| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Dream Life and Real Life by Olive Schreiner: 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
friend; you don't know!"
The older spoke softly and quickly, "Don't you feel a little gentle to her
when you think she's going to be his wife and the mother of his child? I
would like to put my arms round her and touch her once, if she would let
me. She is so beautiful, they say."
"Oh, I could never bear to see her; it would kill me. And they are so
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Moon-Face and Other Stories by Jack London: To me there is something fascinating in a drunken man, and were I a college
president I should institute P.G. psychology courses in practical drunkenness.
It would beat the books and compete with the laboratory.
"All of which is neither here nor there, for after sixteen hours of it, early
next morning, the whole push was COPPED by an overwhelming array of constables
and carted off to jail. After breakfast, about ten o'clock, we were lined
upstairs into court, limp and spiritless, the twenty of us. And there, under
his purple panoply, nose crooked like a Napoleonic eagle and eyes glittering
and beady, sat Sol Glenhart.
"'John Ambrose!' the clerk called out, and Chi Slim, with the ease of long
practice, stood up.
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| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from 1984 by George Orwell: used to sleeping with a strong light on his face. It seemed to make no
difference, except that one's dreams were more coherent. He dreamed a
great deal all through this time, and they were always happy dreams. He
was in the Golden Country, or he was sitting among enormous glorious,
sunlit ruins, with his mother, with Julia, with O'Brien--not doing
anything, merely sitting in the sun, talking of peaceful things. Such
thoughts as he had when he was awake were mostly about his dreams. He
seemed to have lost the power of intellectual effort, now that the
stimulus of pain had been removed. He was not bored, he had no desire
for conversation or distraction. Merely to be alone, not to be beaten
or questioned, to have enough to eat, and to be clean all over, was
1984 |
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 The Underground City by Jules Verne: never have hoped to attain on the surface of the county.
Dozens of babies, who were born at the time when the works
were resumed, had never yet breathed the outer air.
This made Jack Ryan remark, "It's eighteen months since they were weaned,
and they have not yet seen daylight!"
It may be mentioned here, that one of the first to run at the engineer's
call was Jack Ryan. The merry fellow had
thought it his duty to return to his old trade.
But though Melrose farm had lost singer and piper it must
not be thought that Jack Ryan sung no more. On the contrary,
the sonorous echoes of New Aberfoyle exerted their strong lungs
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