| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Voyage to Arcturus by David Lindsay: She smiled rather pathetically. "You will think me foolish, but
every tearing off of a leaf would be a wound in my heart. We have
only to throw our robes over our heads."
"No doubt that will answer the same purpose, but tell me - weren't
these very robes once part of a living creature?"
"Oh, no - no, they are the webs of a certain animal, but they have
never been in themselves alive."
"You reduce life to extreme simplicity," remarked Maskull
meditatively, "but it is very beautiful."
Climbing back over the hills, they now without further ceremony began
their march across the desert.
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte: strangest tone - 'Be so good as to turn your lock, and draw your
bolt - don't omit it!'
'Well!' I said. 'But why, Mr. Earnshaw?' I did not relish the
notion of deliberately fastening myself in with Heathcliff.
'Look here!' he replied, pulling from his waistcoat a curiously-
constructed pistol, having a double-edged spring knife attached to
the barrel. 'That's a great tempter to a desperate man, is it not?
I cannot resist going up with this every night, and trying his
door. If once I find it open he's done for; I do it invariably,
even though the minute before I have been recalling a hundred
reasons that should make me refrain: it is some devil that urges
Wuthering Heights |
