3.1 IF - Rudyard Kipling (Explanation of the poem) standard 10th English

IF

By Rudyard Kipling

Explanation/ Summary of the poem

      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 give way to hating,

      And yet don’t look too good, not talk too wise:

In this poem, a father is addressing to his son and telling him the qualities of a good man. He is setting a guideline for his son to achieve a goal. The poem tells how to deal with the troubles in life and how to be a good human being.

Here the speaker says that while doing your duties or tasks and making decisions you must be firm and calm. Other people around you may fail in their responsibilities or tasks and react negatively to you. At that time also you have to be patient and calm.

The speaker asks to be confident and keep faith in yourself; even though all others doubt your abilities. He further asks to have thoughtful consideration about the doubts of those people. Don’t let them go easily and try to find positive aspects through it.

The speaker tells you to be patient and not lose the temper, which is the quality of the noble. The waiting (the patience) must be there forever.

People may speak false things about you, but you must not do the same (to lie to revenge them). This may be the test of your real patience.

You may face hatred from those people. It may disturb you and your attention from your goal, but don’t react to them with anger or hatred and don’t allow hatred to take control of your virtues. Don’t reduce yourself to their level. Be virtuous.

And by doing all this good work, don’t think you are so superior or great. Don’t show off your knowledge and don’t think you are above anyone else.

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 imposters 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:

The speaker says that it is really good to have dreams but don’t let dreaming control your life and senses(Means if you just dream and take no action it will become  daydream only)

Thinking or planning is good, but just don’t waste time in thinking, bring the thought into action, and let the things to happen.

In your life, you will get many victories and a lot of success and you will face defeats and failures also…

Don’t get too excited by the victories and don’t get upset by the failures.

Be calm and composed in both the conditions, because both these things are there for short time and the TIME changes.

Sometimes things said by you (the truth said)may be misused by others or the things you have done may be destructed by them.  In this situation, you must have the patience to hear and experience those things and stand again strongly and rebuild it with whatever you have left with you.

This tells us that you must not get frustrated by the actions of your enemy or fate and lose everything, you must take risks and try to reconstruct all from the beginning.

    

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!  

Here the speaker tells how we should react to the people.

You may come across a large number of the group that may influence you but don’t let them influence your belief of moral or immoral and right or wrong. You and your beliefs may stand still.

Many times you may come across powerful and influential people. Still, you need to have a touch with common people and should be aware of the needs of common people.

You must know yourself and your beliefs so well that your enemies and friends could not hurt you because you know who you are and what you stand for ( what your significance is).  

People may depend upon you for many things but don’t let them too dependent on you. Because time is precious and it never waits for anyone, so try to live your life to its fullest.

And if you do all these things, the whole world is yours and you will be a good human being.

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