| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Arrow of Gold by Joseph Conrad: of mockery lighter even than air.
He insisted to us that the first and only time he had seen Allegre
a little close was that morning in the Bois with his mother. His
Majesty (whom God preserve), then not even an active Pretender,
flanked the girl, still a girl, on the other side, the usual
companion for a month past or so. Allegre had suddenly taken it
into his head to paint his portrait. A sort of intimacy had sprung
up. Mrs. Blunt's remark was that of the two striking horsemen
Allegre looked the more kingly.
"The son of a confounded millionaire soap-boiler," commented Mr.
Blunt through his clenched teeth. "A man absolutely without
The Arrow of Gold |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Letters from England by Elizabeth Davis Bancroft: leisure to drive a little into the country, and on Tuesday I had a
pleasure of the highest order in driving down to Esher and passing a
quiet day with Lady Byron, the widow of the poet. She is an
intimate friend of Miss Murray, who has long wished us to see her
and desired her to name the day for our visit.
Esher is a little village about sixteen miles from London, and Lady
Byron has selected it as her residence, though her estates are in
Leicestershire, because it is near Lord and Lady Lovelace, her only
child, the "ADA" of poetry. We went in our own carriage, taking
Miss Murray with us, and as the country is now radiant with blossoms
and glowing green, the drive itself was very agreeable. We arrived
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne: and in that plunge I did not lose my presence of mind.
Two vigorous strokes brought me to the surface of the water.
My first care was to look for the frigate. Had the crew
seen me disappear? Had the Abraham Lincoln veered round?
Would the captain put out a boat? Might I hope to be saved?
The darkness was intense. I caught a glimpse of a black mass disappearing in
the east, its beacon lights dying out in the distance. It was the frigate!
I was lost.
"Help, help!" I shouted, swimming towards the Abraham Lincoln in desperation.
My clothes encumbered me; they seemed glued to my body,
and paralysed my movements.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea |
