| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Young Forester by Zane Grey: breathe. Fire must inevitably complete this work of ruin; already I was
forester enough to see that.
Presently the trail crossed a railroad track which appeared to have been
hastily constructed. Swinging along at a rapid step on the ties I soon
reached the outskirts of the huge stacks of lumber; I must have walked half
a mile between two yellow walls. Then I entered the lumber camp.
It was even worse-looking than the slash. Rows of dirty tents, lines of
squatty log-cabins, and many flat-board houses clustered around an immense
sawmill. Evidently I had arrived at the noon hour, for the mill was not
running, and many rough men were lounging about smoking pipes. At the door
of the first shack stood a fat, round-faced Negro wearing a long, dirty
The Young Forester |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain: of the steamboat."
"Oh, you did, did you? Strike a light there, some-
body. What did you say your name was?"
"George Jackson, sir. I'm only a boy."
"Look here, if you're telling the truth you needn't
be afraid -- nobody'll hurt you. But don't try to
budge; stand right where you are. Rouse out Bob
and Tom, some of you, and fetch the guns. George
Jackson, is there anybody with you?"
"No, sir, nobody."
I heard the people stirring around in the house now,
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from My Antonia by Willa Cather: car now, and she don't seem so far away from me as she used to.
But her husband's crazy about his farm and about having
everything just right, and they almost never get away
except on Sundays. He's a handsome boy, and he'll be rich
some day. Everything he takes hold of turns out well.
When they bring that baby in here, and unwrap him, he looks
like a little prince; Martha takes care of him so beautiful.
I'm reconciled to her being away from me now, but at first I
cried like I was putting her into her coffin.'
We were alone in the kitchen, except for Anna, who was pouring
cream into the churn. She looked up at me. `Yes, she did.
My Antonia |
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 Reason Discourse by Rene Descartes: be incapable of joining together different words, and thereby constructing
a declaration by which to make their thoughts understood; and that on the
other hand, there is no other animal, however perfect or happily
circumstanced, which can do the like. Nor does this inability arise from
want of organs: for we observe that magpies and parrots can utter words
like ourselves, and are yet unable to speak as we do, that is, so as to
show that they understand what they say; in place of which men born deaf
and dumb, and thus not less, but rather more than the brutes, destitute of
the organs which others use in speaking, are in the habit of spontaneously
inventing certain signs by which they discover their thoughts to those
who, being usually in their company, have leisure to learn their language.
Reason Discourse |
