| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald: "This is just a friend. I told you we'd talk about that some other
time."
"I beg your pardon," said Mr. Wolfshiem, "I had a wrong man."
A succulent hash arrived, and Mr. Wolfshiem, forgetting the more
sentimental atmosphere of the old Metropole, began to eat with
ferocious delicacy. His eyes, meanwhile, roved very slowly all around the
room--he completed the arc by turning to inspect the people directly
behind. I think that, except for my presence, he would have taken one
short glance beneath our own table.
"Look here, old sport," said Gatsby, leaning toward me, "I'm afraid I
made you a little angry this morning in the car."
The Great Gatsby |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Eugenie Grandet by Honore de Balzac: under shelter of your name. Let us have mutual indulgence. We have
known each other so long that we are almost related; you would not
wish to render me unhappy."
The president fell at the feet of the rich heiress, his heart beating
and wrung with joy.
"I will be your slave!" he said.
"When you obtain the receipts, monsieur," she resumed, with a cold
glance, "you will take them with all the other papers to my cousin
Grandet, and you will give him this letter. On your return I will keep
my word."
The president understood perfectly that he owed the acquiescence of
Eugenie Grandet |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Pool in the Desert by Sara Jeanette Duncan: saw that, I think, before we saw anything else. Then with as little
haste as was decent, considering His Excellency's proximity, we
walked within range of the picture.
I am not particularly pleased, even now, to have the task of
describing the thing. Its subject was an old Mahomedan priest with
a green turban and a white beard exhorting a rabble of followers. I
heard myself saying to Dora that it was very well painted indeed,
very conscientiously painted, and that is certainly what struck me.
The expression of the fire-eater's face was extremely
characteristic; his arm was flung out with a gesture that perfectly
matched. The group of listeners was carefully composed and most
|
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 The People That Time Forgot by Edgar Rice Burroughs: "Seems like an hour," snapped Short. "What's that? Did you
hear that? He's firing! It's the machine-gun! Oh, Lord; and
here we are as helpless as a lot of old ladies ten thousand
miles away! We can't do a thing. We don't know what's happening.
Why didn't he let one of us go with him?"
Yes, it was the machine-gun. We would hear it distinctly for
at least a minute. Then came silence. That was two weeks ago.
We have had no sign nor signal from Tom Billings since.
Chapter 2
I'll never forget my first impressions of Caspak as I circled
in, high over the surrounding cliffs. From the plane I looked
The People That Time Forgot |
