| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia by Samuel Johnson: have no other education than such as might qualify me for commerce;
and discovering in me great strength of memory and quickness of
apprehension, often declared his hope that I should be some time
the richest man in Abyssinia."
"Why," said the Prince, "did thy father desire the increase of his
wealth when it was already greater than he durst discover or enjoy?
I am unwilling to doubt thy veracity, yet inconsistencies cannot
both be true."
"Inconsistencies," answered Imlac, "cannot both be right; but,
imputed to man, they may both be true. Yet diversity is not
inconsistency. My father might expect a time of greater security.
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare: KATHERINA.
What is your crest? a coxcomb?
PETRUCHIO.
A combless cock, so Kate will be my hen.
KATHERINA.
No cock of mine; you crow too like a craven.
PETRUCHIO.
Nay, come, Kate, come; you must not look so sour.
KATHERINA.
It is my fashion when I see a crab.
PETRUCHIO.
The Taming of the Shrew |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Myths and Myth-Makers by John Fiske: a German specialist, both for extent and for minuteness, while
the orderly arrangement of the arguments and the elegant
lucidity of the style are such as we are accustomed to expect
from French essay-writers. And what is still more admirable is
the way in which the enthusiasm characteristic of a genial and
original speculator is tempered by the patience and caution of
a cool-headed critic. Patience and caution are nowhere more
needed than in writers who deal with mythology and with
primitive religious ideas; but these qualities are too seldom
found in combination with the speculative boldness which is
required when fresh theories are to be framed or new paths of
Myths and Myth-Makers |
