Possession as process
English has several verbs to express possession. With be, have, own, possess and the more colloquial have got, the Carrier is the Possessor and the Attribute is the Possessed.
Also included in the category of ‘possessing’ are the notions of not possessing (lack, need), of being worthy to possess (deserve), and the abstract relations of inclusion, exclusion and containment:
Relational processes are extremely common in all uses of English. The following extract is based on an interview with a young farmer who breeds pigs. He describes them, not by what they do, but as they are; this view is reflected in the large number of Attributes.
Pigs are different. A pig is more of an individual, more human and in many ways a strangely likeable character. Pigs have strong personalities and it is easy to get fond of them. I am always getting fond of pigs and feel a bit conscience-stricken when I have to put them inside for their whole lives. Pigs are very clean animals but, like us, they are all different; some will need cleaning out1 after half a day and some will be neat and tidy after three days. Some pigs are always in a mess and won’t care. Pigs are very interesting people and can leave quite a gap when they go off to the bacon factory.
(Ronald Blythe, Akenfield)
