| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Tanglewood Tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne: aside, and laughed. Even the servants, as they knelt down to
present the dishes, might be seen to grin and sneer, while the
guests were helping themselves to the offered dainties.
And, once in a while, the strangers seemed to taste something
that they did not like.
"Here is an odd kind of spice in this dish," said one. "I can't
say it quite suits my palate. Down it goes, however."
"Send a good draught of wine down your throat," said his
comrade on the next throne. "That is the stuff to make this
sort of cookery relish well. Though I must needs say, the wine
has a queer taste too. But the more I drink of it, the better I
Tanglewood Tales |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Unseen World and Other Essays by John Fiske: of the others (p. 34). Hence, they are all inhabited by human
beings. It is true that human beings must find Venus rather warm,
and are not unlikely to be seriously incommoded by the tropical
climate of Mercury. But we must remember that "the men of Venus
and Mercury are made by nature to resist heat, as those of
Jupiter and Saturn are made to endure cold, and those of the
Earth and Mars to live in a mean temperature: OTHERWISE THEY
COULD NOT EXIST" (p. 72). In view of this charming specimen of a
truly scientific inference, it is almost too bad to call
attention to the fact that M. Figuier is quite behind the age in
his statement of facts. So far from Jupiter and Saturn being
The Unseen World and Other Essays |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Witch, et. al by Anton Chekhov: her. Varvara heard about Lipa from the matchmakers, and she drove
over to Torguevo.
Then a visit of inspection was arranged at the aunt's, with lunch
and wine all in due order, and Lipa wore a new pink
dress made on purpose for this occasion, and a crimson ribbon
like a flame gleamed in her hair. She was pale-faced, thin, and
frail, with soft, delicate features sunburnt from working in the
open air; a shy, mournful smile always hovered about her face,
and there was a childlike look in her eyes, trustful and curious.
She was young, quite a little girl, her bosom still scarcely
perceptible, but she could be married because she had reached the
|
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 Statesman by Plato: of states, let us part them all off, and leave him alone; and, as I was
saying, a model or example of this process has first to be framed.
YOUNG SOCRATES: Exactly.
STRANGER: What model is there which is small, and yet has any analogy with
the political occupation? Suppose, Socrates, that if we have no other
example at hand, we choose weaving, or, more precisely, weaving of wool--
this will be quite enough, without taking the whole of weaving, to
illustrate our meaning?
YOUNG SOCRATES: Certainly.
STRANGER: Why should we not apply to weaving the same processes of
division and subdivision which we have already applied to other classes;
Statesman |
