Summary | IF - Rudyard Kipling

Poem – If

Poet: Rudyard Kipling
Type: Didactic poem (teaches moral values)
Theme: Advice from a father to his son on how to live a successful and balanced life.

🌸 Stanza 1 – Calmness, Patience and Honesty

Lines:

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you...

Explanation:

  • The poet advises to stay calm even when others panic or blame you.

  • Trust yourself when others doubt you, but understand their doubts.

  • Be patient and never lie, even if others lie to you.

  • Do not give in to hatred even when others hate you.

  • Stay humble — don’t try to appear too perfect or too wise.

🌼 Stanza 2 – Balance between Dreams and Reality

Lines:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim...

Explanation:

  • Dream big, but don’t let dreams control your life.

  • Think deeply, but don’t just think — act on your thoughts.

  • Treat success and failure equally; both are temporary and deceptive.

  • When others twist your words or your hard work is destroyed, rebuild again bravely.

🌻 Stanza 3 – Courage, Risk-taking and Willpower

Lines:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss...

Explanation:

  • Be ready to take risks and accept losses calmly.

  • If you lose everything, start again without complaining.

  • Use your heart, nerve, and sinew — your inner strength — to continue even when you feel weak.

  • When nothing is left, let your willpower push you forward.

🌺 Stanza 4 – Humility, Equality and Time Management

Lines:

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch...

Explanation:

  • Stay humble when you are with ordinary people and modest when with the powerful.

  • Don’t let friends or enemies hurt your peace of mind.

  • Treat everyone equally, but don’t depend too much on anyone.

  • Use every minute wisely — make the best of your time.

  • If you achieve all this, you can conquer the world and become a complete, mature person.

🪞 Poetic Devices

Device Example Meaning
Anaphora “If you can…” Repetition at the start of lines for emphasis
Alliteration “Treat those two”, “Sixty seconds’ worth” Repetition of consonant sounds
Assonance “Don’t look too good, nor talk too wise” Repetition of vowel sounds
Irony “If you can wait and not be tired by waiting” Contrast between expectation and reality

🌿 Values Taught

  • Calmness in crisis

  • Faith in oneself

  • Patience and honesty

  • Control over emotions

  • Courage and perseverance

  • Equality and humility

  • Respect for time

  • Balanced attitude in success and failure

If you can follow all these “ifs”, you will gain wisdom, self-control, and maturity

“Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!”

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