| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Timaeus by Plato: terms' or mean proportionals has been much disputed. The most received
explanation is that of Martin, who supposes that Plato is only speaking of
surfaces and solids compounded of prime numbers (i.e. of numbers not made
up of two factors, or, in other words, only measurable by unity). The
square of any such number represents a surface, the cube a solid. The
squares of any two such numbers (e.g. 2 squared, 3 squared = 4, 9), have
always a single mean proportional (e.g. 4 and 9 have the single mean 6),
whereas the cubes of primes (e.g. 3 cubed and 5 cubed) have always two mean
proportionals (e.g. 27:45:75:125). But to this explanation of Martin's it
may be objected, (1) that Plato nowhere says that his proportion is to be
limited to prime numbers; (2) that the limitation of surfaces to squares is
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Figure in the Carpet by Henry James: appeal to him. He wasn't interested, he didn't care. Yes, it
quite comforted me to believe him too stupid to have joy of the
thing I lacked. He was as stupid after as he had been before, and
that deepened for me the golden glory in which the mystery was
wrapped. I had of course none the less to recollect that his wife
might have imposed her conditions and exactions. I had above all
to remind myself that with Vereker's death the major incentive
dropped. He was still there to be honoured by what might be done -
he was no longer there to give it his sanction. Who alas but he
had the authority?
Two children were born to the pair, but the second cost the mother
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Damnation of Theron Ware by Harold Frederic: "Well, since you are out, stay out," she answered,
as reassuringly as she could. "But get up and take
a seat here beside me, like a sensible man, and tell
me all about it. Come! I insist!"
In obedience to her tone, and the sharp tug at his shoulder
with which she emphasized it, he got slowly to his feet,
and listlessly seated himself on the sofa to which
she pointed. He hung his head, and began catching
his breath with a periodical gasp, half hiccough, half sob.
"First of all," she said, in her brisk, matter-of-fact manner,
"don't you want to lie down there again, and have me tuck
The Damnation of Theron Ware |
