| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Commission in Lunacy by Honore de Balzac: during the years 1816, 17, and 18, a time when families were
recovering from the disasters resulting from political tempests. She
belonged to one of the most important and illustrious families of the
Faubourg Saint-Germain, and her parents advised her to live with them
as much as possible after the separation forced upon her by her
husband's inexplicable caprice.
In 1820 the Marquise roused herself from her lethargy; she went to
Court, appeared at parties, and entertained in her own house. From
1821 to 1827 she lived in great style, and made herself remarked for
her taste and her dress; she had a day, an hour, for receiving visits,
and ere long she had seated herself on the throne, occupied before her
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Dreams by Olive Schreiner: high above their heads, and stern faces set, neither man nor beast, they
looked out across the desert sand, watching, watching, watching! I did not
ask God what they were, for I knew what the answer would be.
And, further and yet further, in the evening light, I looked with my shaded
eyes.
Far off, where the sands were thick and heavy, I saw a solitary pillar
standing: the crown had fallen, and the sand had buried it. On the broken
pillar sat a grey owl-of-the-desert, with folded wings; and in the evening
light I saw the desert fox creep past it, trailing his brush across the
sand.
Further, yet further, as I looked across the desert, I saw the sand
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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 Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery: what it must feel like to be divinely beautiful?"
"Well now, no, I haven't," confessed Matthew ingenuously.
"I have, often. Which would you rather be if you had the
choice--divinely beautiful or dazzlingly clever or
angelically good?"
"Well now, I--I don't know exactly."
"Neither do I. I can never decide. But it doesn't make
much real difference for it isn't likely I'll ever be
either. It's certain I'll never be angelically good.
Mrs. Spencer says--oh, Mr. Cuthbert! Oh, Mr. Cuthbert!!
Oh, Mr. Cuthbert!!!"
Anne of Green Gables |
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 Virginian by Owen Wister: complacence. "You got ready to dodge. You had no call to be
concerned. He's not the kind a man need feel anxious about."
The player looked over at the Virginian, doubtfully. "Well," he
said, "I don't know what you folks call a dangerous man."
"Not him!" exclaimed the dealer with admiration. "He's a brave
man. That's different."
The player seemed to follow this reasoning no better than I did.
"It's not a brave man that's dangerous," continued the dealer.
"It's the cowards that scare me." He paused that this might sink
home.
"Fello' came in here las' Toosday," he went on. "He got into some
The Virginian |
