| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart: as gentle as a baby's.
"Pretty good shape," he said. "How did you sleep?"
"Oh, occasionally," I replied. "I would like to sit up, doctor."
"Nonsense. Take a rest while you have an excuse for it. I wish to
thunder I could stay in bed for a day or so. I was up all night."
"Have a drink," McKnight said, pushing over the bottle.
"Twins!" The doctor grinned.
"Have two drinks."
But the medical man refused.
"I wouldn't even wear a champagne-colored necktie during business
hours," he explained. "By the way, I had another case from your
The Man in Lower Ten |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Ion by Plato: does not understand the meaning of the poet. For the rhapsode ought to
interpret the mind of the poet to his hearers, but how can he interpret him
well unless he knows what he means? All this is greatly to be envied.
ION: Very true, Socrates; interpretation has certainly been the most
laborious part of my art; and I believe myself able to speak about Homer
better than any man; and that neither Metrodorus of Lampsacus, nor
Stesimbrotus of Thasos, nor Glaucon, nor any one else who ever was, had as
good ideas about Homer as I have, or as many.
SOCRATES: I am glad to hear you say so, Ion; I see that you will not
refuse to acquaint me with them.
ION: Certainly, Socrates; and you really ought to hear how exquisitely I
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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 Grimm's Fairy Tales by Brothers Grimm: your slaughterers to cut off the head of the horse I rode upon, for it
was very unruly, and plagued me sadly on the road'; but the truth was,
she was very much afraid lest Falada should some day or other speak,
and tell all she had done to the princess. She carried her point, and
the faithful Falada was killed; but when the true princess heard of
it, she wept, and begged the man to nail up Falada's head against a
large dark gate of the city, through which she had to pass every
morning and evening, that there she might still see him sometimes.
Then the slaughterer said he would do as she wished; and cut off the
head, and nailed it up under the dark gate.
Early the next morning, as she and Curdken went out through the gate,
Grimm's Fairy Tales |
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 Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane: spondent and sullen, and threw shifting glances
about him. He looked ahead, often expecting to
hear from the advance the rattle of firing.
But the long serpents crawled slowly from
hill to hill without bluster of smoke. A dun-col-
ored cloud of dust floated away to the right.
The sky overhead was of a fairy blue.
The youth studied the faces of his compan-
ions, ever on the watch to detect kindred emo-
tions. He suffered disappointment. Some ardor
of the air which was causing the veteran com-
The Red Badge of Courage |
