| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Europeans by Henry James: has no governess? Well, then, who is never away from her mamma--
a young couple, in short, between whom you have noticed nothing
beyond an exchange of the childish pleasantries characteristic
of their age, are on the point of setting up as man and wife."
The Baroness spoke with a certain exaggerated volubility
which was in contrast with the languid grace that had
characterized her manner before Clifford made his appearance.
It seemed to Acton that there was a spark of irritation in her eye--
a note of irony (as when she spoke of Lizzie being never away
from her mother) in her voice. If Madame Munster was irritated,
Robert Acton was vaguely mystified; she began to move about
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Glinda of Oz by L. Frank Baum: was carried to the Flatheads, who then turned from
friends to enemies. The Su-dic and his wife Rora were
the only ones on the mountain who were glad the three
Adepts had been lost to them, and they at once became
Rulers of the Flatheads and stole their canned brains
from others to make themselves the more powerful. Some
of the Adepts' magic tools had been left on the
mountain, and these Rora seized and by the use of them
she became a witch.
"The result of Coo-ee-oh's treachery was to make both
the Skeezers and the Flatheads miserable instead of
Glinda of Oz |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Bride of Lammermoor by Walter Scott: Baldoon now went forward, the bride showing no repugnance, but
being absolutely passive in everything her mother commanded or
advised. On the day of the marriage, which, as was then usual,
was celebrated by a great assemblage of friends and relations,
she was the same--sad, silent, and resigned, as it seemed, to her
destiny. A lady, very nearly connected with the family, told the
Author that she had conversed on the subject with one of the
brothers of the bride, a mere lad at the time, who had ridden
before his sister to church. He said her hand, which lay on his
as she held her arm around his waist, was as cold and damp as
marble. But, full of his new dress and the part he acted in the
The Bride of Lammermoor |
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 A Footnote to History by Robert Louis Stevenson: pleasantly behaved in times of peace, or whether we call to mind
the behaviour of the two civilians, Haideln and Hufnagel, we can
only regret that brave men should stand to be exposed upon so poor
a quarrel, or lives cast away upon an enterprise so hopeless.
News of the affair reached Apia early, and Moors, always curious of
these spectacles of war, was immediately in the saddle. Near
Matafangatele he met a Manono chief, whom he asked if there were
any German dead. "I think there are about thirty of them knocked
over," said he. "Have you taken their heads?" asked Moors. "Yes,"
said the chief. "Some foolish people did it, but I have stopped
them. We ought not to cut off their heads when they do not cut off
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