| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare: And you.
HELENA.
Sir, I have seen you in the court of France.
GENTLEMAN.
I have been sometimes there.
HELENA.
I do presume, sir, that you are not fallen
From the report that goes upon your goodness;
And therefore, goaded with most sharp occasions,
Which lay nice manners by, I put you to
The use of your own virtues, for the which
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Sesame and Lilies by John Ruskin: some of the poor women about you to spin and weave, till you have
got stuff that can be trusted: and then, every day, make some
little piece of useful clothing, sewn with your own fingers as
strongly as it can be stitched; and embroider it or otherwise
beautify it moderately with fine needlework, such as a girl may be
proud of having done. And accumulate these things by you until you
hear of some honest persons in need of clothing, which may often too
sorrowfully be; and, even though you should be deceived, and give
them to the dishonest, and hear of their being at once taken to the
pawnbroker's, never mind that, for the pawnbroker must sell them to
some one who has need of them. That is no business of yours; what
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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 Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: She assumed an injured air as they came in, never lifted her eyes
from her book, or asked a single question. Perhaps curiosity
might have conquered resentment, if Beth had not been there to
inquire and receive a glowing description of the play. On going
up to put away her best hat, Jo's first look was toward the
bureau, for in their last quarrel Amy had soothed her feelings
by turning Jo's top drawer upside down on the floor. Everything
was in its place, however, and after a hasty glance into her
various closets, bags, and boxes, Jo decided that Amy had
forgiven and forgotten her wrongs.
There Jo was mistaken, for next day she made a discovery
 Little Women |
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 To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf: appearance of a leader making ready for an expedition. Then, wheeling
about, he led the way with his firm military tread, in those wonderful
boots, carrying brown paper parcels, down the path, his children
following him. They looked, she thought, as if fate had devoted them
to some stern enterprise, and they went to it, still young enough to be
drawn acquiescent in their father's wake, obediently, but with a pallor
in their eyes which made her feel that they suffered something beyond
their years in silence. So they passed the edge of the lawn, and it
seemed to Lily that she watched a procession go, drawn on by some
stress of common feeling which made it, faltering and flagging as it
was, a little company bound together and strangely impressive to her.
 To the Lighthouse |