| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Muse of the Department by Honore de Balzac: "Listen to me, Rinaldo. I will
say nothing of the craving for
vengeance that gnaws at my heart.
I have been here for thirty months
--you too are Italian--you will un-
OR ROMAN REVENGE 223
derstand me! Alas, my friend, my
fatigue and my horrible incarcera-
tion are nothing in comparison
with the rage that devours my soul.
The Duchess of Bracciano is still
The Muse of the Department |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: Mr. Laurence's more generous offers, and accepted the place of
bookkeeper, feeling better satisfied to begin with an honestly earned
salary than by running any risks with borrowed money.
Meg had spent the time in working as well as waiting, growing
womanly in character, wise in housewifely arts, and prettier than
ever, for love is a great beautifier. She had her girlish ambitions
and hopes, and felt some disappointment at the humble way in which
the new life must begin. Ned Moffat had just married Sallie Gardiner,
and Meg couldn't help contrasting their fine house and carriage,
many gifts, and splendid outfit with her own, and secretly wishing
she could have the same. But somehow envy and discontent soon
Little Women |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne: he is attached to the pump which sends him air through an
india-rubber tube, and if we were obliged to be thus held
to the Nautilus, we could not go far."
"And the means of getting free?" I asked.
"It is to use the Rouquayrol apparatus, invented by two of your
own countrymen, which I have brought to perfection for my own use,
and which will allow you to risk yourself under these new
physiological conditions without any organ whatever suffering.
It consists of a reservoir of thick iron plates, in which I store
the air under a pressure of fifty atmospheres. This reservoir is
fixed on the back by means of braces, like a soldier's knapsack.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea |
