batch.motif.buddhist-old-india-tales-rouse-gutenberg-l1882-l1929
---
record_id: batch.motif.buddhist-old-india-tales-rouse-gutenberg-l1882-l1929
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
passage_locator:
label: THE CUNNING CRANE AND THE CRAB / UNION IS STRENGTH / SILENCE IS GOLDEN /
THE GREAT YELLOW KING AND HIS PORTER; lines 1882-1929
start: '1882'
end: '1929'
translation: The Giant Crab, and Other Tales from Old India
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: A cruel ruler called the Great Yellow King dies, and the whole city rejoices.
His palace porter alone weeps, explaining that the king used to strike him whenever
entering or leaving the palace. The porter fears the dead king may strike the
porter at the gates of Death and be sent back. Another man reassures him that
the king cannot return, and the porter is comforted.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The Great Yellow King is described as ruling a great and rich city.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The King is described as cruel to his people, robbing, imprisoning, maiming,
blinding, and killing some without cause.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The King is also described as cruel within his household, formerly teasing
his sisters and later making life miserable for his wife and child.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: When the Great Yellow King dies, the city responds with rejoicing rather than
mourning.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The Yellow King's porter sits on the palace steps weeping while others are
joyful.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: The porter says the King used to cuff him on the head when leaving and returning
to the palace.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The porter fears that if the King treats the porter at the gates of Death
similarly, the dead King may not be accepted there and may return.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: Another man tells the porter that the King is dead and cannot be sent back,
after which the porter is comforted.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Great Yellow King
description: A mighty king of a great and rich city, described as very cruel to
his people and household.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: People of the city
description: The King's subjects, described as robbed, imprisoned, injured, killed,
and later joyful at his death.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Yellow King's porter
description: The palace porter who weeps after the King's death because he fears
the King may return from Death's gate.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Questioning man
description: A man who asks the porter why he is crying and then reassures him that
the King cannot return.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Porter at the gates of Death
description: A figure mentioned in the palace porter's imagined scenario, sitting
by the gates of Death.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: King's household
description: The King's sisters, wife, and child, described as targets of his cruelty
or teasing.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
roles:
- id: role:1
label: cruel ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage calls the King very cruel and lists harms he caused to subjects
and family.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: victims of royal cruelty
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:6
basis: The people and household are described as suffering under the King.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:3
label: fearful mourner
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The porter weeps after the King's death, not from affection but from fear
that the King may return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:4
label: comforting questioner
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The man asks why the porter is crying and reassures him that the dead King
cannot return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:5
label: imagined death-gate porter
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The palace porter imagines a porter sitting by the gates of Death who might
reject the King.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: gates of Death
literal_form: gates of Death
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: palace steps
literal_form: steps of the palace
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Cruel reign of the Great Yellow King
summary: The King rules a wealthy city and harms both his subjects and his family.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Public rejoicing at the King's death
summary: After the King dies, the city celebrates instead of mourning.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: The porter weeps on the palace steps
summary: The King's porter sits crying on the palace steps, surprising the joyful
townspeople.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Fear of rejection at the gates of Death
summary: The porter explains that the King used to strike him and fears the King
may strike the porter at Death's gates and be sent back.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Reassurance and comfort
summary: Another man assures the porter that the dead King cannot return, and the
porter is comforted.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Death of a tyrant celebrated by the people
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage contrasts expected royal mourning with public rejoicing after
the cruel King's death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents the pattern humorously and morally, but does not
name a formal motif.
- id: motif:2
label: Fear that a dead wrongdoer may be rejected at Death's gate and return
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The porter fears the dead King will assault the porter at the gates of Death,
be refused, and come back to the living.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The gates of Death appear in a character's comic fear, not as a narrated
afterlife journey.
- id: motif:3
label: Comic reversal of mourning
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Everyone celebrates the cruel King's death, while the one apparent mourner
is actually afraid of the King's possible return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a broad narrative pattern rather than a taxonomy-linked motif
in the supplied list.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 1882-1895
quote_or_summary: The Great Yellow King reigns in a great rich city and is described
as cruel to his people and household, robbing, imprisoning, maiming, blinding,
killing, and mistreating family members.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 1896-1905
quote_or_summary: After the Great Yellow King dies, the city rejoices with holidays
and amusements rather than mourning him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 1906-1913
quote_or_summary: The Yellow King's porter sits on the palace steps sighing, sobbing,
and weeping, and someone asks why he cries.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: quote
locator: 1914-1925
quote_or_summary: The porter says the King always gave him a cuff on the head and
fears that if the King does the same to the porter by the gates of Death, "they
won't have him there at any price, and then he will come back to us."
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt used.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 1926-1929
quote_or_summary: Another man tells the porter not to be afraid because the King
is dead and cannot be sent back; the porter is comforted and goes for beer.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/giant-crab-old-india-tales-rouse.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: Passage-level events and figures are explicit. Motif labels are descriptive
because no supplied taxonomy family clearly matches the comic death-gate episode.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage itself does not support a comparison to another named text, tradition, or motif family.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:buddhist-old-india-tales-rouse-gutenberg__l1882-l1929
passage_sha256=a680ecc42b60a0c706573e85b9ff5a4da7a777eb97d977b0ad882bb477174fba