| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Maria, or the Wrongs of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft: joking. But I resisted; and, as he had determined not to give me
any reason for saying that he used violence, after a few more
efforts, he retired, cursing my obstinacy, to bed.
"I sat musing some time longer; then, throwing my cloak around
me, prepared for sleep on a sopha. And, so fortunate seemed my
deliverance, so sacred the pleasure of being thus wrapped up in
myself, that I slept profoundly, and woke with a mind composed to
encounter the struggles of the day. Mr. Venables did not wake till
some hours after; and then he came to me half-dressed, yawning and
stretching, with haggard eyes, as if he scarcely recollected what
had passed the preceding evening. He fixed his eyes on me for a
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Ivanhoe by Walter Scott: Saxon, Rowena.''
``Saxon or Jew,'' answered the Prince, ``Saxon
or Jew, dog or hog, what matters it? I say, name
Rebecca, were it only to mortify the Saxon churls.''
A murmur arose even among his own immediate
attendants.
``This passes a jest, my lord,'' said De Bracy;
``no knight here will lay lance in rest if such an insult
is attempted.''
``It is the mere wantonness of insult,'' said one
of the oldest and most important of Prince John's
Ivanhoe |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from At the Mountains of Madness by H. P. Lovecraft: equipment of earlier days. Somewhat to our surprise we saw that
the terrain was far from difficult as such things go; and that
despite the crevasses and other bad spots it would not have been
likely to deter the sledges of a Scott, a Shackleton, or an Amundsen.
Some of the glaciers appeared to lead up to wind-bared passes
with unusual continuity, and upon reaching our chosen pass we
found that its case formed no exception.
Our sensations of tense
expectancy as we prepared to round the crest and peer out over
an untrodden world can hardly be described on paper; even though
we had no cause to think the regions beyond the range essentially
At the Mountains of Madness |
The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy: house, her residence, which lay in his way to the church,
it was quite dark. A man came from the gate and said
through the fog, which hung between them like blown
flour --
"Is that Poorgrass with the corpse?"
Gabriel recognized the voice as that of the parson.
"The corpse is here, sir." said Gabriel.
"I have just been to inquire of Mrs. Troy if she could
tell me the reason of the delay. I am afraid it is too
late now for the funeral to be performed with proper
decency. Have you the registrar's certificate?"
Far From the Madding Crowd |
