| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe: habitual trepidancy--an excessive nervous agitation. For
something of this nature I had indeed been prepared, no less by
his letter, than by reminiscences of certain boyish traits, and
by conclusions deduced from his peculiar physical conformation
and temperament. His action was alternately vivacious and
sullen. His voice varied rapidly from a tremulous indecision
(when the animal spirits seemed utterly in abeyance) to
that species of energetic concision--that abrupt, weighty,
unhurried, and hollow-sounding enunciation--that leaden, self-
balanced and perfectly modulated guttural utterance, which may be
observed in the lost drunkard, or the irreclaimable eater of
The Fall of the House of Usher |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Kreutzer Sonata by Leo Tolstoy: softened toward me, saying, 'If you are successful I will give
you the first place at the court.'"
"And how much money are you to collect?" inquired Akulina.
"Fifteen hundred rubles," carelessly answered Polikey.
Akulina sadly shook her head as she asked, "When are you to
start?"
"She ordered me to leave here to-morrow," Polikey replied. 'Take
any horse you please,' she said. 'Come to the office, and I will
see you there and wish you God-speed on your journey.'"
"Glory to Thee, O Lord!" said Akulina, as she arose and made the
sign of the cross. "God, I am sure, will bless you, Illitch,"
The Kreutzer Sonata |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Two Brothers by Honore de Balzac: Desroches promised the two women to follow up the petition at the war
office, and to profit by the triumph of a certain duke over Philippe
in the matter of the danseuse, and so obtain that nobleman's
influence.
"Philippe will be lieutenant-colonel in the Duc de Maufrigneuse's
regiment within three months," he declared, "and you will be rid of
him."
Desroches went away, smothered with blessings from the two poor widows
and Joseph. As to the newspaper, it ceased to exist at the end of two
months, just as Finot had predicted. Philippe's crime had, therefore,
so far as the world knew, no consequences. But Agathe's motherhood had
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