In his quote “There Are Nothing but Gifts on this Poor, Poor Earth ”, Czeslaw Milosz had several things in mind. Every word has a unique and necessary meaning in this quote and has a backstory. In general, the author wants to underline the qualities of the planet Earth with its relation to human life and experiences that one has. This quote has a deep meaning about the philosophy of life and what exactly makes this statement so human and descriptive of the way of thinking and living.
The word “Nothing” is in itself a negative word that supposes the absence of, a negation of something, usually a physical entity, in some space or time. But in this quote the interesting fact is that the word “nothing” actually, means “everything” or “all”. Here the context makes the word relate to all the things that are on Earth. Czeslaw Milosz says that gifts are the only things that are present on the planet and he uses the word “nothing” to explain that there is nothing else but these “gifts’ ‘. But also, the word exaggerates the presence of any other things in the world. Its over-definite nature presumes that everything in the world is filled with “gifts”, they are all around and people know nothing else. The world relates to people and the way they think about life and what they consider the negative part of it. A person is so immersed in and consumed by the problems and negative matters that everything else fades and turns into “nothing” compared to other things. And it turns out that instead of focusing on the positive, which are other things, a person focuses on “nothing”, the problems and “gifts” that are bringing down the psyche and that increase the bad mood and feeling of “a dead end.” The word “gifts” is defined here sarcastically. Most often, people associate good things with the word and classify it is a something, which is given on a joyful occasion, in a form of product or service, free of charge and with an intent to make the other person, the receiver of the gift, happy. But in this statement, the word “gift” means the opposite. It makes fun of the challenges and hardships that natural order or chaos or the circumstances of life throw at us. It shows how people have started to use humor and sarcasm in their daily life and especially with a meaning, which describes its negative attributes and outcomes. A different perspective shows how people put a positive spin on a negative occurrence. It demonstrates true optimism because humans are very persistent beings and they choose to laugh at their problems and call them “gifts.” The word “poor” has several meanings in this statement. The fact that it is repeated two times, illustrates how important and heavy it is. It talks about the planet Earth and describes pity and feeling or sadness. There are also deeper psychological meanings, as they relate to humans and how they feel about their actions directed to Earth. Human society has had a great impact on the planet. This can be seen in the pollution, unnatural modifications to the environment that cause damage and destruction. So, in a way, the word “poor” is said in a regretful manner that people are really sorry and understand their fault and feel bad about it, thus calling the Earth “poor.”
The word also means a more in-depth understanding of the moral relationship between people and the planet. It is the source of our food and life in general. We have a close connection to the planet because without it humans would not be able to survive. The Earth needs people in a way also because without advanced life forms, there would be no one to enjoy the true magnificence and complexity of Nature and our planet. It is a mutual relationship where humans have been unfair and mistreated the planet while it has only done us good. But is this good really that beneficial? Sometimes, Earth can be very cruel and unforgiving. Of course, it is not on the same emotional level, as compared to a person, who might do something for a bad reason. The earth is most likely neutral and is governed by nature’s laws but the same can be said about people since they are part of nature also. And the last word “Earth” has the most meaning, as the whole statement is about it. It has several important meanings and the first one is most physical. It is the place of life for very many people. It has become a home and the word “poor” accentuates the fact this planet is so close to us, our motherland and humans have greatly offended it. At the same time, “Earth” means the world that is closely tied to our minds and imagination. It is not only a physical and material place; it is also a spiritual world, filled with emotions, thoughts and concepts. The fact that the whole quote is directed towards Earth seems almost as pointing a finger and blaming it for all the troubles that go on here. There were often times in personal life, when the Earth, nature and everything together was blamed on some problem in life. When everything goes wrong, Nature and the planet are guilty because they are the big part of Nature, which makes us do things we do not want to do. We see all the beauty of the planet, hear the sounds and thank the ability of our brains to register and comprehend sound waves, light waves and so many other things which we cannot even see but can feel. People physically get sick when they are stressed, when depressing days find their way to every corner of life and bodies respond to that. The whole meaning of the quote reminds of how indivisible the planet is from human existence. The forms, shapes and colors to see and feel, with all the sceneries to observe and comprehend, it seems the Earth has created everything that is specifically needed by humans and we must thank it for that. Our senses allow us to see and feel the world around us and even though there are negatives, people can step back, look at themselves from a side and laugh at their own mistakes. This quote is optimistic, in a way that we can still see the good in between the vast piles of bad but it respectfully reminds us that the things that people have done to earth are unacceptable and our thinking must be changed for the benefit of all.