| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Mansfield Park by Jane Austen: spoke so seldom of _her_, and had so little voluntarily
to say of her concern at this separation.
Alas! it was this sister, this friend and companion,
who was now the chief bane of Fanny's comfort. If she
could have believed Mary's future fate as unconnected
with Mansfield as she was determined the brother's
should be, if she could have hoped her return thither
to be as distant as she was much inclined to think his,
she would have been light of heart indeed; but the more
she recollected and observed, the more deeply was she
convinced that everything was now in a fairer train
Mansfield Park |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Eugenie Grandet by Honore de Balzac: decorated the corners of the chimney-piece served a double purpose: by
taking off the side-branches, each of which held a socket, the main
stem--which was fastened to a pedestal of bluish marble tipped with
copper--made a candlestick for one candle, which was sufficient for
ordinary occasions. The chairs, antique in shape, were covered with
tapestry representing the fables of La Fontaine; it was necessary,
however, to know that writer well to guess at the subjects, for the
faded colors and the figures, blurred by much darning, were difficult
to distinguish.
At the four corners of the hall were closets, or rather buffets,
surmounted by dirty shelves. An old card-table in marquetry, of which
Eugenie Grandet |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Lady Susan by Jane Austen: And this circumstance, while it explains the true motives of Lady Susan's
conduct, and removes all the blame which has been so lavished on her, may
also convince us how little the general report of anyone ought to be
credited; since no character, however upright, can escape the malevolence
of slander. If my sister, in the security of retirement, with as little
opportunity as inclination to do evil, could not avoid censure, we must not
rashly condemn those who, living in the world and surrounded with
temptations, should be accused of errors which they are known to have the
power of committing.
I blame myself severely for having so easily believed the slanderous
tales invented by Charles Smith to the prejudice of Lady Susan, as I am now
Lady Susan |
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 A Straight Deal by Owen Wister: water, and have allotted land to the Indian where neither wood nor water
exist, no crops will grow, no human life can be supported. I have seen
the land. I have seen the Indian begging at the back door. Oh, yes, they
were an "inferior race." Oh, yes, they didn't and couldn't use the land
to the best advantage, couldn't build Broadway and the Union Pacific
Railroad, couldn't improve real estate. If you choose to call the whole
thing "manifest destiny," I am with you. I'll not dispute that what we
have made this continent is of greater service to mankind than the
wilderness of the Indian ever could possibly have been--once conceding,
as you have to concede, the inevitableness of civilization. Neither you,
nor I, nor any man, can remold the sorry scheme of things entire. But we
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