| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli: terza rima), 1517; Dell' arte della guerra, 1519-20; Discorso sopra il
riformare lo stato di Firenze, 1520; Sommario delle cose della citta
di Lucca, 1520; Vita di Castruccio Castracani da Lucca, 1520; Istorie
fiorentine, 8 books, 1521-5; Frammenti storici, 1525.
Other poems include Sonetti, Canzoni, Ottave, and Canti
carnascialeschi.
Editions. Aldo, Venice, 1546; della Tertina, 1550; Cambiagi, Florence,
6 vols., 1782-5; dei Classici, Milan, 10 1813; Silvestri, 9 vols.,
1820-2; Passerini, Fanfani, Milanesi, 6 vols. only published, 1873-7.
Minor works. Ed. F. L. Polidori, 1852; Lettere familiari, ed. E.
Alvisi, 1883, 2 editions, one with excisions; Credited Writings, ed.
The Prince |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle: "Last Monday I had finished for the day and was dressing in my
room above the opium den when I looked out of my window and saw,
to my horror and astonishment, that my wife was standing in the
street, with her eyes fixed full upon me. I gave a cry of
surprise, threw up my arms to cover my face, and, rushing to my
confidant, the Lascar, entreated him to prevent anyone from
coming up to me. I heard her voice downstairs, but I knew that
she could not ascend. Swiftly I threw off my clothes, pulled on
those of a beggar, and put on my pigments and wig. Even a wife's
eyes could not pierce so complete a disguise. But then it
occurred to me that there might be a search in the room, and that
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Tour Through Eastern Counties of England by Daniel Defoe: there being but two troops, they were obliged to retire. Now the
town began to be greatly distressed, provisions failing, and the
townspeople, which were numerous, being very uneasy, and no way of
breaking through being found practicable, the gentlemen would have
joined in any attempt wherein they might die gallantly with their
swords in their hands, but nothing presented; they often sallied
and cut off many of the enemy, but their numbers were continually
supplied, and the besieged diminished; their horse also sunk and
became unfit for service, having very little hay, and no corn, and
at length they were forced to kill them for food; so that they
began to be in a very miserable condition, and the soldiers
|
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 Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg by Mark Twain: to follow Hadleyburg to heaven!
So that solution was a failure--he hadn't saved Goodson's soul.
Richards was discouraged. Then after a little came another idea:
had he saved Goodson's property? No, that wouldn't do--he hadn't
any. His life? That is it! Of course. Why, he might have thought
of it before. This time he was on the right track, sure. His
imagination-mill was hard at work in a minute, now.
Thereafter, during a stretch of two exhausting hours, he was busy
saving Goodson's life. He saved it in all kinds of difficult and
perilous ways. In every case he got it saved satisfactorily up to a
certain point; then, just as he was beginning to get well persuaded
The Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg |
