| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Hellenica by Xenophon: receive them, nor were the prayers of Tissaphernes of any avail,
however much he insisted that Cyrus should adopt the policy which he
himself, on the advice of Alcibiades, had persistently acted on. This
was simply not to suffer any single Hellenic state to grow strong at
the expense of the rest, but to keep them all weak alike, distracted
by internecine strife.
[5] An obol = one-sixth of a drachma; the Attic obol = rather more
than 1 1/2 pence.
Lysander, now that the organisation of his navy was arranged to his
satisfaction, beached his squadron of ninety vessels at Ephesus, and
sat with hands folded, whilst the vessels dried and underwent repairs.
|
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from A Personal Record by Joseph Conrad: adventure! "Life," in the words of an immortal thinker of, I
should say, bucolic origin, but whose perishable name is lost to
the worship of posterity--"life is not all beer and skittles."
Neither is the writing of novels. It isn't, really. Je vous
donne ma parole d'honneur that it--is--not. Not ALL. I am thus
emphatic because some years ago, I remember, the daughter of a
general. . . .
Sudden revelations of the profane world must have come now and
then to hermits in their cells, to the cloistered monks of middle
ages, to lonely sages, men of science, reformers; the revelations
of the world's superficial judgment, shocking to the souls
A Personal Record |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Dracula by Bram Stoker: And so now, Art, you know all I know. I shall keep stern watch.
I trust your poor father is rallying. It must be a terrible
thing to you, my dear old fellow, to be placed in such a position
between two people who are both so dear to you. I know your
idea of duty to your father, and you are right to stick to it.
But if need be, I shall send you word to come at once to Lucy,
so do not be over-anxious unless you hear from me."
DR. SEWARD'S DIARY
4 September.--Zoophagous patient still keeps up our interest in him.
He had only one outburst and that was yesterday at an unusual time.
Just before the stroke of noon he began to grow restless.
Dracula |
