| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield: greatest possible eyesore, and they had no right to be in that
neighbourhood at all. They were little mean dwellings painted a chocolate
brown. In the garden patches there was nothing but cabbage stalks, sick
hens and tomato cans. The very smoke coming out of their chimneys was
poverty-stricken. Little rags and shreds of smoke, so unlike the great
silvery plumes that uncurled from the Sheridans' chimneys. Washerwomen
lived in the lane and sweeps and a cobbler, and a man whose house-front was
studded all over with minute bird-cages. Children swarmed. When the
Sheridans were little they were forbidden to set foot there because of the
revolting language and of what they might catch. But since they were grown
up, Laura and Laurie on their prowls sometimes walked through. It was
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Protagoras by Plato: mistaken, you do not understand the word 'hard' (chalepon) in the sense
which Simonides intended; and I must correct you, as Prodicus corrects me
when I use the word 'awful' (deinon) as a term of praise. If I say that
Protagoras or any one else is an 'awfully' wise man, he asks me if I am not
ashamed of calling that which is good 'awful'; and then he explains to me
that the term 'awful' is always taken in a bad sense, and that no one
speaks of being 'awfully' healthy or wealthy, or of 'awful' peace, but of
'awful' disease, 'awful' war, 'awful' poverty, meaning by the term 'awful,'
evil. And I think that Simonides and his countrymen the Ceans, when they
spoke of 'hard' meant 'evil,' or something which you do not understand.
Let us ask Prodicus, for he ought to be able to answer questions about the
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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 Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain: That long, lugubrious howl rose on the night air again!
They turned and saw the strange dog standing within
a few feet of where Potter was lying, and FACING Potter,
with his nose pointing heavenward.
"Oh, geeminy, it's HIM!" exclaimed both boys, in a
breath.
"Say, Tom -- they say a stray dog come howling
around Johnny Miller's house, 'bout midnight, as
much as two weeks ago; and a whippoorwill come
in and lit on the banisters and sung, the very same
evening; and there ain't anybody dead there yet."
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer |
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 A Legend of Montrose by Walter Scott: change in their operations. Leaving this chieftain to make the
best defence he could, Urrie and Baillie again separated their
forces from those of Argyle; and, having chiefly horse and
Lowland troops under their command, they kept the southern side
of the Grampian ridge, moving along eastward into the county of
Angus, resolving from thence to proceed into Aberdeenshire, in
order to intercept Montrose, if he should attempt to escape in
that direction.
Argyle, with his own levies and other troops, undertook to follow
Montrose's march; so that, in case he should come to action
either with Seaforth, or with Baillie and Urrie, he might be
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