If
by Rudyard Kipling
(Mulberry)
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, 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,
Your is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"
Summary of the Poem :
'If' is often considered to be one of the most inspirational poems written. It takes the readers through several situations, both positive and negative, that one might face in life. It is advising one to be patient, humble and honest in all situations.
The first stanza says us to keep calm and be patient while all disbelieve us and put the blame on us. We should always keep faith in us. We should not resist others to doubt us and we should not be tired of waiting. We should stop to lie or hate in spite of being lied or hated.
The second stanza tells us to dream and think but not to be lost in dreams or thoughts. We should learn to accept victory and misery in the same way. We should always be ready to face the consequences of our deeds. We should watch our destruction with a smile and start immediately with a smile.
The third stanzas challenges us to keep all our achievements at risk. It further suggests us to start again if we lose anyway. We should not repent or hold the grudges of our failure. This will help us to start afresh. We should never leave the Will when there is nothing left to hold on.
The last stanza says us to remain humble at all the situations - good or ominous. We should always remain grounded and vulnerable. But neither the friends nor the foes can hurt us. We shall mingle with common mass yet maintain our own dignity. We should use every bit of a minute.
All these will help us to be an achiever and the Earth and its things would be easy to us and overall we can be humans with all humane virtues.
Making Connections
1. Kipling has given us invaluable rules to live by. Complete the following list with rules that you think are the most important.
a. Trust yourself even if other people doubt you.
b. Keep calm when everyone is losing hope and blaming you.
c. Wait but not be tired by waiting.
d. Dream and not make dreams your master.
e. Think and not make thoughts your aim.
2. Read these lines and answer the questions that follow.
a. "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;"
i. What does the speaker wish to convey by the expression 'keep your head'?
= By the expression 'keep your head', the speaker conveys that we should keep calm in your head.
ii. How would a person make allowance for others for doubting him?
= A person should allow others for doubting him but always trust himself.
b. "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;"
i. What is it that is to be risked?
= All our achievements are to be risked.
ii. Explain the phrase on one turn of pitch-and-toss.
= Pitch-and-toss is a gambling game in which the player who manages to throw a coin closest to a mark gets to toss all the coins, winning those that land with the head up. This is a very risky game where one can lose all or gain all. Here the poet says us to be ready to keep our all achievements at risk.
iii. Why does the speaker say we must not talk about our losses?
= The speaker says we must not talk about our losses as that make us weak and we can not proceed properly. We should not think about what we have lost. Rather we would think of the future and what we can achieve further.
c. "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!"
i. Why does the speaker call the minute unforgiving?
= The speaker calls the minute unforgiving as we can not keep the time holding. Time passes in its own way. The days gone is gone. Time does not listen to anyone or does not forgive anyone.
ii. How does the speaker propose to fill the unforgiving minute?
= The speaker proposes to fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds' worth of distance run.
iii. Explain the significance of the last line of the poem.
= According to the poet, one should develop the attitudes and practise the behaviours he has suggested in the poem to be an achiever. The Earth and its things would be easy to us and overall we can be humans with all humane virtues. We are living in a world of moral crisis. It is in acute need of morality and values. People are busy only in thinking about own self. The attitudes and practise mentioned in the poem would certainly mend us to be good citizens who can take the responsibility of the Earth and make it a happy place for living.
3. Draw a parallel between an incident in your life and some lines in this poem.
= I am an average student. I have a hobby of singing. Last year, I gave an audition in the All India Radio for an online live broadcast in the radio station. All doubted whether I was ready to sing in the radio station or not. But I was self confident and did not lose trust on me. I was thinking and dreaming a lot. I was dreaming of singing live from a radio station. I was thinking a lot.
But I continued my practice and rehearsal till the day of the audition. I had already won many singing competitions. But I was not holding pride of them. I used the time as much time I got before the audition. Then came the day of audition. I saw many celebrity singers there at the radio station studio. Yet I keep my calm and concentrated in my singing. Then after singing my result came out and I was selected for singing live in the radio station and many of the celebrity singers present there congratulated me and talked to me a lot. But I was humble and kept my calm and focused on the day of my performance in the radio station.
4. Would you recommend this poem to someone who has not read it? Give reason for your answer.
= I would definitely recommend this poem to someone who has not read it. It has the advises which assure us a life of achievements and peace and prosperity. This always leads us in good way. This is the suggestion in all the good and adverse situations of our life. It guides us how to react when all doubts on us or when all praises all.
About the Author:
Rasipuram Krishnaswami Narayan (1906-2001) was one of India's leading novelists. Narayan's fiction is rich in humour, energy and simplicity. He created the fictitious town of Malgudi. Most of his unforgettable characters live in this town. Some of his well-known works are Swami and Friends, The Bachelor of Arts, The English Teacher and The Guide.