| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock: The friar fidgetted about in his seat: fell into a deep musing:
shook himself, and looked about him: first at Marian, then at Robin,
then at Marian again; filled and tossed off a cup of canary,
and relapsed into his reverie.
"Will you not bring your passenger over?" said Robin. The friar
shook his head and looked mysterious.
"That passenger," said the friar, "will never come over.
Every full moon, at midnight, that voice calls, 'Over!' I and my
varlet have more than once obeyed the summons, and we have sometimes
had a glimpse of a white figure under the opposite trees:
but when the boat has touched the bank, nothing has been to be seen;
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Apology by Xenophon: defence, but also as to the ending of his life. Others have written on
this theme, and all without exception have touched upon[3] the lofty
style of the philosopher,[4] which may be taken as a proof that the
language used by Socrates was really of that type. But none of these
writers has brought out clearly the fact that Socrates had come to
regard death as for himself preferable to life; and consequently there
is just a suspicion of foolhardiness in the arrogancy of his
address.[5] We have, however, from the lips of one of his intimate
acquaintances, Hermogenes,[6] the son of Hipponicus, an account of him
which shows the high demeanour in question to have been altogether in
keeping with the master's rational purpose.[7] Hermogenes says that,
The Apology |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: small degree of her surprise to her relations by acquainting them
with the honour which she expected. Her uncle and aunt were
all amazement; and the embarrassment of her manner as she
spoke, joined to the circumstance itself, and many of the
circumstances of the preceding day, opened to them a new idea
on the business. Nothing had ever suggested it before, but they
felt that there was no other way of accounting for such attentions
from such a quarter than by supposing a partiality for their niece.
While these newly-born notions were passing in their heads, the
perturbation of Elizabeth's feelings was at every moment
increasing. She was quite amazed at her own discomposure; but
Pride and Prejudice |
