| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde: as your wicked custom was. And not a bad thing either.
JACK. As for your conduct towards Miss Cardew, I must say that
your taking in a sweet, simple, innocent girl like that is quite
inexcusable. To say nothing of the fact that she is my ward.
ALGERNON. I can see no possible defence at all for your deceiving
a brilliant, clever, thoroughly experienced young lady like Miss
Fairfax. To say nothing of the fact that she is my cousin.
JACK. I wanted to be engaged to Gwendolen, that is all. I love
her.
ALGERNON. Well, I simply wanted to be engaged to Cecily. I adore
her.
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Hellenica by Xenophon: The Thebans, seeing that there had been no hostile invasion of their
territory for so long (neither during the campaign of Cleombrotus nor
now,[37] whilst Timotheus prosecuted his coasting voyage), felt
emboldened to carry out a campaign on their own account against the
provincial cities;[38] and one by one they again recovered them.
[37] Lit. "nor at the date of Timotherus's periplus." To the historian
writing of the events of this period several years later, the
coasting voyage of Timotheus is a single incident ({periepleuse}),
and as Grote ("H. G." x. 185, note 3) observes, the words may
"include not simply the time which Timotheus took in actually
circumnavigating Peloponnesos, but the year which he spent
|
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe: more was I encouraged, when I found that he outstripped them
exceedingly in running, and gained ground on them; so that, if he
could but hold out for half-an-hour, I saw easily he would fairly
get away from them all.
There was between them and my castle the creek, which I mentioned
often in the first part of my story, where I landed my cargoes out
of the ship; and this I saw plainly he must necessarily swim over,
or the poor wretch would be taken there; but when the savage
escaping came thither, he made nothing of it, though the tide was
then up; but plunging in, swam through in about thirty strokes, or
thereabouts, landed, and ran with exceeding strength and swiftness.
Robinson Crusoe |
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 Flower Fables by Louisa May Alcott: murmured of the pain he was doomed to bear. " Why must I lie here,
while my kindred are out in the pleasant fields, enjoying the sunlight
and the fresh air, and cruel hands have doomed me to this dark place
and bitter pain when I have done no wrong? Uncared for and forgotten,
I must stay here among these poor things who think only of themselves.
Come here, Rose-Leaf, and bind up my wounds, for I am far more useful
than idle bird or fly."
Then said the Fairy, while she bathed the broken wing,--
"Love-Blossom, you should not murmur. We may find happiness in
seeking to be patient even while we suffer. You are not forgotten or
uncared for, but others need our care more than you, and to those
Flower Fables |
