| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Lesser Bourgeoisie by Honore de Balzac: these bourgeois; silent before them because I feel misjudged,
misunderstood, and repelled by them. He has felt the heat of the
sacred fire that consumes me. Yes I am," he continued, in a tone of
conviction, "an artist in words after the manner of Berryer; I could
make juries weep, by weeping myself, for I'm as nervous as a woman.
Your husband, who detests the bourgeoisie, began to tease me about
them. At first we laughed; then, in becoming serious, he found out
that I was as strong as he. I told him of the plan concocted to make
SOMETHING of Thuillier, and I showed him all the good he could get
himself out of a political puppet. 'If it were only,' I said to him,
'to make yourself Monsieur DE Colleville, and to put your charming
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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 Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin: in a populous city, and its frequent repetitions give it weight
and consequence, perhaps they will not censure very severely those
who bestow some attention to affairs of this seemingly low nature.
Human felicity is produc'd not so much by great pieces of good
fortune that seldom happen, as by little advantages that occur
every day. Thus, if you teach a poor young man to shave himself,
and keep his razor in order, you may contribute more to the happiness
of his life than in giving him a thousand guineas. The money may be
soon spent, the regret only remaining of having foolishly consumed it;
but in the other case, he escapes the frequent vexation of waiting
for barbers, and of their sometimes dirty fingers, offensive breaths,
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Animal Farm by George Orwell: their tails between their legs. Boxer looked at Napoleon to know whether
he should crush the dog to death or let it go. Napoleon appeared to change
countenance, and sharply ordered Boxer to let the dog go, whereat Boxer
lifted his hoof, and the dog slunk away, bruised and howling.
Presently the tumult died down. The four pigs waited, trembling, with
guilt written on every line of their countenances. Napoleon now called
upon them to confess their crimes. They were the same four pigs as had
protested when Napoleon abolished the Sunday Meetings. Without any further
prompting they confessed that they had been secretly in touch with
Snowball ever since his expulsion, that they had collaborated with him in
destroying the windmill, and that they had entered into an agreement with
Animal Farm |
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 Deputy of Arcis by Honore de Balzac: except for flagrant crime, requires the consent and authority of the
Chamber."
"True," said Maxime, "but I don't see how a new difficulty is going to
help us."
"You wouldn't be sorry to send your adversary with the galleys," said
Desroches, laughing.
"A villain," added Maxime, "who may make me lose a rich marriage; a
fellow who poses for stern virtue, and then proceeds to trickery of
this kind!"
"Well, you must resign yourself to a less glorious result; but you can
make a pretty scandal, and destroy the reputation of your man; and
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