--- title: It was a superstition, but a superstition of such a class, that he w… — Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen · tree and pragmatics description: It was a superstition, but a superstition of such a class, that he who knows the story and has seen this picture, need have only two words placed under the picture to make him understand it; and these two words are: "A mother." Who acts: fortune, house, two words. A sentence of «Fairy Tales of Hans --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/115/19/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/) / [Twenty-fourth Evening](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/115/) / 19 # Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen, Twenty-fourth Evening, sentence 19 It was a superstition, but a superstition of such a class, that he who knows the story and has seen this picture, need have only two words placed under the picture to make him understand it; and these two words are: "A mother." **Who acts:** fortune, house, two words · **What happens:** be, know, see, need, have, place · **To what, where:** superstition, story, picture, two words, house, fortune This is a sentence of «Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen» by H. C. Andersen, Twenty-fourth Evening. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (fortune, house, two words), what happens, when and where, as Mova's frames read it from the tree. **Parsed by Mova, not checked by a teacher.** This tree is Mova's own parse (the `en` model, on the CPU, when the site is built); it may be wrong. ## The tree {#tree} ```conllu # sent_id = book:pg27200:115:19 # text = It was a superstition, but a superstition of such a class, that he who knows the story and has seen this picture, need have only two words placed under the picture to make him understand it; and these two words are: "A mother." 1 It it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 4 nsubj _ _ 2 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 4 cop _ _ 3 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 4 det _ _ 4 superstition superstition NOUN NN Number=Sing 0 root _ SpaceAfter=No 5 , , PUNCT , _ 8 punct _ _ 6 but but CCONJ CC _ 8 cc _ _ 7 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 8 det _ _ 8 superstition superstition NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 appos _ _ 9 of of ADP IN _ 12 case _ _ 10 such such DET PDT PronType=Ind 12 det:predet _ _ 11 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 12 det _ _ 12 class class NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 nmod _ SpaceAfter=No 13 , , PUNCT , _ 17 punct _ _ 14 that that SCONJ IN _ 17 mark _ _ 15 he he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 17 nsubj _ _ 16 who who PRON WP PronType=Rel 17 nsubj _ _ 17 knows know VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 4 parataxis _ _ 18 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 19 det _ _ 19 story story NOUN NN Number=Sing 17 obj _ _ 20 and and CCONJ CC _ 22 cc _ _ 21 has have AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 22 aux _ _ 22 seen see VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 17 conj _ _ 23 this this DET DT Number=Sing|PronType=Dem 24 det _ _ 24 picture picture NOUN NN Number=Sing 22 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 25 , , PUNCT , _ 26 punct _ _ 26 need need VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 17 parataxis _ _ 27 have have VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=1|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 26 ccomp _ _ 28 only only ADV RB _ 30 advmod _ _ 29 two two NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 30 nummod _ _ 30 words word NOUN NNS Number=Plur 27 obj _ _ 31 placed place VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 30 acl _ _ 32 under under ADP IN _ 34 case _ _ 33 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 34 det _ _ 34 picture picture NOUN NN Number=Sing 31 obl _ _ 35 to to PART TO _ 36 mark _ _ 36 make make VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 31 advcl _ _ 37 him he PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 36 obj _ _ 38 understand understand VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 36 xcomp _ _ 39 it it PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 38 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 40 ; ; PUNCT : _ 49 punct _ _ 41 and and CCONJ CC _ 49 cc _ _ 42 these this DET DT Number=Plur|PronType=Dem 44 det _ _ 43 two two NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 44 nummod _ _ 44 words word NOUN NNS Number=Plur 49 nsubj _ _ 45 are be AUX VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 49 cop _ SpaceAfter=No 46 : : PUNCT : _ 49 punct _ _ 47 " " PUNCT `` _ 49 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 48 A a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 49 det _ _ 49 mother mother NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 appos _ SpaceAfter=No 50 . . PUNCT . _ 49 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 51 " " PUNCT '' _ 49 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is a** | past | fortune | a superstition | | | | | tree rules | | 2 | **know** | present | house | the story | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1-1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Experiencer story=Stimulus | | 3 | **see** | present · perfect | house *not said here* | this picture | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Experiencer picture=Stimulus | | 4 | **need** | present | | | | | | | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Pivot clause=Theme | | 5 | **have** | present | | two words | | | | | vn birth-28.2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent word=Patient | | 6 | **place** | participle | | two words *not said here* | | the picture | | | vn put-9.1-2 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent under picture=Destination | | 7 | **make** | to-infinitive | | house | | | | | tree rules | | 8 | **understand** | infinitive | house *not said here* | fortune | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1-1 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Experiencer it=Stimulus | | 9 | **is a** *in a quote* | present | this two words | a mother | | | | | tree rules | 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. **Text:** «Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen» by H. C. Andersen, Project Gutenberg book 27200 (public domain in the USA). **Tree:** Mova's own parse, Elamur Cosmic License. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), the chapter read in order. - ← previous: [sentence 18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/115/18/) - next →: [Twenty-fifth Evening, 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/116/1/) - ↑ back to [Twenty-fourth Evening](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/115/)