| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Ball at Sceaux by Honore de Balzac: couples whose too hearty glee suggested nothing conjugal; still, she
could only glean instead of gathering a harvest. She was amused to see
that pleasure in a cotton dress was so very like pleasure robed in
satin, and that the girls of the middle class danced quite as well as
ladies--nay, sometimes better. Most of the women were simply and
suitably dressed. Those who in this assembly represented the ruling
power, that is to say, the country-folk, kept apart with wonderful
politeness. In fact, Mademoiselle Emilie had to study the various
elements that composed the mixture before she could find any subject
for pleasantry. But she had not time to give herself up to malicious
criticism, or opportunity for hearing many of the startling speeches
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Main Street by Sinclair Lewis: "Oh yes, they are! The dollar-sign has chased the crucifix
clean off the map. But then, I've got no kick. I do what
I please, and I suppose I ought to let them do the same."
"What do you mean by saying you're a pariah?"
"I'm poor, and yet I don't decently envy the rich. I'm an
old bach. I make enough money for a stake, and then I sit
around by myself, and shake hands with myself, and have a
smoke, and read history, and I don't contribute to the wealth
of Brother Elder or Daddy Cass."
"You---- I fancy you read a good deal."
"Yep. In a hit-or-a-miss way. I'll tell you: I'm a lone
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