| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from La Grande Breteche by Honore de Balzac: reasons for such eccentricity?'
"At these words an expression, which revealed all the pleasure which
men feel who are accustomed to ride a hobby, overspread the lawyer's
countenance. He pulled up the collar of his shirt with an air, took
out his snuffbox, opened it, and offered me a pinch; on my refusing,
he took a large one. He was happy! A man who has no hobby does not
know all the good to be got out of life. A hobby is the happy medium
between a passion and a monomania. At this moment I understood the
whole bearing of Sterne's charming passion, and had a perfect idea of
the delight with which my uncle Toby, encouraged by Trim, bestrode his
hobby-horse.
La Grande Breteche |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from An Old Maid by Honore de Balzac: vainly seeking to put into her life those interests which make the
Woman, and finding herself forced to be still unmarried, she fortified
her virtue by stern religious practices. She had recourse to religion,
the great consoler of oppressed virginity. A confessor had, for the
last three years, directed Mademoiselle Cormon rather stupidly in the
path of maceration; he advised the use of scourging, which, if modern
medical science is to be believed, produces an effect quite the
contrary to that expected by the worthy priest, whose hygienic
knowledge was not extensive.
These absurd practices were beginning to shed a monastic tint over the
face of Rose Cormon, who now saw with something like despair her white
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Dream Life and Real Life by Olive Schreiner: to compensate him. She is a woman whom any man might have loved, so young
and beautiful; her family are famed for their intellect. If he trains her,
she may make him a better wife than any other woman would have done."
"Oh, but I can't bear it--I can't bear it!" The younger woman sat down in
the chair. "She will be his wife, and have his children."
"Yes." The elder woman moved quickly. "One wants to have the child, and
lay its head on one's breast and feed it." She moved quickly. "It would
not matter if another woman bore it, if one had it to take care of." She
moved restlessly.
"Oh, no, I couldn't bear it to be hers. When I think of her I feel as if I
were dying; all my fingers turn cold; I feel dead. Oh, you were only his
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