| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin: vagabonds, most useless in one hemisphere, into
active citizens of another, and thus giving birth to a new
and splendid country -- a grand centre of civilization -- it has
succeeded to a degree perhaps unparalleled in history.
30th. -- The Beagle sailed for Hobart Town in Van Diemen's
Land. On the 5th of February, after a six days' passage,
of which the first part was fine, and the latter very cold
and squally, we entered the mouth of Storm Bay: the weather
justified this awful name. The bay should rather be called
an estuary, for it receives at its head the waters of the
Derwent. Near the mouth, there are some extensive basaltic
The Voyage of the Beagle |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Cratylus by Plato: the eyes (anastrephein opa).
HERMOGENES: What do you say of pur (fire) and udor (water)?
SOCRATES: I am at a loss how to explain pur; either the muse of Euthyphro
has deserted me, or there is some very great difficulty in the word.
Please, however, to note the contrivance which I adopt whenever I am in a
difficulty of this sort.
HERMOGENES: What is it?
SOCRATES: I will tell you; but I should like to know first whether you can
tell me what is the meaning of the pur?
HERMOGENES: Indeed I cannot.
SOCRATES: Shall I tell you what I suspect to be the true explanation of
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Wife, et al by Anton Chekhov: "To be sure, to be sure, to be sure. . . . Yes."
I thought that as we were going to have a serious, business
consultation in which any one might take part, regardless of
their position or personal relations, why should I not invite
Natalya Gavrilovna.
"_Tres faciunt collegium_," I said gaily. "What if we were to ask
Natalya Gavrilovna? What do you think? Fenya," I said, turning to
the maid, "ask Natalya Gavrilovna to come upstairs to us, if
possible at once. Tell her it's a very important matter."
A little later Natalya Gavrilovna came in. I got up to meet her
and said:
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