The poem, If, was written by the famous poet Rudyard
Kipling, in 1895. Rudyard Kipling was a great poet and wrote many poems that
were suitable for kids and young adults. He understands the taste that appeals
to kids and writes meaningful yet understandable poems. The publishing group,
Rewards and Fairies, first published the poem in 1910.
In the first stanza, the poet explains to his son that a key
virtue to help in the growth of a person is calmness and presence of mind. He
says that even if everyone is going haywire and losing their calm, a man should
keep his stature of mind and not be negatively affected by the rest of the
people. He also says that self-confidence is required to be able to succeed.
Even if everyone is against your belief and doubts your ideas, you should keep
your mind straightforward and trust yourself. However, you should consider
other people’s opinions before making a decision, but not be totally affected
by them. You have to be patient and make sure that you can wait for your turn
rather than give up because of the time or hard work. If other people show you
bad values such as lying and hating, don’t let them affect you in any way. Make
sure that you don’t lie or hate them back. In addition to this, don’t be
overconfident or boast about yourself.
In the second stanza, the poet asks his son to dream and
think, but not be taken over by these two things and not think about anything
else. Dreaming and thinking is good, but action is more necessary than these
two. To be a man, one must also be ready to stay balance in times of Victory or
Disaster. We should treat both of these challenges in a similar way and keep
ourselves on the path straight ahead, rather than veering of to the left or
right path. You should also be prepared to hear something that you told to
another person made into a rumor. It is only because the people around you want
to make a trap. Your goal is to evade that trap. You should also be prepared to
see your discoveries and inventions fail. However, just preparation is not
enough. You need to have the courage to rebuild or modify your ideas to make it
fit and grow again.
In the third stanza, Kipling says that a person needs to
make one area where he has all of his winnings. He should be ready to risk his
whole fortune on one venture and if he looses it all, not even talk about the
loss. Rather, he should focus on how to win the venture and double or triple
his fortune. You have to force your physical and mental strengths to work on
even if they are tired. Another key to doing so is to have a will, which
according to the poet should be “Hold On!” Mr. Kipling basically says that you
should always stay hardworking and never loose the qualities that make you good
and unique.
In the last stanza, Rudyard Kipling, the poet asks his son
not to go to both extremes. One extreme being gaining bad values while talking
to a crowd of people who are underneath you, and the other extreme being
walking with a rich and wealthy man and boasting about it. You should keep your
values and only let in good values, like a cell membrane only lets in nutrients
and good gases. You should be straightforward and not be affected by any
friends or enemies. Enemies may try to pull you down and not want you to
progress while friends may praise you too much. Don’t take these things to
heart and keep trying hard. If all men agree with you, but not too much, then
you will be growing. Lastly, if you can fill the least of time with a
constructive activity, “YOUR IS THE EARTH AND EVERYTHING THAT’S IN IT, AND-
WHICH IS MORE YOU’LL BE A MAN, MY SON”.
