| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Marie by H. Rider Haggard: Good.
These three narratives are, indeed, more or less connected with each
other. At least, a certain aged dwarf, called Zikali, a witch-doctor
and an terrible man, has to do with all of them, although in the first,
"Marie," he is only vaguely mentioned in connection with the massacre of
Retief, whereof he was doubtless the primary instigator. As "Marie"
comes first in chronological order, and was placed on the top of the
pile by its author, I publish it first. With the others I hope to deal
later on, as I may find time and opportunity.
But the future must take care of itself. We cannot control it, and its
events are not in our hand. Meanwhile, I hope that those who in their
Marie |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from 1984 by George Orwell: to a particular person and took its colour from that fact.
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was
their final, most essential command. His heart sank as he thought of
the enormous power arrayed against him, the ease with which any Party
intellectual would overthrow him in debate, the subtle arguments which he
would not be able to understand, much less answer. And yet he was in the
right! They were wrong and he was right. The obvious, the silly, and the
true had got to be defended. Truisms are true, hold on to that! The solid
world exists, its laws do not change. Stones are hard, water is wet,
objects unsupported fall towards the earth's centre. With the feeling that
he was speaking to O'Brien, and also that he was setting forth an important
1984 |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave by Frederick Douglass: by the cruel and blighting death which gathers over
his soul.
In connection with this, there is one circumstance
which makes your recollections peculiarly valuable,
and renders your early insight the more remarkable.
You come from that part of the country where we
are told slavery appears with its fairest features. Let
us hear, then, what it is at its best estate--gaze on
its bright side, if it has one; and then imagination
may task her powers to add dark lines to the picture,
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave |
