| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Massimilla Doni by Honore de Balzac: through dark, damp avenues of tall, thick trees, and bringing us out
suddenly in a valley full of streams, flowers, and mills, and basking
in the sunshine. In their greatest moments the arts are but the
expression of the grand scenes of nature.
"I am not learned enough to enlarge on the philosophy of music; go and
talk to Capraja; you will be amazed at what he can tell you. He will
say that every instrument that depends on the touch or breath of man
for its expression and length of note, is superior as a vehicle of
expression to color, which remains fixed, or speech, which has its
limits. The language of music is infinite; it includes everything; it
can express all things.
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Pierrette by Honore de Balzac: beauty, lay on the cot-bed of her grandmother. Pierrette's eyes were
closed, the brown hair smoothed upon her brow, the body swathed in a
coarse cotton sheet.
Before the bed, on her knees, her hair in disorder, her hands
stretched out, her face on fire, the old Lorrain was crying out, "No,
no, it shall not be done!"
At the foot of the bed stood Monsieur Auffray and the two priests. The
tapers were still burning.
Opposite to the grandmother was the surgeon of the hospital, with an
assistant, and near him stood Doctor Neraud and Vinet. The surgeon
wore his dissecting apron; the assistant had opened a case of
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from An International Episode by Henry James: it's very carefully folded up, like an old tablecloth.
Why should we apologize? The English never apologize--
do they? No; I must say I never apologize. You must take
us as we come--with all our imperfections on our heads.
Of course we haven't your country life, and your old ruins,
and your great estates, and your leisure class, and all that.
But if we haven't, I should think you might find it a pleasant change--
I think any country is pleasant where they have pleasant manners.
Captain Littledale told me he had never seen such pleasant manners
as at Newport, and he had been a great deal in European society.
Hadn't he been in the diplomatic service? He told me
|
