Orientation section Inciting episode

Table 5. Description of sections in Child and Big Bird Section Sentences Description Orientation section 1 There was a person who had a maize field. Inciting episode 2–9 Big birds eat the maize so the field owner sets a trap. A bird is caught in the trap. The field owner sends his child to check the trap and the child sets the bird free. Developmental episodes 10–12 The child tells his parent that the birds have not eaten the maize, nor have they been caught in the trap. 13–16 The child goes off to collect firewood with his friends. They climb trees together and the child gets stuck. His friends leave him there. 17–19 When the parents realise their child has not come home, they ask his friends where he is. The friends say that he was not with them. Peak episode 20–24 The child is stuck in the tree for two days and then a big bird comes. The child remembers how he freed the bird in the trap and he sings to the bird, asking it to help him down. The bird rescues the child by carrying him down to the ground on its wings. Denouement 25–27 The child returns home and tells his parents what happened. They talk to his friends, but the friends deny being involved. The parents are happy that their child has been found. Conclusion 28–29 We should help others when they have problems and then they will help us when we have problems.

1.3 Linguistic features in Bena narrative texts

1.3.1 Orientation section

Orientation sections typically begin with the introduction of major participants using a presentation formula which consists of a locative verb construction see section 4.1 and a postposed subject, which may be followed by the modifier -mwinga ‘certain, one’. 1 Seluhanga 1a–2 Pre-NO Pre-NI S V OC Post-NI Post-NO 1a Aali kwali P2 umuunu yumwinga he.was there.was person one 1b ilitaawa lyakwe aatambulwaga P2.IPFV Seluhanga name her she.was.called Seluhanga 2 Umudala uyu D:Prox aali P2 muhiidzi hiilo woman this she.was thief very.much There was a certain person, her name was Seluhanga. This woman was a prolific thief. In longer orientation sections, major participants may be referred to after their introduction by means of a proximal demonstrative, as in clause 2 of the example above. It is also common for information which is particularly relevant to the story as a whole to be introduced in the orientation section, as can be seen above in sentence 2 and again in the following example, also in sentence 2: 2 Ndegenyi 1a–2 Pre-NO Pre-NI S V OC Post-NI Post-NO 1a Pa waana aali pwali P2 mudimi muyeesu at childhood he.was.there boy our.companion 1b ataambulwaga P2.IPFV Ndegenyi he.was.called Ndegenyi 2 Umudiimi uyu D:Prox aali P2 mutedzi va mitego gya ngwale boy this he.was trapper of traps of partridges During our childhood there was a fellow youth, he was called Ndegenyi. This youth made traps for partridges. Information about the major participants of the narrative may be introduced in a main clause, as in the previous two examples, or in a relative clause, as shown below. 3 Child and Big Bird 1a–1b Pre-NO Pre-NI S V OC Post-NI Post-NO 1a Aali pwali P2 umuunu [1b] he.was.there person 1b [--- ye aalimile P2 umugunda gwakwe ugwa madzebele] who he.farmed field his of maize There was a person who farmed his maize field. Orientation sections commonly use the far past perfective P2 or imperfective P2.IPFV, as shown in the examples above.

1.3.2 Inciting episode

The start of the inciting episode is often marked by the use of the temporal point of departure kigono kimwinga ‘one day’ and the episode often contains the first use of a consecutive verb form. The following example illustrates both these features: 4 Seluhanga 6–9 Pre-NO Pre-NI S V OC Post-NI Post-NO 6 Kigono kimwinga --- aagendiye P2 pa kaaye ya muunu yumwinga day one she.passed.by at home of person one 7a Umuunu uyo D:Ref ikalaga mwene P2.IPFV person that he.lived alone 7b kangi --- aali P2 mufwile again he.was widower 7c uvaakwe aafuwe P2 myaka myolofu [7d] his.wife she.died years many 7d [--- igihelaniidze] ANT which.have.passed Pre-NO Pre-NI S V OC Post-NI Post-NO 8a U-Seluhanga aalolasiidze P2 kuno na kuno D:Ref Seluhanga she.looked.around there and there 8b neke --- avone CNS.S kungaya muunu then she.saw there.is.no person 9 --- Ikwingilaga CNS mu kaaye ya mufwile yula D:Dist she.entered in home of widower that One day she passed by someone’s home. This person lived alone, what’s more he was a widower, his wife died many years ago. Seluhanga looked around and saw there was no one. She went into the widower’s home. After the initial sentence of this example, there is a backgrounded section sentence 7 and then the event line continues with a far past perfective 8a and then two different consecutive verb forms 8b and 9. Other examples of the first use of consecutive verb forms appearing in the inciting episode can be seen in Child and Big Bird 2b and Spider and Hare 3b. Further examples of kigono kimwinga ‘one day’ are found in Dog and Leopard 4 and Ndegenyi 3a.

1.3.3 Developmental episodes