‘If’ Review

By: Nhan Phan

‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling

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:

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 worn-out tools:

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!’

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!

This is undoubtedly one of the most famous poems ever written by Rudyard Kipling. He wrote this in 1895, which was the time period of the Jameson Raid that took place that same year. The raid was a failed onslaught attempt by the British against the South African Republic; it was originally intended to trigger an uprising by British expatriate workers in the Transvaal. In his posthumous autobiography, Kipling took inspiration from Leander Starr Jameson, who was the leader of the raid. ‘If’ is a poem that advises mankind on how one should live their life, and that virtuous living rooted in kindness, integrity, and self-development will always carry one through however-tumultuous times. In a sense, this poem was an encouragement to the soldiers who were involved in the raid to persevere and emerge victoriously.

Perhaps it would be impractical to do a line-by-line analysis of the poem, but I shall summarize the overarching themes and values that this poem embodies and certainly how Kipling would have wanted us to perceive his poem. It is important to first notice that this entire poem is Kipling’s address to his son, John Kipling. John Kipling was a soldier serving in the British army at the time. Kipling provided a checklist of values for his son to follow as he strives to grow as a soldier, as a son, and as a human being. This address by Kipling can also be seen as an emotional testament to his son as John Kipling was killed at the Battle of Loos in Artois, France on September 27, 1915. He was just over 18 years old. Kipling’s son died an honorable man. 

The poem has many structural features that are worth pointing out. We know that this poem is Kipling’s personal testament to his son; hence, it is no surprise that we see the widespread usage of the pronoun ‘you.’ In a way, too, ‘you’ can refer to us, the reader, as Kipling encourages all of us to adopt these values in a bid for self-improvement. Furthermore, this poem is one full complete sentence. What I mean by that is, if you notice at the end of every line, there are no full stops except for the last line. It is remarkable how Kipling can round up the qualities of a happy, honorable, content man in just one complete sentence.

Now to the values and meanings that the poem boasts. At its core, ‘If’ is a testament to the virtues and morals of mankind. It provides advice on how to live a content, happy life under the condition that one has to make the most of every minute that they have. Taking inspiration from the soldiers in the Jameson Raid, this poem talks about the importance of self-discipline, bravery, and a good moral character. Even though it wasn’t intended for the general reading audience, this poem still resonates with everyone today. 

The first stanza focuses on one’s self-control. Kipling describes scenarios where one needs to be able to keep calm under pressure (like Jameson during the raid), trust themselves under intense scrutiny, and have room to take in criticism from others, as well as understand their self-worth and act accordingly. “And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;” talks about the importance of being humble, not showing off more than who they really are. 

The second stanza continues by describing the importance and the perils of ambition. Kipling urges one to have the capacity to dream but not let those dreams blind them of reality. “If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster / And treat those two impostors just the same;” Kipling implies that ‘Triumph’ and ‘Disaster’ are impostors because he believes that ‘success’ doesn’t last forever, and neither does ‘disaster’. In any case, Kipling urges one to treat them both with humility and learn from them, not dwell on them. At the end of the second stanza, Kipling describes scenarios where one needs to be able to keep cool when hearing one’s words being twisted for the wrong purpose, as well as the power of perseverance: picking oneself up and not being afraid to restart if things go South. 

The theme of the third stanza is very similar to the last two lines of the second stanza; it expands on the notion of if you lose everything, you must not be afraid to start again and regain the progress you made. Kipling creates the notion that loss is a normal thing in life, and that one must not question it or dwell on it too much in order to restart. The last four lines of the third stanza implore one (in this case, specifically, the Jameson Raid soldiers) to endure even when things feel like they are falling apart. He describes that at certain times in one’s life, one will feel like it is physically and emotionally impossible to persevere. Kipling argues that the human spirit is able to weather all obstacles and challenges that come with it. The human spirit is, therefore, unbreakable.

The final stanza sums up the list of values that Kipling describes perfectly, talking about how one’s life should be rooted in respect, kindness, love, and experience. One will experience pain and disappointment at some point in their lives; it is crucial they learn from it and move on to become a better version of themselves. He sums the poem up: “Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, / And - which is more - you’ll be a Man, my son!”

Overall, this poem is Kipling’s emotional testament to his veteran son, the human spirit, as well as the dignity of mankind. ‘If’ is a powerful statement about the human condition and the next steps we need to take for self-improvement and self-determination. Inspired by the soldiers of the Jameson Raid, Kipling analogized the moral character and bravery of the soldiers and resonated with the common reader; that is what made this poem so powerful.