--- title: Once while the people were feasting and playing round the ju-ju, the… — Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria · tree and pragmatics description: Once while the people were feasting and playing round the ju-ju, the hare came along with his fine tail, and seeing them all eating goat’s-flesh, fowls, foo-foo and yams, he asked Okpa if he might join in the feast, as the hare was very greedy and could never resist eating anything he saw. Who acts: --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/18/50/) [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/) / [Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/) / [Xxv.--how Two Bendega Young Men Change…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/18/) / 50 # Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria, Xxv.--how Two Bendega Young Men Changed Their Skins., part 1, sentence 50 Once while the people were feasting and playing round the ju-ju, the hare came along with his fine tail, and seeing them all eating goat’s-flesh, fowls, foo-foo and yams, he asked Okpa if he might join in the feast, as the hare was very greedy and could never resist eating anything he saw. **Who acts:** people, hare, feasting, Okpa · **What happens:** feast, play, come along, see, eat, fowl · **To what, where:** ju ju, people, foo foo, Okpa, anything This is a sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Xxv.--how Two Bendega Young Men Changed Their Skins., part 1. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (people, hare, feasting, Okpa), what happens, when and where, as Mova's frames read it from the tree. **Mova's own parse.** This tree may be wrong. ## The tree {#tree} ```conllu # sent_id = book:pg70959:18:50 # text = Once while the people were feasting and playing round the ju-ju, the hare came along with his fine tail, and seeing them all eating goat’s-flesh, fowls, foo-foo and yams, he asked Okpa if he might join in the feast, as the hare was very greedy and could never resist eating anything he saw. 1 Once once ADV RB NumForm=Word|NumType=Mult 6 advmod _ _ 2 while while SCONJ IN _ 6 mark _ _ 3 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 4 det _ _ 4 people people NOUN NNS Number=Plur 6 nsubj _ _ 5 were be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 6 aux _ _ 6 feasting feast VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 33 csubj _ _ 7 and and CCONJ CC _ 8 cc _ _ 8 playing play VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 6 conj _ _ 9 round round ADP IN _ 13 case _ _ 10 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 13 det _ _ 11 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 13 compound _ SpaceAfter=No 12 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 11 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 13 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 8 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 14 , , PUNCT , _ 17 punct _ _ 15 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 16 det _ _ 16 hare hare NOUN NN Number=Sing 17 nsubj _ _ 17 came come VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 13 acl:relcl _ _ 18 along along ADV RB _ 17 advmod _ _ 19 with with ADP IN _ 22 case _ _ 20 his his PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 22 nmod:poss _ _ 21 fine fine ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 22 amod _ _ 22 tail tail NOUN NN Number=Sing 17 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 23 , , PUNCT , _ 25 punct _ _ 24 and and CCONJ CC _ 25 cc _ _ 25 seeing see VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 6 advcl _ _ 26 them they PRON PRP Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs 25 obj _ _ 27 all all DET DT PronType=Tot 29 det _ _ 28 eating eat VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 29 amod _ _ 29 goat’s goat' NOUN NNS Number=Plur 31 nmod:poss _ SpaceAfter=No 30 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 29 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 31 flesh flesh NOUN NN Number=Sing 25 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 32 , , PUNCT , _ 33 punct _ _ 33 fowls fowl VERB VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ SpaceAfter=No 34 , , PUNCT , _ 37 punct _ _ 35 foo foo NOUN NN Number=Sing 37 compound _ SpaceAfter=No 36 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 35 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 37 foo foo NOUN NN Number=Sing 33 obj _ _ 38 and and CCONJ CC _ 39 cc _ _ 39 yams yam NOUN NNS Number=Plur 37 conj _ SpaceAfter=No 40 , , PUNCT , _ 42 punct _ _ 41 he he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 42 nsubj _ _ 42 asked ask VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 33 parataxis _ _ 43 Okpa Okpa PROPN NNP Number=Sing 42 iobj _ _ 44 if if SCONJ IN _ 47 mark _ _ 45 he he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 47 nsubj _ _ 46 might might AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 47 aux _ _ 47 join join VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 42 xcomp _ _ 48 in in ADP IN _ 50 case _ _ 49 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 50 det _ _ 50 feast feast NOUN NN Number=Sing 47 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 51 , , PUNCT , _ 57 punct _ _ 52 as as SCONJ IN _ 57 mark _ _ 53 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 54 det _ _ 54 hare hare NOUN NN Number=Sing 57 nsubj _ _ 55 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 57 cop _ _ 56 very very ADV RB _ 57 advmod _ _ 57 greedy greedy ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 42 parataxis _ _ 58 and and CCONJ CC _ 61 cc _ _ 59 could could AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 61 aux _ _ 60 never never ADV RB PronType=Neg 61 advmod _ _ 61 resist resist VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 57 conj _ _ 62 eating eat VERB VBG VerbForm=Ger 61 xcomp _ _ 63 anything anything PRON NN Number=Sing|PronType=Ind 62 obj _ _ 64 he he PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 65 nsubj _ _ 65 saw see VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 63 acl:relcl _ SpaceAfter=No 66 . . PUNCT . _ 33 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **feast** | past · progressive | the people | | | | | once *property* | vn dine-39.5 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 2 | **play** | gerund | the people *not said here* | | | | | round the ju ju | vn performance-26.7-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 3 | **come along** | past | the hare | the ju ju *not said here* | | | | with Okpa's fine tail; along *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «PP.location V NP»: agent=Location ju=Theme | | 4 | **see** | gerund | the people *not said here* | people | | | | all eating goat’s's flesh *obj* | tree rules | | 5 | **eat** | gerund | | | | | | | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent | | 6 | **fowl** | present | feasting | foo foo and yams | | | | | vn berry-13.7 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent foo=Location | | 7 | **ask** *speech: ask* | past | Okpa | | Okpa | | | | vn inquire-37.1.2 «NP V NP whether S»: agent=Agent okpa=Recipient clause=Topic | | 8 | **join** *a condition, not said to happen* | might | Okpa | | | | | in the feast | vn cooperate-73.1-1 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent in feast=Theme | | 9 | **is** | past | the hare | | | | | greedy *property* | tree rules | | 10 | **not** **resist** | could | the hare *not said here* | | | | | | tree rules | | 11 | **eat** | gerund | the hare *not said here* | anything | | | | | vn eat-39.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent anything=Patient | | 12 | **see** | past | Okpa | | | | | | vn comprehend-87.2-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer | 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:** «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Project Gutenberg book 70959 (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 49](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/18/49/) - next →: [sentence 51](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/18/51/) - ↑ back to [Xxv.--how Two Bendega Young Men Changed Their Skins., part 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/18/)