| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Scarecrow of Oz by L. Frank Baum: "Why is that?" inquired Trot.
"Because I have no nerves, such as you meat people
possess. Even grasshoppers have nerves, but straw
doesn't; so whatever they do -- except just one thing --
they cannot injure me. Therefore I expect to conquer King
Krewl with ease."
"What is that one thing you excepted?" asked Trot.
"They will never think of it, so never mind. And now,
if you will kindly excuse me for a time, I'll go over to
the castle and do my conquering."
"You have no weapons," Pon reminded him.
The Scarecrow of Oz |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Gobseck by Honore de Balzac: Pleasure?
" 'There are ten of us in Paris, silent, unknown kings, the arbiters
of your destinies. What is life but a machine set in motion by money?
Know this for certain--methods are always confounded with results; you
will never succeed in separating the soul from the senses, spirit from
matter. Gold is the spiritual basis of existing society.--The ten of
us are bound by the ties of common interest; we meet on certain days
of the week at the Cafe Themis near the Pont Neuf, and there, in
conclave, we reveal the mysteries of finance. No fortune can deceive
us; we are in possession of family secrets in all directions. We keep
a kind of Black Book, in which we note the most important bills
Gobseck |
