| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Philebus by Plato: have ended rather in aspiration than in action, and have been found unequal
to the duties of life. Looking back on them now that they are removed from
the scene, we feel that mankind has been the better for them. The world
was against them while they lived; but this is rather a reason for admiring
than for depreciating them. Nor can any one doubt that the influence of
their philosophy on politics--especially on foreign politics, on law, on
social life, has been upon the whole beneficial. Nevertheless, they will
never have justice done to them, for they do not agree either with the
better feeling of the multitude or with the idealism of more refined
thinkers. Without Bentham, a great word in the history of philosophy would
have remained unspoken. Yet to this day it is rare to hear his name
|
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 Where There's A Will by Mary Roberts Rinehart: sensible."
"You'll be a long ways off soon," I said, touching the ring under
my hand.
"I wish you could come with me," she said, but I shook my head.
"Here is one dog that isn't going to sit under any rich man's
table and howl for crumbs," I answered. "If he kicked ME, I'd
bite him."
At eleven o'clock we had the clambake with beer in the
kitchen, and Mr. von Inwald came, after all. They were really
very cheerful, all of them. Doctor Barnes insisted that Senator
Biggs must not fast any longer, and he ate by my count three
|
