Haskell how to add instance that can handle List of Maybe

user_14373436 0
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I haven't found any good examples of this kind of situations.

I have this kind of datatypes and a class with instances:

data Type1 = Const1 | Const2
 deriving Show
data Type2 = Type2 Int 
 deriving Show
 
class Class a where
 function :: a -> Int
 
instance Class Type1 where
 function Const1 = 2
 function Const2 = 3
 
instance Class Type2 where
 function (Type2 x) = x * 2

Should add instances that can compute this way:

function [Just (Const2), Nothing, Just (Const1)]

function [Nothing, Nothing, Just (Type2 1), Just (Type2 2)]

Is there a way to do this something like this?

instance Class (Maybe a) where
 function Nothing = 0
 function (Just x) = function x <--- gives an error
 
instance Class [a] where
 function [] = 0
 function [x] = function x <--- error
 function (x:sx) = function x + function xs <--- error
haskell
2 Answers

This only works if a is a member of the Class typeclass, so you need to add that as a constraint:

--           ↓ add a typeconstraint
instance Class a => Class (Maybe a) where
    function Nothing = 0
    function (Just x) = function x

--           ↓ add a typeconstraint
instance Class a => Class [a] where
    function [] = 0
    function [x] = function x
    function (x:xs) = function x + function xs

Indeed, you write for example function (Just x) = function x, but that only works if function x makes sense, and that is the case of a (the type wrapped by Maybe), is an instance of the Class typeclass.

We then can determine the function of the sample lists:

Prelude> function [Just (Const2), Nothing, Just (Const1)]
5
Prelude> function [Nothing, Nothing, Just (Type2 1), Just (Type2 2)]
6
user_675790

You need to say this:

instance Class a => Class (Maybe a) where ....

and likewise

instance Class a => Class [a] where ...

This means that Maybe a is only an instance if a is, and likewise for [a]. This in turn lets you use function a in the implementations.

user_492200
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