--- title: I can only look upon this feature as a highly interesting relic from… — Kulóskap the master, and other Algonkin poems · tree and pragmatics description: I can only look upon this feature as a highly interesting relic from very primitive times, when it was probably not unusual to devour the aged, perhaps for a double purpose: both to get rid of them, as was the case until recently among the islanders of Tierra del Fuego, and also, perhaps, to absorb --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/3/59/) [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/) / [Kulóskap the master, and other Algonki…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/) / [Opening, part 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/3/) / 59 # Kulóskap the master, and other Algonkin poems, Opening, part 3, sentence 59 I can only look upon this feature as a highly interesting relic from very primitive times, when it was probably not unusual to devour the aged, perhaps for a double purpose: both to get rid of them, as was the case until recently among the islanders of Tierra del Fuego, and also, perhaps, to absorb sacramentally into the living members of the family the essence of the dead parent, whose soul is thus prevented from becoming entirely extinct. **Who acts:** I, it, both · **What happens:** look, not be, devour, get, be, absorb · **To what, where:** aged, living members, soul This is a sentence of «Kulóskap the master, and other Algonkin poems», Opening, part 3. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (I, it, both), 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:pg78673:3:59 # text = I can only look upon this feature as a highly interesting relic from very primitive times, when it was probably not unusual to devour the aged, perhaps for a double purpose: both to get rid of them, as was the case until recently among the islanders of Tierra del Fuego, and also, perhaps, to absorb sacramentally into the living members of the family the essence of the dead parent, whose soul is thus prevented from becoming entirely extinct. 1 I I PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs 4 nsubj _ _ 2 can can AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 4 aux _ _ 3 only only ADV RB _ 4 advmod _ _ 4 look look VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 0 root _ _ 5 upon upon ADP IN _ 7 case _ _ 6 this this DET DT Number=Sing|PronType=Dem 7 det _ _ 7 feature feature NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 obl _ _ 8 as as ADP IN _ 12 case _ _ 9 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 12 det _ _ 10 highly highly ADV RB _ 11 advmod _ _ 11 interesting interesting ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 12 amod _ _ 12 relic relic NOUN NN Number=Sing 4 obl _ _ 13 from from ADP IN _ 16 case _ _ 14 very very ADV RB _ 15 advmod _ _ 15 primitive primitive ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 16 amod _ _ 16 times time NOUN NNS Number=Plur 4 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 17 , , PUNCT , _ 23 punct _ _ 18 when when ADV WRB PronType=Int 23 advmod _ _ 19 it it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 23 nsubj _ _ 20 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 23 cop _ _ 21 probably probably ADV RB _ 23 advmod _ _ 22 not not PART RB Polarity=Neg 23 advmod _ _ 23 unusual unusual ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 16 conj _ _ 24 to to PART TO _ 25 mark _ _ 25 devour devour VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 23 csubj _ _ 26 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 27 det _ _ 27 aged aged ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 25 obj _ SpaceAfter=No 28 , , PUNCT , _ 33 punct _ _ 29 perhaps perhaps ADV RB _ 33 advmod _ _ 30 for for ADP IN _ 33 case _ _ 31 a a DET DT Definite=Ind|PronType=Art 33 det _ _ 32 double double ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 33 amod _ _ 33 purpose purpose NOUN NN Number=Sing 25 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 34 : : PUNCT : _ 37 punct _ _ 35 both both DET DT PronType=Tot 37 nsubj _ _ 36 to to PART TO _ 37 mark _ _ 37 get get VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 