| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad: I hadn't let go the mate's arm and went on shaking it. "Ready about,
do you hear? You go forward"--shake--"and stop there"--shake--"and hold
your noise"--shake--" and see these head-sheets properly overhauled"--
shake, shake--shake.
And all the time I dared not look towards the land lest my heart
should fail me. I released my grip at last and he ran forward
as if fleeing for dear life.
I wondered what my double there in the sail locker thought of
this commotion. He was able to hear everything--and perhaps he was able
to understand why, on my conscience, it had to be thus close--no less.
My first order "Hard alee!" re-echoed ominously under the towering
The Secret Sharer |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Oscar Wilde Miscellaneous by Oscar Wilde: SIMONE. Amen to that. Now for the other.
[He dies. Simone rises and looks at Bianca. She comes towards him
as one dazed with wonder and with outstretched arms.]
BIANCA. Why
Did you not tell me you were so strong?
SIMONE. Why
Did you not tell me you were beautiful?
[He kisses her on the mouth.]
CURTAIN
LA SAINTE COURTISANE
OR, THE WOMAN COVERED WITH JEWELS
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift: of women murdering their bastard children, alas! too frequent
among us, sacrificing the poor innocent babes, I doubt, more to
avoid the expence than the shame, which would move tears and pity
in the most savage and inhuman breast.
The number of souls in this kingdom being usually reckoned one
million and a half, of these I calculate there may be about two
hundred thousand couple whose wives are breeders; from which
number I subtract thirty thousand couple, who are able to
maintain their own children, (although I apprehend there cannot
be so many, under the present distresses of the kingdom) but this
being granted, there will remain an hundred and seventy thousand
A Modest Proposal |
