to talk about trouble ahead, changes the subject. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/9/) — Then they turn into a quiet backwater by a weir and an old mill, so beautiful that the Mole can only gasp «O my! - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/10/) — The Mole begs to unpack the basket by himself, gasping at every packet, and then, starving after his early start, he tucks in happily. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/13/) — The Rat says the other animals call him «a mean beast» who cuts it «very fine» (gives only just enough) — a joke, as the basket is enormous. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/16/) — The Rat lives «By it and with it and on it and in it»: «It's brother and sister to me, and aunts, and company, and food and drink, and (naturally) washing. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/17/) — It's my world, and I don't want any other.» - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/18/) — In February floods the brown water runs by his best bedroom window; in dry times the mud «smells like plum-cake» and he finds things «careless people have dropped out of boats». - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/19/) — The Mole asks «But isn't it a bit dull at times? - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/20/) — Just you and the river, and no one else to pass a word with?», and the Rat answers that the bank is too crowded: «Otters, kingfishers, dabchicks, moorhens» all wanting you to do something (a dabchick is a small diving water bird). - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/22/) — And the rabbits—some of 'em, but rabbits are a mixed lot. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/23/) — And then there's Badger». - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/24/) — Badger «lives right in the heart of it» and «Nobody interferes with him. - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/25/) — They'd better not». - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/26/) — The others are «Weasels—and stoats—and foxes»: «they break out sometimes ... you can't really trust them». - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/27/) — The book's animals are characters in a story; real weasels and foxes are not wicked, they just hunt to eat. - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/28/) — «it is quite against animal-etiquette to dwell on possible trouble ahead» — etiquette = the rules of polite behaviour. - [29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/29/) — «Beyond the Wild Wood comes the Wide World. - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/30/) — And that's something that doesn't matter, either to you or me. - [31](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/31/) — I've never been there, and I'm never going, nor you either, if you've got any sense at all. - [32](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/32/) — Don't ever refer to it again, please.» - [33](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/26-willows-ch1-part2-the-river-and-the-wild-wood/33/) — The backwater has a weir (a low wall across a river that water tumbles over) and «a restless dripping mill-wheel» turning beside a «grey-gabled mill-house». - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 1: The River Bank (the Mole leaves his spring-cleaning and meets the Rat)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/25-willows-ch1-part1-the-mole-meets-the-river/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter I, part 3: The River Bank (the Otter, a glimpse of Badger, and Toad in his new boat)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/27-willows-ch1-part3-otter-badger-and-toad/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)