Sentence No. 66 · 1 June 2026
She inherits her mother’s talents, and must have been under subjection to her.
Jane Austen, Emma
Jane Austen — Emma (1815) · Read it at Project Gutenberg
What holds this sentence together
Notice the conjunction "and" here links two independent clauses of unequal tense: a simple present ("inherits") then a past modal ("must have been"). Whichever phrase carries "must have been" always belongs to the second half, after "and."
How it appears in Sentle
On Sentle this sentence arrives in 6 pieces, shuffled, with the lines that lead up to it for context. A companion's faults are weighed against her many virtues. Putting it back in the author’s order is the puzzle — and the order is rarely arbitrary, which is what the note above is about.
A new sentence from a great book, every day.
Play today’s sentenceFree, no account. Or play this one — it will give the answer away.