Just as language has no longer anything in common with the thing it names, so the movements of most of the people who live in cities have lost their connexion with the earth; they hang, as it were, in the air, hover in all directions, and find no place where they can settle.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Rilke says modern urban life disconnects people from the earth, leaving them hovering without a place to settle.
- In plain terms
- City dwellers feel detached from nature and lack grounding.
- What can you take from it?
- Urbanization can cause a sense of rootlessness.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How can cities foster a sense of belonging?
- What practices reconnect people to nature?
Another view
The metaphor may not apply to all urban experiences.
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