Page 107 - DENG104_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_I

Elective English–I

Notes Self Assessment

1. Why is the poem named “If”?
2. Is there a pattern in the poem If by Rudyard Kipling?
3. What was Rudyard Kipling’s first poem?
4. Why did Rudyard Kipling write the poem “If”?

9.6 Summary

• “If—” is a poem written in 1895 by British Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling. It was first
published in the “Brother Square Toes” chapter of Rewards and Fairies, Kipling’s 1910
collection of short stories and poems. Like William Ernest Henley’s “Invictus”, it is a
memorable evocation of Victorian stoicism, self-control and the “stiff upper lip” that
popular culture has made into a traditional British virtue. Its status is confirmed both
by the number of parodies it has inspired, and the widespread popularity it still enjoys
amongst Britons. It is often voted Britain’s favourite poem.
• The poem was printed, framed and fixed to the wall in front of the study desk in the
officer cadets cabins at the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Pune, India. The
poem’s lines, “If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster / and treat those two impostors
just the same” is written on the wall of the Centre Court players’ entrance at the British
tennis tournament Wimbledon.
• The poem “If” is inspirational motivational and a set of rules for grown up living.
Kipling’s “If” contains mottos and maxims for life and the poem is also a blueprint for
personal integrity and self development. It is perhaps more relevant today than when
Kipling wrote it as an ethos and personal philosophy!
• The first stanza of “If” illustrates the practice of self-confidence and expresses that, in
being confident, the reader must have the courage to face unpopularity and disagreement.
This stanza also, however, advises against a self-confidence that does not allow for the
consideration of opposing ideas. In exhorting the reader to both ignore doubt and
make allowance for doubt (lines 3 and 4), Kipling creates a paradox (the combination
of mutually exclusive ideas that, while seemingly contradictory, serve to make a point
in their contradiction) that is characteristic of the tone of the entire poem.
• Line 5 advises patience, line 6 advises honesty, and line 7 advises fortitude of character.
These three lines, along with the first four lines of the poem, share a common thread:
they provide instruction in the maintenance of righteous behaviour in the face of
unrighteousness. However, in line 8, Kipling is quick to qualify.

9.7 Keywords

Triumph and Disaster : Victory, and an event that causes great damage.
Knaves : An old-fashioned word for dishonest men.

Build ‘em up : Build them up; rebuild the broken parts of your life.
Sinew : A part of your body that connects a muscle to a bone; in a literary
meaning, something that gives strength or support.

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