| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The American by Henry James: "My address? Oh yes!" And the gentleman drew a card from
his pocket-book and wrote something upon it. Then hesitating
a moment he said, "If I don't like it when it it's finished,
you know, I shall not be obliged to take it."
The young lady seemed as good a guesser as himself.
"Oh, I am very sure that monsieur is not capricious,"
she said with a roguish smile.
"Capricious?" And at this monsieur began to laugh.
"Oh no, I'm not capricious. I am very faithful.
I am very constant. Comprenez?"
"Monsieur is constant; I understand perfectly. It's a rare virtue.
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Taras Bulba and Other Tales by Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol: vineyards. In the mosques they left heaps of dung. They used rich
Persian shawls for sashes, and girded their dirty gaberdines with
them. Long afterwards, short Zaporozhian pipes were found in those
regions. They sailed merrily back. A ten-gun Turkish ship pursued them
and scattered their skiffs, like birds, with a volley from its guns. A
third part of them sank in the depths of the sea; but the rest again
assembled, and gained the mouth of the Dnieper with twelve kegs full
of sequins. But all this did not interest Taras. He went off upon the
steppe as though to hunt; but the charge remained in his gun, and,
laying down the weapon, he would seat himself sadly on the shores of
the sea. He sat there long with drooping head, repeating continually,
Taras Bulba and Other Tales |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Time Machine by H. G. Wells: savage survivals, discords in a refined and pleasant life.
`I thought of the physical slightness of the people, their
lack of intelligence, and those big abundant ruins, and it
strengthened my belief in a perfect conquest of Nature. For
after the battle comes Quiet. Humanity had been strong,
energetic, and intelligent, and had used all its abundant
vitality to alter the conditions under which it lived. And now
came the reaction of the altered conditions.
`Under the new conditions of perfect comfort and security,
that restless energy, that with us is strength, would become
weakness. Even in our own time certain tendencies and desires,
The Time Machine |
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 Emma McChesney & Co. by Edna Ferber: "How about this new girl--what's her name?--Myrtle. She's one
of those thin, limp ones, isn't she? Try her."
"I will," said Emma. "You're right. I'm not beaten yet.
I've had to fight for everything worth while in my life. I'm
superstitious about it now. When things come easy I'm afraid of
them." Then, to the stock-girl, "Annie, tell Myrtle I want to
see her."
Silence fell again upon the three. Myrtle, very limp, very thin,
very languid indeed, roused them at her entrance. The hopeful
look in Emma's eyes faded as she beheld her. Myrtle was so
obviously limp, so hopelessly new.
Emma McChesney & Co. |
