When someone dies: guilt, numbness and waves of grief

Tests: 2 of 11 right · Exam: 3 of 4 right · Kind: plain · Understood: 10 of 15 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 1 of the reflection course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: the lesson in the corpora.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · wrong ✗

Your mate Kai goes, "if u don't cry at a funeral u didn't love them, simple." What's the best reply?

1. Not true; some people go numb first and cry weeks later — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Not true, because nobody ever cries at funerals at all — ← Mova's choice · score 2
3. True, but only for boys, girls always cry straight away — no support
4. True; love always shows up as tears on the very day — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 2, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 11: «Not crying at a funeral does not mean you did not love the person; everyone grieves differently.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «cry» (+4); the same place «funeral» (+4). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-6). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · wrong ✗

Theo's cousin snaps at him: "you don't even care, you're just stood there." What would have helped Theo more?

1. Someone telling him to try harder to cry next time — no support
2. Someone telling him that numb people never really loved — ← Mova's choice · score 3
3. Someone leaving him alone and never mentioning Nan again — no support
4. Someone saying they didn't cry at their own dad's funeral either — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 3, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 14: «How sad you feel about a loss depends on how much you cared, not on how big the animal was; laughing at someone's sadness makes them hide it.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same thing acted on «people» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1); a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · right ✓

Big sister on the phone, Glasgow accent: "Wee Jamie's still greetin' every night, aye, about missin' his grandad on the Sunday." ("Wee" is little; "greetin'" is crying.) What should the family do?

1. Agree that the missed Sunday was a terrible thing he did — no support
2. Never mention Grandad again in case it makes things worse — score 3
3. Let him say the Sunday thought out loud and tell him Grandad loved him — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
4. Tell him to stop greetin' because big boys move on in a week — score 4

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 3 with score 4, tied with another option at 4 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1, line 19: «Things that often help are saying the looping thought to a trusted adult, writing a letter to the person, keeping something of theirs and saying their name; pr…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same action «say» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · wrong ✗

What would happen if Mia's family stopped saying Rolo's name so they would not upset her?

1. She would probably feel more alone with her guilt — ✓ the right answer · score 2
2. Nothing at all, because silence always helps grief — no support
3. She would forget Rolo faster and feel better at once — score 2
4. She would stop checking the gate straight away — ← Mova's choice · score 4

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 4 with score 4, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1, line 18: «When a vet "puts an animal to sleep" (also "puts it down"), the vet helps a very ill animal die peacefully without pain; families choose it to end suffering.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «end» (+2); the same doer «families» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · right ✓

In a cartoon, the hero's dog dies, he cries once, and the next morning he's totally fine. What's wrong with it?

1. Nothing; real grief always ends after one good night's sleep — no support
2. Real people never cry about dogs, only about humans — no support
3. Real grief usually comes in waves for weeks or months — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 8
4. Real grief only begins a whole year after the loss — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 1: «Grief is the deep sadness after someone you love dies, and it does not move in a straight line: it comes in waves, out of nowhere, in the bath or on the bus, t…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «grief» (+4); the same action «come» (+2); the same place «waves» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · wrong ✗

Leo's brother goes: "lowkey crying over a goldfish is so mid, bro." ("Lowkey" means a bit; "mid" means lame.) Who is right?

1. The brother; fish are too small to be properly sad about — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Leo; any loss can hurt, and laughing just makes people hide it — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Neither; it is against the rules to feel sad about pets — no support
4. The brother; being sad about pets is only for really little kids — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · wrong ✗

A girl in class says, "My grandad's got dementia, he doesn't remember me, so there's no point visiting." What could you tell her?

1. She is right, visiting someone with dementia does nothing at all — ← Mova's choice · score 4
2. He may still feel her love, like when she sings his old song — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Dementia means the person stops having any feelings at all, ever — no support
4. She should quiz him on her name every visit until he remembers it — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 12: «People often avoid someone who is grieving because they are scared of saying the wrong thing; a short "I'm so sorry, I don't know what to say, but I'm here" is…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same thing acted on «someone» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · wrong ✗

Aisha's mate texts: "yeah nah, I'm just gonna avoid her til she's over her mum, less awkward." What's the problem?

1. Her friend will not notice who talks to her anyway — no support
2. There is no problem; grief always ends in about a week or so — no support
3. Grieving people often feel lonely when friends go quiet — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Avoiding someone is the kindest way to show respect — ← Mova's choice · score 10

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 10, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 12: «People often avoid someone who is grieving because they are scared of saying the wrong thing; a short "I'm so sorry, I don't know what to say, but I'm here" is…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «avoid» (+4); it fills the role the question asks for (+4); the same thing acted on «someone» (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · wrong ✗

Uncle Dai from the Valleys says Josh was "proper tamping" with his dad about Smokey. ("Tamping" means furious.) A week later Josh asks why. What is the honest answer?

1. Smokey would have got better on his own if they had waited — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Dad was tired of looking after a cat and wanted a new one — no support
3. The vet wanted the cat because old cats are worth a lot of money — no support
4. Smokey was in pain every day, and the vet helped him die peacefully — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · wrong ✗

Hannah keeps thinking: "If I worry hard enough, Grandma won't die tonight." Which is true?

1. Worrying very hard every night really can keep someone alive — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. If she stops worrying, it will be her fault if Grandma dies in the night — no support
3. Worrying is a magic shield, so she should never stop doing it — no support
4. Worry cannot change what happens; asking questions out loud helps more — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · wrong ✗

Max hears another kid say, "Mr Carter was well sound, he made Romans fun." ("Sound" means good, kind.) How might this help Max?

1. It proves Max was the only one the teacher ever disliked — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. It makes no difference, because memories never change how you feel — no support
3. Happy memories from others can soften the stuck "boring" thought — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. It means Max must forget Mr Carter as fast as he can — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · right ✓

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the course of grief following a bereavement?

1. It is invariably constant in intensity for the remainder of one's life — no support
2. It invariably concludes within a single day of the bereavement — no support
3. It is experienced exclusively by adults and never by children — no support
4. It commonly recurs in waves which diminish gradually over weeks and months — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 4 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 7: «Grief often comes in waves: sudden crying at odd moments, then calmer times; over weeks and months the waves usually come less often and less hard.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+4); the same doer «waves» (+3). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓

Identify the principal reason for which guilt is frequently experienced subsequent to a death.

1. The mind seeks a cause it might have altered, which feels less helpless — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
2. Guilt arises only where the deceased expressed anger beforehand — no support
3. Guilt is a legal penalty imposed by the courts upon all surviving relatives — no support
4. The bereaved person has invariably caused the death in question — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 3: «That loop is guilt, and it is very common after a death: the mind hunts for one thing it could have changed, because "if only I had" feels less helpless than "…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same property (+3); the same action «feel» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

It is given that a child exhibited no tears at a funeral. Select the response consistent with the established facts.

1. The child shall be incapable of grief for the remainder of his life — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Initial numbness is common and does not indicate an absence of love — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Tears are expressly prohibited at funerals in most jurisdictions — no support
4. The absence of tears constitutes proof of an absence of affection — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

In respect of the procedure whereby a veterinarian is said to "put an animal to sleep", determine which description is correct.

1. A very ill animal is assisted to die peacefully and without pain — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
2. An animal is induced into prolonged slumber pending its recovery — no support
3. An animal is surrendered to new owners at the family's request — no support
4. An animal is relocated to a rural property for its retirement — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1, line 18: «When a vet "puts an animal to sleep" (also "puts it down"), the vet helps a very ill animal die peacefully without pain; families choose it to end suffering.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same property (+3); the same action «die» (+2); the same circumstance (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

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