| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Atheist's Mass by Honore de Balzac: rule of three: A young man is to crime as a five-franc piece is
to X.--These gilded idiots say to me, 'Why did you get into debt?
Why did you involve yourself in such onerous obligations?' They
remind me of the princess who, on hearing that the people lacked
bread, said, 'Why do not they buy cakes?' I should like to see
one of these rich men, who complain that I charge too much for an
operation,--yes, I should like to see him alone in Paris without
a sou, without a friend, without credit, and forced to work with
his five fingers to live at all! What would he do? Where would he
go to satisfy his hunger?
"Bianchon, if you have sometimes seen me hard and bitter, it was
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe: fell into one of the raffling shops. It was a thing of no great
consequence to me, nor did I expect to make much of it; but
there came a gentleman extremely well dressed and very rich,
and as 'tis frequent to talk to everybody in those shops, he
singled me out, and was very particular with me. First he told
me he would put in for me to raffle, and did so; and some
small matter coming to his lot, he presented it to me (I think
it was a feather muff); then he continued to keep talking to
me with a more than common appearance of respect, but still
very civil, and much like a gentleman.
He held me in talk so long, till at last he drew me out of the
Moll Flanders |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Life of the Spider by J. Henri Fabre: down along her telegraph-wire, comes to the Dragon-fly, trusses her
and at once climbs home again by the same road, with her prize
dangling at her heels by a thread. The final sacrifice will take
place in the quiet of the leafy sanctuary.
A few days later, I renew my experiment under the same conditions,
but, this time, I first cut the signalling-thread. In vain I
select a large Dragon-fly, a very restless prisoner; in vain I
exert my patience: the Spider does not come down all day. Her
telegraph being broken, she receives no notice of what is happening
nine feet below. The entangled morsel remains where it lies, not
despised, but unknown. At nightfall, the Epeira leaves her cabin,
The Life of the Spider |
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 United States Declaration of Independence: new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing
its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect
their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments
long established should not be changed for light and transient causes;
and accordingly all experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed
to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing
the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and
usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce
them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw
off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now
United States Declaration of Independence |
