--- title: The four men then attacked the python with sticks, and soon killed h… — Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria · tree and pragmatics description: The four men then attacked the python with sticks, and soon killed him; they then cut off his head and his tail, and carried them back to Chief Kaku, leaving the food on the ground where ’Ndere had placed it. Who acts: four men, men. A sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphins --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/25/4/) [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/) / [Xxxi.--chief Kekong’s Daughter ’ndere…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/25/) / 4 # Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria, Xxxi.--chief Kekong’s Daughter ’ndere Who Married a Python., part 2, sentence 4 The four men then attacked the python with sticks, and soon killed him; they then cut off his head and his tail, and carried them back to Chief Kaku, leaving the food on the ground where ’Ndere had placed it. **Who acts:** four men, men · **What happens:** attack, kill, cut off, carry back, leave, place · **To what, where:** python, husband, head, men, Chief, food This is a sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Xxxi.--chief Kekong’s Daughter ’ndere Who Married a Python., part 2. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (four men, men), 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:pg70959:25:4 # text = The four men then attacked the python with sticks, and soon killed him; they then cut off his head and his tail, and carried them back to Chief Kaku, leaving the food on the ground where ’Ndere had placed it. 1 The the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 3 det _ _ 2 four four NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 3 nummod _ _ 3 men man NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 nsubj _ _ 4 then then ADV RB PronType=Dem 5 advmod _ _ 5 attacked attack VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 0 root _ _ 6 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 7 det _ _ 7 python python NOUN NN Number=Sing 5 obj _ _ 8 with with ADP IN _ 9 case _ _ 9 sticks stick NOUN NNS Number=Plur 5 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 10 , , PUNCT , _ 13 punct _ _ 11 and and CCONJ CC _ 13 cc _ _ 12 soon soon ADV RB Degree=Pos 13 advmod _ _ 13 killed kill VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 5 conj _ _ 14 him he PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 13 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 15 ; ; PUNCT : _ 18 punct _ _ 16 they they PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs 18 nsubj _ _ 17 then then ADV RB PronType=Dem 18 advmod _ _ 18 cut cut VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 5 parataxis _ _ 19 off off ADP RP _ 18 compound:prt _ _ 20 his his PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 21 nmod:poss _ _ 21 head head NOUN NN Number=Sing 18 obj _ _ 22 and and CCONJ CC _ 24 cc _ _ 23 his his PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 24 nmod:poss _ _ 24 tail tail NOUN NN Number=Sing 21 conj _ SpaceAfter=No 25 , , PUNCT , _ 27 punct _ _ 26 and and CCONJ CC _ 27 cc _ _ 27 carried carry VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 18 conj _ _ 28 them they PRON PRP Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs 27 obj _ _ 29 back back ADV RB _ 27 advmod _ _ 30 to to ADP IN _ 31 case _ _ 31 Chief Chief PROPN NNP Number=Sing 27 obl _ _ 32 Kaku Kaku PROPN NNP Number=Sing 31 flat _ SpaceAfter=No 33 , , PUNCT , _ 34 punct _ _ 34 leaving leave VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 27 advcl _ _ 35 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 36 det _ _ 36 food food NOUN NN Number=Sing 34 obj _ _ 37 on on ADP IN _ 39 case _ _ 38 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 39 det _ _ 39 ground ground NOUN NN Number=Sing 34 obl _ _ 40 where where ADV WRB PronType=Rel 44 advmod _ _ 41 ’ ' PUNCT `` _ 44 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 42 Ndere Ndere PROPN NNP Number=Sing 44 nsubj:pass _ _ 43 had have AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 44 aux _ _ 44 placed place VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 39 acl:relcl _ _ 45 it it PRON PRP Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 44 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 46 . . PUNCT . _ 5 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **attack** | past | the four men | the python | | | then | with sticks | vn attack-60.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent python=Patient | | 2 | **kill** | past | the four men *not said here* | husband | | | | soon *property* | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent he=Theme | | 3 | **cut off** | past | men *= man* | husband's head and husband's tail | | | then | | vn stop-55.4-1 «NP V NP.eventuality»: agent=Affector head=Eventuality | | 4 | **carry back** | past | men *= man* *not said here* | men *= man* | Chief | | | | vn carry-11.4 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent they=Theme to chief=Destination | | 5 | **leave** | gerund | men *= man* *not said here* | the food | | the ground | | | vn keep-15.2 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent food=Theme on ground=Location | | 6 | **place** | past · perfect · passive | | Ndere | | | | food *obj* | vn put-9.1-2 «NP V NP ADVP»: subject=Theme it=Destination | 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 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/25/3/) - next →: [sentence 5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/25/5/) - ↑ back to [Xxxi.--chief Kekong’s Daughter ’ndere Who Married a Python., part 2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/25/)