| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Rise and Fall of Cesar Birotteau by Honore de Balzac: "Papa, don't forget Monsieur Andoche Finot and Monsieur Gaudissart,
two young men who are very useful to Monsieur Anselme."
"Gaudissart? he was once in the hands of justice. But never mind, he
is going to travel for our oil and starts in a few days; put him down.
As to the Sieur Andoche Finot, what is he to us?"
"Monsieur Anselme says he will be a great man; he has a mind like
Voltaire."
"An author? all atheists."
"Let's put him down, papa; we want more dancers. Besides, he wrote the
beautiful prospectus for the oil."
"He believes in my oil?" said Cesar, "then put him down, dear child."
 Rise and Fall of Cesar Birotteau |
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 Art of Writing by Robert Louis Stevenson: his services; he gave me excellent references; he proved that
he was highly fitted for the work I had to do; he, or my own
evil heart, suggested it was easy to disguise his ancient
livery wit a little lace and a few frogs and buttons, so that
Thackeray himself should hardly recognise him. And then of a
sudden there came to me memories of a young Irishman, with
whom I was once intimate, and had spent long nights walking
and talking with, upon a very desolate coast in a bleak
autumn: I recalled him as a youth of an extraordinary moral
simplicity - almost vacancy; plastic to any influence, the
creature of his admirations: and putting such a youth in
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