| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Madame Firmiani by Honore de Balzac: Montenotte." So saying, the Practical man, rotund and fat and usually
dressed in black, will project his lower lip and wrap it over the
upper, nodding his head as if to add: "Solid people, those; nothing to
be said against them." Ask no further; Practical men settle
everybody's status by figures, incomes, or solid acres,--a phrase of
their lexicon.
Turn to the right, and put the same question to that other man, who
belongs to the species Lounger. "Madame Firmiani?" he says; "yes, yes,
I know her well; I go to her parties; receives Wednesdays; highly
creditable house."--Madame Firmiani is metamorphosed into a house! but
the house is not a pile of stones architecturally superposed, of
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Stories From the Old Attic by Robert Harris: from his town when he happened upon an old woman standing around a
rather smoky fire and stirring a kettle. Being the modern young man
that he was, he immediately blurted out his first impression:
"Gosh, you're ugly and whatever you're cooking stinks," he told her.
"Well, if you don't like my looks," answered the old woman, "I can
fix that." She then spoke a few strange words, which were followed
by a dramatic puff of smoke, and the young man discovered, not that
the old woman had transformed herself into a beautiful young maiden,
but that the young man could no longer see.
"Now I've protected you from all ugliness and every unpleasant
sight," said the woman. "And you'll remain this way until you can
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Sportsman by Xenophon: [25] So L. & S., {upotheousin} = "cut in before" the rest of the pack
and over-run the scent. Al. "flash in for a time, and then lose
the scent."
Many a hound will give up the chase and return from mere distaste for
hunting,[26] and not a few from pure affection for mankind. Others
with their clamorous yelping on the line do their best to deceive, as
if true and false were all one to them.[27] There are others that will
not do that, but which in the middle of their running,[28] should they
catch the echo of a sound from some other quarter, will leave their
own business and incontinently tear off towards it.[29] The fact
is,[30] they run on without clear motive, some of them; others taking
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