Exam question 1 · African Folk-Tales, The Tortoise and the Monkey, part 60:…

Question: With reference to the passage, identify the means by which the tortoise secured his victory over the stag.

Mova's choice: option 1 · The right answer: option 3 · wrong ✗ · Who acts: tortoise · What happens: identify, mean, secure · To what, where: victory, stag · Speech: someone speaks here

This is exam question 1 of lesson 1259 «African Folk-Tales, The Tortoise and the Monkey, part 60: the tortoise tricks the fox and the stag, and the monkey cheats the barber and the villagers» of the books course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: the test at school.

The question

The words, one row each (CoNLL-U)

#	word	lemma	UPOS	features	head	relation
1	Question	question	NOUN	Number=Sing	9 identify	compound
2	:	:	PUNCT	_	4 reference	punct
3	With	with	ADP	_	4 reference	case
4	reference	reference	NOUN	Number=Sing	1 Question	appos
5	to	to	ADP	_	7 passage	case
6	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	7 passage	det
7	passage	passage	NOUN	Number=Sing	4 reference	nmod
8	,	,	PUNCT	_	1 Question	punct
9	identify	identify	VERB	Mood=Imp VerbForm=Fin	11 means	nsubj
10	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	11 means	nsubj
11	means	mean	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Pres VerbForm=Fin	root	root
12	by	by	ADP	_	13 which	case
13	which	which	PRON	PronType=Rel	16 secured	obl
14	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	15 tortoise	det
15	tortoise	tortoise	NOUN	Number=Sing	16 secured	nsubj
16	secured	secure	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	11 means	ccomp
17	his	his	PRON	Case=Gen Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 Poss=Yes PronType=Prs	18 victory	nmod:poss
18	victory	victory	NOUN	Number=Sing	16 secured	obj
19	over	over	ADP	_	21 stag	case
20	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	21 stag	det
21	stag	stag	NOUN	Number=Sing	16 secured	obl
22	.	.	PUNCT	_	11 means	punct

#	verb	tense, mood	who	what, whom	where	roles by
1	identify	infinitive				vn empathize-88.2 «NP V»: agent=Experiencer
2	mean	present				vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S»: agent=Agent clause=Topic
3	secure	past	the tortoise	tortoise's victory	the stag	vn ensure-99 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition victory=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.

The options

Option 1 · ← Mova's choice

He used the sun's rays as a signal, hid his relatives along the course, and let each of them answer the stag so that the stag was fooled into racing to death

The tree, 33 words

The words, one row each (CoNLL-U)

#	word	lemma	UPOS	features	head	relation
1	He	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	2 used	nsubj
2	used	use	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	root	root
3	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	4 sun	det
4	sun	sun	NOUN	Number=Sing	6 rays	nmod:poss
5	's	's	PART	_	4 sun	case
6	rays	ray	NOUN	Number=Plur	2 used	obj
7	as	as	ADP	_	9 signal	case
8	a	a	DET	Definite=Ind PronType=Art	9 signal	det
9	signal	signal	NOUN	Number=Sing	2 used	obl
10	,	,	PUNCT	_	11 hid	punct
11	hid	hide	VERB	Mood=Ind Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	2 used	conj
12	his	his	PRON	Case=Gen Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 Poss=Yes PronType=Prs	13 relatives	nmod:poss
13	relatives	relative	NOUN	Number=Plur	11 hid	obj
14	along	along	ADP	_	16 course	case
15	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	16 course	det
16	course	course	NOUN	Number=Sing	11 hid	obl
17	,	,	PUNCT	_	19 let	punct
18	and	and	CCONJ	_	19 let	cc
19	let	let	VERB	Mood=Imp VerbForm=Fin	2 used	parataxis
20	each	each	DET	PronType=Tot	23 answer	nsubj
21	of	of	ADP	_	22 them	case
22	them	they	PRON	Case=Acc Number=Plur Person=3 PronType=Prs	20 each	nmod
23	answer	answer	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Plur Person=3 Tense=Pres VerbForm=Fin	19 let	parataxis
24	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	25 stag	det
25	stag	stag	NOUN	Number=Sing	23 answer	obj
26	so	so	SCONJ	ExtPos=SCONJ	31 fooled	mark
27	that	that	SCONJ	_	26 so	fixed
28	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	29 stag	det
29	stag	stag	NOUN	Number=Sing	31 fooled	nsubj:pass
30	was	be	AUX	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	31 fooled	aux:pass
31	fooled	fool	VERB	Tense=Past VerbForm=Part Voice=Pass	23 answer	advcl
32	into	into	ADP	_	33 racing	case
33	racing	racing	NOUN	Number=Sing	31 fooled	obl
34	to	to	ADP	_	35 death	case
35	death	death	NOUN	Number=Sing	31 fooled	obl

#	verb	tense, mood	who	what, whom	where	other	roles by
1	use	past	He	the sun's rays		as a signal	vn spend_time-104 «NP V NP PP.attribute»: agent=Agent ray=Duration as signal=Attribute
2	hide	past	He not said here	his relatives	the course		vn concealment-16-1 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent relative=Patient along course=Location
3	let	infinitive					vn give-13.1-1 «NP V PP.recipient»: agent=Agent
4	answer speech: assert	present	each	the stag			vn reciprocate-112-1 «NP V PP»: agent=Agent stag=Eventuality
5	fool	past · passive		the stag		into racing result; to death	vn trick-59.2 «NP V NP S_ING»: subject=Patient into racing=Result
6	ray		the sun				nom ray «phenomenon transitive»: poss=agent

Option 2

He placed his relatives on the course so the stag thought each was the tortoise

The tree, 15 words

The words, one row each (CoNLL-U)

#	word	lemma	UPOS	features	head	relation
1	He	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	2 placed	nsubj
2	placed	place	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	root	root
3	his	his	PRON	Case=Gen Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 Poss=Yes PronType=Prs	4 relatives	nmod:poss
4	relatives	relative	NOUN	Number=Plur	2 placed	obj
5	on	on	ADP	_	7 course	case
6	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	7 course	det
7	course	course	NOUN	Number=Sing	2 placed	obl
8	so	so	SCONJ	_	11 thought	mark
9	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	10 stag	det
10	stag	stag	NOUN	Number=Sing	11 thought	nsubj
11	thought	think	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	2 placed	advcl
12	each	each	DET	PronType=Tot	15 tortoise	det
13	was	be	AUX	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	15 tortoise	cop
14	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	15 tortoise	det
15	tortoise	tortoise	NOUN	Number=Sing	11 thought	obj

#	verb	tense, mood	who	what, whom	where	roles by
1	place	past	He	his relatives	the course	vn put-9.1-2 «NP V PP.destination NP»: agent=Agent relative=Theme on course=Destination
2	think speech: other	past	the stag			vn focus-87.1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent
3	is a	past		each tortoise		tree rules

Option 3 · ✓ the right answer

He concealed his kinsmen along the course so that each was taken to be the tortoise himself

The tree, 17 words

The words, one row each (CoNLL-U)

#	word	lemma	UPOS	features	head	relation
1	He	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	2 concealed	nsubj
2	concealed	conceal	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	root	root
3	his	his	PRON	Case=Gen Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 Poss=Yes PronType=Prs	4 kinsmen	nmod:poss
4	kinsmen	kinsman	NOUN	Number=Plur	2 concealed	obj
5	along	along	ADP	_	7 course	case
6	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	7 course	det
7	course	course	NOUN	Number=Sing	2 concealed	obl
8	so	so	SCONJ	ExtPos=SCONJ	12 taken	mark
9	that	that	SCONJ	_	8 so	fixed
10	each	each	DET	PronType=Tot	12 taken	nsubj:pass
11	was	be	AUX	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	12 taken	aux:pass
12	taken	take	VERB	Tense=Past VerbForm=Part Voice=Pass	2 concealed	advcl
13	to	to	PART	_	16 tortoise	mark
14	be	be	AUX	VerbForm=Inf	16 tortoise	cop
15	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	16 tortoise	det
16	tortoise	tortoise	NOUN	Number=Sing	12 taken	obl
17	himself	himself	PRON	Case=Acc Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Emp Reflex=Yes	16 tortoise	nmod:unmarked

