| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from On Revenues by Xenophon: amount of silver extracted, the greater the number of persons ready to
engage in the operation. One more illustration: take the case of
movable property. No one when he has got sufficient furniture for his
house dreams of making further purchases on this head, but of silver
no one ever yet possessed so much that he was forced to cry "enough."
On the contrary, if ever anybody does become possessed of an
immoderate amount he finds as much pleasure in digging a hole in the
ground and hoarding it as in the actual employment of it. And from a
wider point of view: when a state is prosperous there is nothing which
people so much desire as silver. The men want money to expend on
beautiful armour and fine horses, and houses, and sumptuous
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Art of Writing by Robert Louis Stevenson: on, the well-knit sentence; and yet a little further, and
both will reach their solution on the same ringing syllable.
The best that can be offered by the best writer of prose is
to show us the development of the idea and the stylistic
pattern proceed hand in hand, sometimes by an obvious and
triumphant effort, sometimes with a great air of ease and
nature. The writer of verse, by virtue of conquering another
difficulty, delights us with a new series of triumphs. He
follows three purposes where his rival followed only two; and
the change is of precisely the same nature as that from
melody to harmony. Or if you prefer to return to the
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Smalcald Articles by Dr. Martin Luther: dispositions [according to them] are not sins ), and for
wicked words and wicked deeds, which free will could readily
have omitted.
And of such repentance they fix three parts contrition,
confession, and satisfaction, with this [magnificent]
consolation and promise added: If man truly repent, [feel
remorse,] confess, render satisfaction, he thereby would have
merited forgiveness, and paid for his sins before God [atoned
for his sins and obtained a plenary redemption]. Thus in
repentance they instructed men to repose confidence in their
own works. Hence the expression originated, which was employed
|
