| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Witch, et. al by Anton Chekhov: he held his cards under his right arm or in the crook of his
elbow while he played with the left. The ship was rolling
heavily. They could not stand up, nor drink tea, nor take their
medicines.
"Were you an officer's servant?" Pavel Ivanitch asked Gusev.
"Yes, an officer's servant."
"My God, my God!" said Pavel Ivanitch, and he shook his head
mournfully. "To tear a man out of his home, drag him twelve
thousand miles away, then to drive him into consumption and. . .
and what is it all for, one wonders? To turn him into a servant
for some Captain Kopeikin or midshipman Dirka! How logical!"
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain: and a sort of war-whoop was sent forth perfectly unprecedented
in my recollection upon any occasion whatever.
An ardent desire for approbation, and a delicate sensitiveness under censure,
have always, I believe, been considered as amiable traits of character;
but the condition into which the appearance of Captain Hall's work threw
the republic shows plainly that these feelings, if carried to excess,
produce a weakness which amounts to imbecility.
It was perfectly astonishing to hear men who, on other subjects,
were of some judgment, utter their opinions upon this.
I never heard of any instance in which the commonsense generally
found in national criticism was so overthrown by passion.
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Lesson of the Master by Henry James: delight at this kindness; nevertheless he mentioned in weak jocose
qualification the bare fact that he had promised to go to another
place which was at a considerable distance.
"Well then you'll break your promise, that's all. You quite awful
humbug!" St. George added in a tone that confirmed our young man's
ease.
"Certainly I'll break it - but it was a real promise."
"Do you mean to Miss Fancourt? You're following her?" his friend
asked.
He answered by a question. "Oh is SHE going?"
"Base impostor!" his ironic host went on. "I've treated you
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