Rudyard Kipling

IF
Rudyard Kipling
The poem ‘If’ by the India-born British Nobel laureate poet Rudyard Kipling
is a poem of ultimate inspiration that tells us how to deal with different
situations in life. The poet conveys his ideas about how to win this life, and
after all, how to be a good human being.
The poem, written in 1895 and first published in ‘Rewards and Fairies’,
1910 is 32 lines long with four stanzas of eight lines each
Stanza 1:
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise
Stanza 1
Summary
The poet tells his son that he should keep calm and patient when others do fail and
put the blames on him. He should trust himself when all others doubt him. However,
he should also make a room for their doubts and try understanding what made them
doubt him.
In the fifth line, the poet says that one should wait patiently for success and should
never be tired by waiting because success comes to those who work hard and remain
patient.
Next, the poet tells his son that other people will often tell him lies. However, he
should never lie in his life and always remain truthful. Others will hate him. But he
should never hate them back and rather spread love. In the last line, the poet advises
him to neither look too good, nor talk too wise because if he acts upon all the advises
the poet gave above, he (his son) will look too good and wise among the common
people.
Stanza:2
If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with wornout tools;
Stanza 2 Summary
The poet says that he should dream big but never make the dreams his master. Similarly, he should
think good (about goals, future, etc ) but never make thoughts his aim because in order to succeed in
life one has to work hard.
Mere dreaming and thinking will never lead one to the path of success. Hence one should dream of
goals and think of a better future and at the same time should work hard to achieve them.
In the 3rd line, the poet says that one should meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two
impostors just the same. Note that the first letters “triumph and disaster” have been capitalized. These
are the two extremes of life. The poet calls them impostors i.e. fake. They either make one extremely
happy or miserable. However, they are not long-lasting and hence one should not take them seriously.
In the fifth line, the poet says that one should only speak the truth and should also have the courage
to face it when it is misused by others to mislead others. He should also have the courage to see the
things build by him in broken conditions and try rebuilding them with worn-out tools i.e. with what
energy or skills you have.
Stanza:3
If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold
on”;
Stanza:3 summary
The poet says that one should make one heap of all the
achievements one has made and then take big risks. In other
words, one should never be afraid of doing things that can either
make one successful or ruin everything (pitch-and-toss). If one fails
after taking big risks, he should start again from the beginning
without thinking or saying anything about the loss to others. One
should try again and again until one succeeds.
In the fifth line, the poet says that one should use his heart and
nerve and sinew i.e. courage when one becomes tired or fails.
When nothing is left in life, one should have strong will power which
may encourage one to “Hold on!”
Stanza:4
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings—nor lose the common
touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run—
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!
Stanza 4 Summary
The poet says that while among the common people one must keep his virtues (and never
behave like them) while among the kings (i.e. big personalities) one should never have
pride and ego. In other words, the poet is saying that when one is poor, he should keep
his virtues and when he becomes rich, he should never ego. Next, the poet says that
neither foes (enemies) nor loving friends can hurt one because of what principles and
ideals one hold. One should never give up them. People will often remain dependent on
him but he should never allow them to remain completely dependent on him. The poet
may also be saying that one should never give other too much importance or else he will
get emotionally attached to them which will hurt him in the future.
In the next line, the poet talks about the importance of time. According to him, time is
precious and will never come back. Hence one should start utilizing each and every
second of life. In the final two lines, the poet tells his son if he (his son) acts upon all the
advice he gave above, he will be able to achieve whatever he likes and he will be a Man
i.e. a true human.
Full Poem
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IF

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

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