4 parataxis _ _ 38 rid rid ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 37 xcomp _ _ 39 of of ADP IN _ 40 case _ _ 40 them they PRON PRP Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs 38 obl _ SpaceAfter=No 41 , , PUNCT , _ 45 punct _ _ 42 as as ADP IN _ 45 case _ _ 43 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 45 cop _ _ 44 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 45 det _ _ 45 case case NOUN NN Number=Sing 37 obl _ _ 46 until until ADP IN _ 47 case _ _ 47 recently recently ADV RB _ 37 advmod _ _ 48 among among ADP IN _ 50 case _ _ 49 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 50 det _ _ 50 islanders islander NOUN NNS Number=Plur 47 obl _ _ 51 of of ADP IN _ 54 case _ _ 52 Tierra Tierra PROPN NNP Number=Sing 54 nmod:poss _ _ 53 del del PART POS _ 52 case _ _ 54 Fuego Fuego PROPN NNP Number=Sing 50 nmod _ SpaceAfter=No 55 , , PUNCT , _ 62 punct _ _ 56 and and CCONJ CC _ 62 cc _ _ 57 also also ADV RB _ 62 advmod _ SpaceAfter=No 58 , , PUNCT , _ 59 punct _ _ 59 perhaps perhaps ADV RB _ 62 advmod _ SpaceAfter=No 60 , , PUNCT , _ 62 punct _ _ 61 to to PART TO _ 62 mark _ _ 62 absorb absorb VERB VB VerbForm=Inf 37 conj _ _ 63 sacramentally sacramentally ADV RB _ 62 advmod _ _ 64 into into ADP IN _ 67 case _ _ 65 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 67 det _ _ 66 living living NOUN NN Number=Sing 67 compound _ _ 67 members member NOUN NNS Number=Plur 62 obl _ _ 68 of of ADP IN _ 70 case _ _ 69 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 70 det _ _ 70 family family NOUN NN Number=Sing 67 nmod _ _ 71 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 72 det _ _ 72 essence essence NOUN NN Number=Sing 70 conj _ _ 73 of of ADP IN _ 76 case _ _ 74 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 76 det _ _ 75 dead dead ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 76 amod _ _ 76 parent parent NOUN NN Number=Sing 72 nmod _ SpaceAfter=No 77 , , PUNCT , _ 82 punct _ _ 78 whose whose PRON WP$ Poss=Yes|PronType=Rel 79 nmod:poss _ _ 79 soul soul NOUN NN Number=Sing 82 nsubj _ _ 80 is be AUX VBZ Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin 82 aux:pass _ _ 81 thus thus ADV RB _ 82 advmod _ _ 82 prevented prevent VERB VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass 76 acl:relcl _ _ 83 from from SCONJ IN _ 84 mark _ _ 84 becoming become VERB VBG Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part 82 advcl _ _ 85 entirely entirely ADV RB _ 86 advmod _ _ 86 extinct extinct ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 84 xcomp _ SpaceAfter=No 87 . . PUNCT . _ 4 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **look** | can | I | | | | time | upon this feature; as a interesting relic | vn peer-30.3 «NP V PP.theme»: agent=Agent upon feature=Theme | | 2 | **not** **is** | past | it | | | | | probably, unusual *property* | tree rules | | 3 | **devour** | to-infinitive | | the aged | | | | for a double purpose | vn devour-39.4 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent aged=Patient | | 4 | **get** | to-infinitive | both | | | | | recently, rid *property* | vn comprehend-87.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Experiencer | | 5 | **is** | past | | | | | | as the case | tree rules | | 6 | **absorb** | to-infinitive | both *not said here* | | | the living members of the family and the essence of the dead parent | | perhaps, sacramentally *property* | vn absorb-39.8 «NP V NP»: agent=Goal | | 7 | **prevent** | present · passive | | soul | | | | thus *property* | vn forbid-64.4-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme | | 8 | **become** | gerund | | | | | | extinct *property* | vn become-109.1-1-1 «NP V PP.attribute»: agent=Patient | 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:** «Kulóskap the master, and other Algonkin poems», Project Gutenberg book 78673 (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 58](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/3/58/) - next →: [sentence 60](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/3/60/) - ↑ back to [Opening, part 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg78673/3/)