Chapter 11: Events, Qualities, Quantities, And Other Vague Words: On Lojban Abstraction
9. Minor abstraction types
The following cmavo are discussed in this section:
li'i NU experience abstractor si'o NU concept abstractor su'u NU general abstractor
There are three more abstractors in Lojban, all of them little used so far. The abstractor “li'i” expresses experience:
✥9.1 mi morji le li'i mi verba I remember the experience-of (my being-a-child)
The abstractor “si'o” expresses a mental image, a concept, an idea:
✥9.2 mi nelci le si'o la lojban. cu mulno I enjoy the concept-of Lojban being-complete.
Finally, the abstractor “su'u” is a vague abstractor, whose meaning must be grasped from context:
✥9.3 ko zgana le su'u le ci smacu cu bajra you [imperative] observe the abstract-nature-of the three mice running See how the three mice run!
All three of these abstractors have an x2 place. An experience requires an experiencer, so the place structure of “li'i” is:
- x1 is the experience of (the bridi) as experienced by x2
Similarly, an idea requires a mind to hold it, so the place structure of “si'o” is:
- x1 is the idea/concept of (the bridi) in the mind of x2
Finally, there needs to be some way of specifying just what sort of abstraction “su'u” is representing, so its place structure is:
- x1 is an abstract nature of (the bridi) of type x2
The x2 place of “su'u” allows it to serve as a substitute for any of the other abstractors, or as a template for creating new ones. For example,
✥9.4 le nu mi klama the event-of my going
can be paraphrased as
✥9.5 le su'u mi klama kei be lo fasnu the abstract-nature-of (my going) of-type an event
and there is a book whose title might be rendered in Lojban as:
✥9.6 le su'u la .iecuas. kuctra selcatra kei be lo sao'rdzifa'a ke nalmatma'e sutyterjvi the abstract-nature-of (Jesus is-an-intersect-shape type-of-killed-one) of-type a slope-low-direction type-of non-motor-vehicle speed-competition The Crucifixion of Jesus Considered As A Downhill Bicycle Race
Note the importance of using “kei” after “su'u” when the x2 of “su'u” (or any other abstractor) is being specified; otherwise, the “be lo” ends up inside the abstraction bridi.