If—
"If—" is a poem by English Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936), that was written circa 1895.[1] It was written as a tribute to Leander Starr Jameson. It is a literary example of Victorian-era stoicism.[2]
| by Rudyard Kipling | |
.jpg) A Doubleday, Page & Co. edition from 1910 | |
| First published in | Rewards and Fairies |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Doubleday, Page & Company |
| Publication date | 1910 |
Text
changeOne day there was a man and he told his son
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![3]
References
change- ↑ "If by Rudyard Kipling : If, poem by Rudyard Kipling : Poems 007". Archived from the original on 2017-02-10. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
- ↑ Osborne, Kristen (28 April 2013). McKeever, Christine (ed.). "Rudyard Kipling: Poems Study Guide: Summary and Analysis of "If—"". GradeSaver. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
- ↑ Kipling, Rudyard (1910). rewards and Fairies (First ed.). London: Macmillan.
Other websites
change- Reading of "If—" on Wikimedia Commons
If public domain audiobook at LibriVox- Authentic digital editions archive of "If—"
- Staging of "If—" as a comic strip
- If by Rudyard Kipling on YouTube
