| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Macbeth by William Shakespeare: 2 Appar. Macbeth, Macbeth, Macbeth
Macb. Had I three eares, Il'd heare thee
Appar. Be bloody, bold, & resolute:
Laugh to scorne
The powre of man: For none of woman borne
Shall harme Macbeth.
Descends.
Mac. Then liue Macduffe: what need I feare of thee?
But yet Ile make assurance: double sure,
And take a Bond of Fate: thou shalt not liue,
That I may tell pale-hearted Feare, it lies;
Macbeth |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from St. Ives by Robert Louis Stevenson: their different characters in that diagnostic moment of the
farewell: some escorted to the stirrup or the chaise door by the
chamberlain, the chambermaids and the waiters almost in a body,
others moving off under a cloud, without human countenance. In the
course of this I became interested in one for whom this ovation
began to assume the proportions of a triumph; not only the under-
servants, but the barmaid, the landlady, and my friend the
postmaster himself, crowding about the steps to speed his
departure. I was aware, at the same time, of a good deal of
merriment, as though the traveller were a man of a ready wit, and
not too dignified to air it in that society. I leaned forward with
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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 Persuasion by Jane Austen: Such, she believed, were his words; but scarcely had she
received their sound, than her attention was caught by other sounds
immediately behind her, which rendered every thing else trivial.
Her father and Lady Dalrymple were speaking.
"A well-looking man," said Sir Walter, "a very well-looking man."
"A very fine young man indeed!" said Lady Dalrymple. "More air
than one often sees in Bath. Irish, I dare say."
"No, I just know his name. A bowing acquaintance. Wentworth;
Captain Wentworth of the navy. His sister married my tenant
in Somersetshire, the Croft, who rents Kellynch."
Before Sir Walter had reached this point, Anne's eyes had caught
Persuasion |
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 Lost Continent by Edgar Rice Burroughs: feel her body quiver as she lay pressed close to me, our
cheeks almost touching as we both peered through the same
small opening in the foliage.
I turned to give her a reassuring smile as the lion
indicated that he had not seen us, and as I did so she, too,
turned her face toward mine, for the same purpose,
doubtless. Anyway, as our heads turned simultaneously, our
lips brushed together. A startled expression came into
Victory's eyes as she drew back in evident confusion.
As for me, the strangest sensation that I have ever
experienced claimed me for an instant. A peculiar, tingling
Lost Continent |
