| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Prince Otto by Robert Louis Stevenson: bilious; he has a saturnine eye; his cheek is of a dark blue where
he has been shaven. Essentially he is to be numbered among the man-
haters, a convinced contemner of his fellows. Yet he is himself of
a commonplace ambition and greedy of applause. In talk, he is
remarkable for a thirst of information, loving rather to hear than
to communicate; for sound and studious views; and, judging by the
extreme short-sightedness of common politicians, for a remarkable
provision of events. All this, however, without grace, pleasantry,
or charm, heavily set forth, with a dull countenance. In our
numerous conversations, although he has always heard me with
deference, I have been conscious throughout of a sort of ponderous
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Tono Bungay by H. G. Wells: end, though Ewart devoted an interesting week to the matter. He
let his unfortunate disposition to irony run away with him. He
produced a picture of two beavers with a subtle likeness, he
said, to myself and my uncle--the likeness to my uncle certainly
wasn't half bad--and they were bottling rows and rows of
Tono-Bungay, with the legend "Modern commerce." It certainly
wouldn't have sold a case, though he urged it on me one cheerful
evening on the ground that it would "arouse curiosity." In
addition he produced a quite shocking study of my uncle,
excessively and needlessly nude, but, so far as I was able to
judge, an admirable likeness, engaged in feats of strength of a
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne: the profession at that era in which intellectual ability
displayed itself far more than in political life; for -- leaving
a higher motive out of the question it offered inducements
powerful enough in the almost worshipping respect of the
community, to win the most aspiring ambition into its service.
Even political power -- as in the case of Increase Mather -- was
within the grasp of a successful priest.
It was the observation of those who beheld him now, that never,
since Mr. Dimmesdale first set his foot on the New England
shore, had he exhibited such energy as was seen in the gait and
The Scarlet Letter |
