| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Symposium by Xenophon: proof itself of a true lover's nature.
[17] Lit. "many a foreign visitor likewise."
[18] See the Attic type of character, as drawn by Pericles, Thuc. ii.
40.
Whether indeed Aphrodite be one or twain[19] in personality, the
heavenly and the earthly, I cannot tell, for Zeus, who is one and
indivisible, bears many titles.[20] But this thing I know, that these
twain have separate altars, shrines, and sacrifices,[21] as befits
their nature--she that is earthly, of a lighter and a laxer sort; she
that is heavenly, purer and holier in type. And you may well
conjecture, it is the earthly goddess, the common Aphrodite, who sends
The Symposium |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Salammbo by Gustave Flaubert: their eagerness, asked for a small mouthful, merely to try, they said.
Bolder ones came up; their number increased; there was soon a crowd.
But almost all of them let their hands fall on feeling the cold flesh
on the edge of their lips; others, on the contrary, devoured it with
delight.
That they might be led away by example, they urged one another on
mutually. Such as had at first refused went to see the Garamantians,
and returned no more. They cooked the pieces on coals at the point of
the sword; they salted them with dust, and contended for the best
morsels. When nothing was left of the three corpses, their eyes ranged
over the whole plain to find others.
Salammbo |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Madame Firmiani by Honore de Balzac: A Woman: "Madame Firmiani? I don't wish you to visit her>" This remark
is rich in meanings. Madame Firmiani! dangerous woman! a siren!
dresses well, has taste; gives other women sleepless nights. Your
informant belongs to the genus Spiteful.
An Attache to an embassy: "Madame Firmiani? Isn't she from Antwerp? I
saw her ten years ago in Rome; she was very handsome then."
Individuals of the species Attache have a mania for talking in the
style of Talleyrand. Their wit is often so refined that the point is
imperceptible; they are like billiard-players who avoid hitting the
ball with consummate dexterity. These individuals are usually
taciturn, and when they talk it is only about Spain, Vienna, Italy, or
|
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 Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin: they were mutinous and quarrelsome, finding fault with their pork,
the bread, etc., and in continual ill-humor, which put me in mind
of a sea-captain, whose rule it was to keep his men constantly
at work; and, when his mate once told him that they had done
every thing, and there was nothing further to employ them about,
"Oh," says he, "Make them scour the anchor."
This kind of fort, however contemptible, is a sufficient defense
against Indians, who have no cannon. Finding ourselves now posted
securely, and having a place to retreat to on occasion, we ventur'd
out in parties to scour the adjacent country. We met with no Indians,
but we found the places on the neighboring hills where they had lain
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin |
