| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Vendetta by Honore de Balzac: without hidden thoughts, living her natural real life; a third was
dreamy, melancholy, pale, bending her head like a drooping flower; her
neighbor, on the contrary, tall, indolent, with Asiatic habits, long
eyes, moist and black, said but little, and reflected, glancing
covertly at the head of Antinous.
Among them, like the "jocoso" of a Spanish play, full of wit and
epigrammatic sallies, another girl was watching the rest with a
comprehensive glance, making them laugh, and tossing up her head, too
lively and arch not to be pretty. She appeared to rule the first group
of girls, who were the daughters of bankers, notaries, and merchants,
--all rich, but aware of the imperceptible though cutting slights
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Battle of the Books by Jonathan Swift: astrologers, when they pretend by rules of art to tell when a suit
will end, and whether to the advantage of the plaintiff or
defendant; thus making the matter depend entirely upon the
influence of the stars, without the least regard to the merits of
the cause.
The expression in Apocrypha about Tobit and his dog following him I
have often heard ridiculed, yet Homer has the same words of
Telemachus more than once; and Virgil says something like it of
Evander. And I take the book of Tobit to be partly poetical.
I have known some men possessed of good qualities, which were very
serviceable to others, but useless to themselves; like a sun-dial
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| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Works of Samuel Johnson by Samuel Johnson: builds his cottage, and hollows his canoe, and from
that time lives in a state of plenty and prosperity;
he is sheltered from the storms, he is fortified against
beasts of prey, he is enabled to pursue the fish of
the sea, and the deer of the mountains; and as he
does not know, does not envy the happiness of
polished nations, where gold can supply the want of
fortitude and skill, and he whose laborious ancestors
have made him rich, may lie stretched upon a couch,
and see all the treasures of all the elements poured
down before him.
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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 The Mirror of the Sea by Joseph Conrad: grin - "I am looking for something to do."
I felt I would rather have bitten out my tongue. His jet-black,
curly hair had turned iron-gray; he was scrupulously neat as ever,
but frightfully threadbare. His shiny boots were worn down at
heel. But he forgave me, and we drove off together in a hansom to
dine on board my ship. He went over her conscientiously, praised
her heartily, congratulated me on my command with absolute
sincerity. At dinner, as I offered him wine and beer he shook his
head, and as I sat looking at him interrogatively, muttered in an
undertone:
"I've given up all that."
The Mirror of the Sea |
