| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Market-Place by Harold Frederic: "I know where it is," she suddenly announced,
and forthwith closed the desk. Moving off into the
remoter recesses of the crowded interior, she returned
to the light with the bit of pasteboard in her hand.
"I'd stuck it in the little mirror over the washstand,"
she explained.
He almost snatched it from her, and stood up the better to
examine it under the gas-light. "Where is Montague Street?"
he asked, with rough directness.
"In Bloomsbury--alongside the Museum. That's one Montague
Street--I don't know how many others there may be."
The Market-Place |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence: know what all. I'm sure it's awful, the mischief a woman can do, once
she starts talking. And no matter how low she may be, there'll be some
as will believe her, and some of the dirt will stick. I'm sure the way
she makes out that Mr Mellors was one of those low, beastly men with
women, is simply shocking. And people are only too ready to believe
things against anybody, especially things like that. She declared
she'll never leave him alone while he lives. Though what I say is, if
he was so beastly to her, why is she so anxious to go back to him? But
of course she's coming near her change of life, for she's years older
than he is. And these common, violent women always go partly insane
whets the change of life comes upon them--
Lady Chatterley's Lover |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from A Lover's Complaint by William Shakespeare: Even there resolv'd my reason into tears;
There my white stole of chastity I daff'd,
Shook off my sober guards, and civil fears;
Appear to him, as he to me appears,
All melting; though our drops this difference bore:
His poison'd me, and mine did him restore.
'In him a plenitude of subtle matter,
Applied to cautels, all strange forms receives,
Of burning blushes or of weeping water,
Or swooning paleness; and he takes and leaves,
In either's aptness, as it best deceives,
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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 Facino Cane by Honore de Balzac: prison to the gondola. The sentinel at the water gate was bribed with
a bag containing ten livres weight of gold; and as far as the two
gondoliers, they believed they were serving the Republic. At daybreak
we set out.
"Once upon the open sea, when I thought of that night, when I
recollected all that I had felt, when the vision of that great hoard
rose before my eyes, and I computed that I had left behind thirty
millions in silver, twenty in gold, and many more in diamonds, pearls,
and rubies--then a sort of madness began to work in me. I had the gold
fever.
"We landed at Smyrna and took ship at once for France. As we went on
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