In literature, the word "earth" is deployed with remarkable versatility. It is often used to evoke both the physical ground that supports life, as seen when characters interact directly with soil or landscapes ([1], [2]), and a broader cosmic backdrop against which human events unfold ([3], [4]). Some authors employ it in mythological or allegorical contexts, imbuing it with symbolism that connects the mundane to the divine, as when earth is seen as a foundation for celestial or eternal realms ([5], [6]). Meanwhile, "earth" can also serve as a metonymy for the human condition itself, highlighted in phrases that underscore the inevitability of mortality or the permanence of nature despite human endeavors ([7], [8]). This layered usage demonstrates how the term can simultaneously represent a concrete terrain and a profound existential symbol.
- When Dickon had deepened the hole Colin went on turning the soft earth over and over.
— from The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- The soft black earth stood out in patches along the roadsides.
— from My Ántonia by Willa Cather
- He did not know whose closed eyes were there, nor what red lips were fading beneath the earth.
— from Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen by H. C. Andersen
- The sad procession of mankind across the face of the earth from birth to the grave is proof that His original Word was enough.
— from The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer
- She is a daughter of earth; you are an angel of heaven; only be not too austere in your divinity, and remember that I am a poor, fallible mortal.
— from The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë
- In this way states and individuals should seek to attain harmony, which, as the wise tell us, is the bond of heaven and earth, of gods and men.
— from Gorgias by Plato
- As we rise out of the water, and behold all the land of the earth, so do they rise to unknown and glorious regions which we shall never see.
— from Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen by H. C. Andersen
- I am a sojourner on the earth: hide not thy commandments from me.
— from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete