--- title: This is one of the reasons why slaves are always killed and put into… — Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria · tree and pragmatics description: This is one of the reasons why slaves are always killed and put into the grave of their master or mistress when they die, as a warning to other slaves not to try to kill their owners. Who acts: This, slaves. A sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Vii.--how Tw --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/6/113/) [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/) / [Vii.--how Two Friends Fell Out: the Sp…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/6/) / 113 # Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria, Vii.--how Two Friends Fell Out: the Spider and the Grasshopper., sentence 113 This is one of the reasons why slaves are always killed and put into the grave of their master or mistress when they die, as a warning to other slaves not to try to kill their owners. **Who acts:** This, slaves · **What happens:** be, kill, put, die, not try · **To what, where:** one, slaves, grave, owners This is a sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Vii.--how Two Friends Fell Out: the Spider and the Grasshopper.. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (This, slaves), 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:pg70959:6:113 # text = This is one of the reasons why slaves are always killed and put into the grave of their master or mistress when they die, as a warning to other slaves not to try to kill their owners. 1 This this PRON DT Number=Sing|PronType=Dem 3 nsubj _ _ 2 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 3 cop _ _ 3 one one NUM CD NumForm=Word|NumType=Card 0 root _ _ 4 of of ADP IN _ 6 case _ _ 5 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 6 det _ _ 6 reasons reason NOUN NNS Number=Plur 3 nmod _ _ 7 why why ADV WRB PronType=Int 11 advmod _ _ 8 slaves slave NOUN NNS Number=Plur 11 nsubj:pass _ _ 9 are be AUX VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 11 aux:pass _ _ 10 always always ADV RB PronType=Tot 11 advmod _ _ 11 killed kill VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 6 acl:relcl _ _ 12 and and CCONJ CC _ 13 cc _ _ 13 put put VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 11 conj _ _ 14 into into ADP IN _ 16 case _ _ 15 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 16 det _ _ 16 grave grave NOUN NN Number=Sing 13 obl _ _ 17 of of ADP IN _ 19 case _ _ 18 their their PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 19 nmod:poss _ _ 19 master master NOUN NN Number=Sing 16 nmod _ _ 20 or or CCONJ CC _ 21 cc _ _ 21 mistress mistress NOUN NN Number=Sing 19 conj _ _ 22 when when ADV WRB PronType=Int 24 advmod _ _ 23 they they PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs 24 nsubj _ _ 24 die die VERB VBP Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 13 advcl _ SpaceAfter=No 25 , , PUNCT , _ 28 punct _ _ 26 as as ADP IN _ 28 case _ _ 27 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 28 det _ _ 28 warning warning NOUN NN Number=Sing 24 obl _ _ 29 to to ADP IN _ 31 case _ _ 30 other other ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 31 amod _ _ 31 slaves slave NOUN NNS Number=Plur 28 nmod _ _ 32 not not PART RB Polarity=Neg 34 advmod _ _ 33 to to PART TO _ 34 mark _ _ 34 try try VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 24 advcl _ _ 35 to to PART TO _ 36 mark _ _ 36 kill kill VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 34 xcomp _ _ 37 their their PRON PRP$ Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs 38 nmod:poss _ _ 38 owners owner NOUN NNS Number=Plur 36 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 39 . . PUNCT . _ 3 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is a** | present | This | one | | | | of the reasons | tree rules | | 2 | **kill** | present · passive | | slaves | | | | always *property* | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme | | 3 | **put** | participle | | | | the grave of slaves's master or mistress | | | vn invest-13.5.4-1 «NP V PP»: agent=Agent | | 4 | **die** | present | slaves *= slave* | | | | | as a warning to other slaves | vn calibratable\_cos-45.6.1 «NP.attribute V»: agent=Attribute | | 5 | **not** **try** | to-infinitive | slaves *= slave* *not said here* | | | | | | vn try-61.1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Eventuality | | 6 | **kill** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive | slaves *= slave* *not said here* | slaves's owners | | | | | vn remove-10.1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent owner=Theme | 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 112](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/6/112/) - next →: [sentence 114](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/6/114/) - ↑ back to [Vii.--how Two Friends Fell Out: the Spider and the Grasshopper.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/6/)