| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Lin McLean by Owen Wister: yet.
"It's good yu' come this forenoon," Lin said to me. "I'd not have had the
heart to get up another dinner just for myself. Let's eat rich!"
Accordingly, we had richly eaten, Lin and I. He had gone out among the
sheds and caught some eggs (that is how he spoke of it), we had opened a
number of things in cans, and I had made my famous dish of evaporated
apricots, in which I managed to fling a suspicion of caramel throughout
the stew.
"Tommy'll be hot about these," said Lin, joyfully, as we ate the eggs.
"He don't mind what yu' use of his canned goods--pickled salmon and
truck. He is hospitable all right enough till it comes to an egg. Then
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Within the Tides by Joseph Conrad: turn to hear a thump at the door and a sort of muffled raving
screech inside the captain's room. He thinks he hears his own
name, too, through the awful crash as the old Sagamore rises and
falls to a sea. That noise and that awful shock make him clear out
of the cabin. He collects his senses on the poop. But his heart
sinks a little at the black wildness of the night. Chances that he
will get drowned himself before long. Puts his head down the
companion. Through the wind and breaking seas he can hear the
noise of Stafford's beating against the door and cursing. He
listens and says to himself: No. Can't trust him now. . .
"When he gets back to the top of the deck-house he says to Captain
Within the Tides |
