| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from House of Mirth by Edith Wharton: was heightened by the light touch with which it was drawn, a
murmur of indignant sympathy broke from Trenor. Twenty-four hours
earlier, if his wife had consulted him on the subject of Miss
Bart's future, he would have said that a girl with extravagant
tastes and no money had better marry the first rich man she could
get; but with the subject of dis cussion at his side,
turning to him for sympathy, making him feel that he understood
her better than her dearest friends, and confirming the assurance
by the appeal of her exquisite nearness, he was ready to swear
that such a marriage was a desecration, and that, as a man of
honour, he was bound to do all he could to protect her from the
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Adam Bede by George Eliot: "Yes, my boy, yes--it's taken all the time since I first went; but
they're slow, they're slow; and there's the counsel they've got
for her puts a spoke in the wheel whenever he can, and makes a
deal to do with cross-examining the witnesses and quarrelling with
the other lawyers. That's all he can do for the money they give
him; and it's a big sum--it's a big sum. But he's a 'cute fellow,
with an eye that 'ud pick the needles out of the hay in no time.
If a man had got no feelings, it 'ud be as good as a demonstration
to listen to what goes on in court; but a tender heart makes one
stupid. I'd have given up figures for ever only to have had some
good news to bring to you, my poor lad."
 Adam Bede |