| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin: the Struthio Darwinii takes its place in Southern Patagonia;
the part about the Rio Negro being neutral territory. M.
A. d'Orbigny, [16] when at the Rio Negro, made great exertions
to procure this bird, but never had the good fortune to
succeed. Dobrizhoffer [17] long ago was aware of there being
two kinds of ostriches, he says, "You must know, moreover,
that Emus differ in size and habits in different tracts
of land; for those that inhabit the plains of Buenos Ayres
and Tucuman are larger, and have black, white and grey
feathers; those near to the Strait of Magellan are smaller
and more beautiful, for their white feathers are tipped with
The Voyage of the Beagle |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Salammbo by Gustave Flaubert: and that the result of it would be complete victory or complete
extermination.
Carthage might hold out for a long time; her broad walls presented a
series of re-entrant and projecting angles, an advantageous
arrangement for repelling assaults.
Nevertheless a portion had fallen down in the direction of the
Catacombs, and on dark nights lights could be seen in the dens of
Malqua through the disjointed blocks. These in some places overlooked
the top of the ramparts. It was here that the Mercenaries' wives, who
had been driven away by Matho, were living with their new husbands. On
seeing the men again their hearts could stand it no longer. They waved
Salammbo |
