| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Jolly Corner by Henry James: of a wanderer, overlaid by pleasure, by infidelity, by passages of
life that were strange and dim to her, just by "Europe" in short,
but still unobscured, still exposed and cherished, under that pious
visitation of the spirit from which she had never been diverted.
She had come with him one day to see how his "apartment-house" was
rising; he had helped her over gaps and explained to her plans, and
while they were there had happened to have, before her, a brief but
lively discussion with the man in charge, the representative of the
building firm that had undertaken his work. He had found himself
quite "standing up" to this personage over a failure on the
latter's part to observe some detail of one of their noted
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield: that doorway. Carefully over the high brass-bound step on to the rubber
mat and then down such a terribly steep flight of stairs that grandma had
to put both feet on each step, and Fenella clutched the clammy brass rail
and forgot all about the swan-necked umbrella.
At the bottom grandma stopped; Fenella was rather afraid she was going to
pray again. But no, it was only to get out the cabin tickets. They were
in the saloon. It was glaring bright and stifling; the air smelled of
paint and burnt chop-bones and indiarubber. Fenella wished her grandma
would go on, but the old woman was not to be hurried. An immense basket of
ham sandwiches caught her eye. She went up to them and touched the top one
delicately with her finger.
|