#	verb	tense, mood	who	what, whom	where	other	roles by
1	conceal	past	He	his kinsmen	the course		vn concealment-16 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent kinsman=Patient along course=Location
2	take	past · passive		each			vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme
3	is a	to-infinitive		the tortoise		himself = he nmod:unmarked	tree rules

Option 4

He secretly hid his kinsmen at every stage of the course, so that the stag believed each one he met was the tortoise himself, and he won by trickery

The tree, 29 words

The words, one row each (CoNLL-U)

#	word	lemma	UPOS	features	head	relation
1	He	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	3 hid	nsubj
2	secretly	secretly	ADV	_	3 hid	advmod
3	hid	hide	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	root	root
4	his	his	PRON	Case=Gen Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 Poss=Yes PronType=Prs	5 kinsmen	nmod:poss
5	kinsmen	kinsman	NOUN	Number=Plur	3 hid	obj
6	at	at	ADP	_	8 stage	case
7	every	every	DET	PronType=Tot	8 stage	det
8	stage	stage	NOUN	Number=Sing	3 hid	obl
9	of	of	ADP	_	11 course	case
10	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	11 course	det
11	course	course	NOUN	Number=Sing	8 stage	nmod
12	,	,	PUNCT	_	17 believed	punct
13	so	so	SCONJ	ExtPos=SCONJ	17 believed	mark
14	that	that	SCONJ	_	13 so	fixed
15	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	16 stag	det
16	stag	stag	NOUN	Number=Sing	17 believed	nsubj
17	believed	believe	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	3 hid	conj
18	each	each	DET	PronType=Tot	19 one	det
19	one	one	NOUN	Number=Sing	24 tortoise	nsubj
20	he	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	21 met	nsubj
21	met	meet	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	19 one	acl:relcl
22	was	be	AUX	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	24 tortoise	cop
23	the	the	DET	Definite=Def PronType=Art	24 tortoise	det
24	tortoise	tortoise	NOUN	Number=Sing	17 believed	ccomp
25	himself	himself	PRON	Case=Acc Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Emp Reflex=Yes	24 tortoise	nmod:unmarked
26	,	,	PUNCT	_	29 won	punct
27	and	and	CCONJ	_	29 won	cc
28	he	he	PRON	Case=Nom Gender=Masc Number=Sing Person=3 PronType=Prs	29 won	nsubj
29	won	win	VERB	Mood=Ind Number=Sing Person=3 Tense=Past VerbForm=Fin	3 hid	conj
30	by	by	ADP	_	31 trickery	case
31	trickery	trickery	NOUN	Number=Sing	29 won	obl

#	verb	tense, mood	who	what, whom	where	other	roles by
1	hide	past	He	his kinsmen	every stage of the course	secretly property	vn concealment-16-1 «NP V NP PP.location»: agent=Agent kinsman=Patient at stage=Location
2	believe	past	the stag				vn admire-31.2 «NP V that S»: agent=Experiencer
3	meet	past	stag	each one not said here			vn meet-36.3-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent one=Co-Agent
4	is a	past	each one	the tortoise		stag nmod:unmarked	tree rules
5	win	past	stag			by trickery	vn succeed-74-2 «NP V»: agent=Agent

Text: the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (world/data/school/), as the course runner gave them to the student. Trees: Mova's own parse — the en model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. Frames: Mova's frames reader (prag), each text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

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