| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Seraphita by Honore de Balzac: finished creation; if he were, God would not Be."
"How is it that in thy short life thou hast found the time to learn so
many things?" said the young girl.
"I remember," he replied.
"Thou art nobler than all else I see."
"We are the noblest of God's greatest works. Has He not given us the
faculty of reflecting on Nature; of gathering it within us by thought;
of making it a footstool and stepping-stone from and by which to rise
to Him? We love according to the greater or the lesser portion of
heaven our souls contain. But do not be unjust, Minna; behold the
magnificence spread before you. Ocean expands at your feet like a
 Seraphita |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Rezanov by Gertrude Atherton: Rezanov, sanguine and imaginative as he was, even
to the point of creating premises to rhyme with ends,
was very honest fundamentally. He turned abruptly
on his heel, and calling to the officers that he would
announce his decision on the morrow, ordered the
sentry to open the gate and passed out of the en-
closure.
He crossed the clearing and entered the forest.
The warlike tribes themselves had trodden paths
through the dense undergrowth of young trees and
ferns. Rezanov, despite Baranhov's warning, had
 Rezanov |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Father Goriot by Honore de Balzac: through," she went on, smiling at him.
"She is charming," thought Eugene, more and more in love. He
looked round him at the room; there was an ostentatious character
about the luxury, a meretricious taste in the splendor.
"Do you like it?" she asked, as she rang for the maid.
"Therese, take this to M. de Marsay, and give it into his hands
yourself. If he is not at home, bring the letter back to me."
Therese went, but not before she had given Eugene a spiteful
glance.
Dinner was announced. Rastignac gave his arm to Mme. de Nucingen,
she led the way into a pretty dining-room, and again he saw the
 Father Goriot |