| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Personal Record by Joseph Conrad: buttons on our coats, was disabled by a kick on the shoulder.
Both remorse and gratitude seemed foreign to Almayer's character.
He mumbled:
"Do you mean that pirate fellow?"
"What pirate fellow? The man has been in the ship eleven years,"
I said, indignantly.
"It's his looks," Almayer muttered, for all apology.
The sun had eaten up the fog. From where we sat under the
after-awning we could see in the distance the pony tied up, in
front of Almayer's house, to a post of the veranda. We were
silent for a long time. All at once Almayer, alluding evidently
A Personal Record |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Secret Places of the Heart by H. G. Wells: beyond dreaming. They were prepared to think of the makers of
the Avebury dyke as their yesterday selves, of the stone age
savages as a phase, in their late childhood, and of this
great world order Sir Richmond foresaw as a day where dawn
was already at hand. And in such long perspectives, the
states, governments and institutions of to-day became very
temporary-looking and replaceable structures indeed. Both
these two people found themselves thinking in this fashion
with an unwonted courage and freedom because the other one
had been disposed to think in this fashion before. Sir
Richmond was still turning over in his mind the happy mutual
|
