ABSTRACT
The earth and the water were without form and were chaotic, and darkness and light moved over the face and body of the earth and water. Earth and water were together one wet land. The mixing of qualities in 'Nature's womb' to procreate the elements does indeed nourish all things as John Milton indicates, but not only the four mixtures of qualities into the four elements that Aristotle and Milton permit. Indeed, the two aberrant mixtures of wet and dry, hot and cold produce the temperate and tropical wetland which is far more productive than both dry land and cold water. The four elements of earth, air, fire and water are related to four primary categories of substance: earth is solid; fire is hot; air is gaseous; and water is liquid. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
