| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Girl with the Golden Eyes by Honore de Balzac: that of the Hotel San-Real, told me the same thing," replied the
postman.
"Good! my master knows him," said Laurent, to himself. "Do you know,"
he went on, leering at the postman, "I serve a master who is a rare
man, and if he took it into his head to kiss the sole of the foot of
an empress, she would have to give in to him. If he had need of you,
which is what I wish for you, for he is generous, could one count on
you?"
"Lord, Monsieur Laurent, my name is Moinot. My name is written exactly
like /Moineau/, magpie: M-o-i-n-o-t, Moinot."
"Exactly," said Laurent.
The Girl with the Golden Eyes |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Lady Baltimore by Owen Wister: than this, South Carolina looks down on the whole South."
"Not Virginia."
"Not? An 'entire stranger,' you know, sometimes notices things which
escape the family eye--family likenesses in the children, for instance."
"Never Virginia," she persisted.
"Very well, very well! Somehow you've admitted the rest, however."
She began to smile.
"And next, Kings Port looks down on all the rest of South Carolina."
She now laughed outright. "An up-country girl will not deny that,
anyhow!"
"And finally, your aunts--"
|
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Happy Prince and Other Tales by Oscar Wilde: Hans was very much distressed at times, as he was afraid his
flowers would think he had forgotten them, but he consoled himself
by the reflection that the Miller was his best friend. 'Besides,'
he used to say, 'he is going to give me his wheelbarrow, and that
is an act of pure generosity.'
"So little Hans worked away for the Miller, and the Miller said all
kinds of beautiful things about friendship, which Hans took down in
a note-book, and used to read over at night, for he was a very good
scholar.
"Now it happened that one evening little Hans was sitting by his
fireside when a loud rap came at the door. It was a very wild
|
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 Mansfield Park by Jane Austen: it was better for Miss Bertram, who might be said to have
two strings to her bow. She had Rushworth feelings,
and Crawford feelings, and in the vicinity of Sotherton
the former had considerable effect. Mr. Rushworth's
consequence was hers. She could not tell Miss Crawford
that "those woods belonged to Sotherton," she could not
carelessly observe that "she believed that it was now
all Mr. Rushworth's property on each side of the road,"
without elation of heart; and it was a pleasure to increase
with their approach to the capital freehold mansion,
and ancient manorial residence of the family, with all
Mansfield Park |
