| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Reason Discourse by Rene Descartes: they possessed greater reason than any of us, and could surpass us in all
things; on the contrary, it rather proves that they are destitute of
reason, and that it is nature which acts in them according to the
disposition of their organs: thus it is seen, that a clock composed only
of wheels and weights can number the hours and measure time more exactly
than we with all our skin.
I had after this described the reasonable soul, and shown that it could by
no means be educed from the power of matter, as the other things of which
I had spoken, but that it must be expressly created; and that it is not
sufficient that it be lodged in the human body exactly like a pilot in a
ship, unless perhaps to move its members, but that it is necessary for it
Reason Discourse |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Ancient Regime by Charles Kingsley: opinion; cautious in putting it into effect; patient under evils
which seem irremediable; persevering in abolishing such as seem
remediable; and then only too ready to acquiesce in the earliest
practical result; to "rest and be thankful." His faults, as well as
his virtues, make him anti-revolutionary. He is generally too dull
to take in a great idea; and if he does take it in, often too
selfish to apply it to any interest save his own. But now and then,
when the sense of actual injury forces upon him a great idea, like
that of Free-trade or of Parliamentary Reform, he is indomitable,
however slow and patient, in translating his thought into fact: and
they will not be wise statesmen who resist his dogged determination.
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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 The Death of the Lion by Henry James: generous rapture. She positively desired to do something sublime
for him, though indeed I could see that, as this particular flight
was difficult, she appreciated the fact that my visits kept her up.
I had it on my conscience to keep her up: I neglected nothing that
would contribute to it, and her conception of our cherished
author's independence became at last as fine as his very own.
"Read him, read him - THAT will be an education in decency," I
constantly repeated; while, seeking him in his works even as God in
nature, she represented herself as convinced that, according to my
assurance, this was the system that had, as she expressed it,
weaned her. We read him together when I could find time, and the
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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 Alkahest by Honore de Balzac: reconstruct nations and individuals, in their habits and ways of life,
from the remains of public monuments or the relics of a home.
Archaeology is to social nature what comparative anatomy is to
organized nature. A mosaic tells the tale of a society, as the
skeleton of an ichthyosaurus opens up a creative epoch. All things are
linked together, and all are therefore deducible. Causes suggest
effects, effects lead back to causes. Science resuscitates even the
warts of the past ages.
Hence the keen interest inspired by an architectural description,
provided the imagination of the writer does not distort essential
facts. The mind is enabled by rigid deduction to link it with the
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