| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Statesman by Plato: have been themselves of aristocratic origin. The people are expecting to
be governed by representatives of their own, but the true man of the people
either never appears, or is quickly altered by circumstances. Their real
wishes hardly make themselves felt, although their lower interests and
prejudices may sometimes be flattered and yielded to for the sake of
ulterior objects by those who have political power. They will often learn
by experience that the democracy has become a plutocracy. The influence of
wealth, though not the enjoyment of it, has become diffused among the poor
as well as among the rich; and society, instead of being safer, is more at
the mercy of the tyrant, who, when things are at the worst, obtains a
guard--that is, an army--and announces himself as the saviour.
Statesman |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Hiero by Xenophon: [11] Lit. "the incidents of waking life present sensations of a more
vivid character."
To this statement Hiero made answer: And I, for my part, O Simonides,
would find it hard to state, outside the list of things which you have
named yourself, in what respect the despot can have other channels of
perception.[12] So that up to this point I do not see that the
despotic life differs in any way at all from that of common people.
[12] i.e. "being like constituted, the autocratic person has no other
sources of perception: he has no claim to a wider gamut of
sensation, and consequently thus far there is not a pin to choose
between the life of the despot and that of a private person."
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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 Hated Son by Honore de Balzac: instrument, had precautions been taken with such mystery as in this
case. Though his death had often been threatened as a means of
assuring the secrecy of enterprises in which he had taken part against
his will, his life had never been so endangered as at that moment. He
resolved, before all things, to find out who it was who now employed
him, and to discover the actual extent of his danger, in order to
save, if possible, his own little person.
"What is the trouble?" he said to the countess in a low voice, as he
placed her in a manner to receive his help.
"Do not give him the child--"
"Speak loud!" cried the count in thundering tones which prevented
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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 Two Poets by Honore de Balzac: upon it.
"May I not know the secret?" she pleaded coaxingly.
"You have a right to know it, for your father was interested in the
matter, and to-day it is a pressing question, and for this reason.
Since the downfall of the Empire, calico has come more and more into
use, because it is so much cheaper than linen. At the present moment,
paper is made of a mixture of hemp and linen rags, but the raw
material is dear, and the expense naturally retards the great advance
which the French press is bound to make. Now you cannot increase the
output of linen rags, a given population gives a pretty constant
result, and it only increases with the birth-rate. To make any
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