| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Perfect Wagnerite: A Commentary on the Niblung's Ring by George Bernard Shaw: further by the conclusion, at which the dead Brynhild, restored
to her godhead by Wotan, and again a Valkyrie, carries the slain
Siegfried to Valhalla to live there happily ever after with its
pious heroes.
As to Siegfried himself, he talks of women, both in this second
act and the next, with the air of a man of the world. "Their
tantrums," he says, "are soon over." Such speeches do not belong
to the novice of the preceding drama, but to the original
Siegfried's Tod, with its leading characters sketched on the
ordinary romantic lines from the old Sagas, and not yet reminted
as the original creations of Wagner's genius whose acquaintance
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Faith of Men by Jack London: he was plunged into another convulsion. As he came out of it he
found the open bottle proffered him, and looked into the great
black eyes of the woman and read what men have always read in the
Mate-woman's eyes. Taking a full dose of the stuff, he sank back
until another spasm had passed. Then he raised himself limply on
his elbow.
"Listen, Jees Uck!" he said very slowly, as though aware of the
necessity for haste and yet afraid to hasten. "Do what I say.
Stay by my side, but do not touch me. I must be very quiet, but
you must not go away." His jaw began to set and his face to quiver
and distort with the fore-running pangs, but he gulped and
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Bunner Sisters by Edith Wharton: familiar heaven was unpeopled. She felt she could no longer trust
in the goodness of God, and there was only a black abyss above the
roof of Bunner Sisters.
But there was little time to brood upon such problems. The
care of Evelina filled Ann Eliza's days and nights. The hastily
summoned doctor had pronounced her to be suffering from pneumonia,
and under his care the first stress of the disease was relieved.
But her recovery was only partial, and long after the doctor's
visits had ceased she continued to lie in bed, too weak to move,
and seemingly indifferent to everything about her.
At length one evening, about six weeks after her return, she
|
