If—

In this poem, Kipling's speaker outlines for his son the behaviors and attitudes it takes to become a man—in this case, a gentleman in British society. It is good to keep in mind, however, a...

The purpose of the poem "If—" is to celebrate the values of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century British middle-class men. These values, referred to throughout Kipling's work, are a sort of...

In the final lines of "If—," readers become aware that this poem is addressed to the speaker's "son." While this can be interpreted literally, it can also be more loosely interpreted as a poem of...

The poem "If" is a didactic poem. It teaches a lesson about life. The speaker in the poem is instructing his son on what to do and not do to obtain or inherit the earth while he becomes a man. The...

The full quote is as follows: If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spokenTwisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,And stoop and build ’em up...

As Rudyard Kipling portrays in his poem "If," there are many qualities that go into being a "man." In the first stanza of his poem, Kipling says that a man needs to be able to "keep (his) head...

In this four-stanza poem, the speaker explains to his son how to behave like a "Man." The poem was written by a middle-class Englishman in 1895, at the height of Britain's power as a vast empire...

Many literary devices fall under the category of "figure of speech," which previous Educators have identified in preceding answers. This answer will call attention to those figures of speech in...

The values of the poem are old-fashioned, conservative, and even aristocratic. Kipling comes by all these values honestly. Recall that he was born in British India and spent parts of his life in...

In the poem "If," the author writes a didactic poem. He uses illustrations to give lessons to live by. The speaker is teaching his son lessons in life. If the son will follow the speakers...

According to the eNotes guide on the work, it is "a didactic poem, a work meant to give instruction. In this case, “If” serves as an instruction in several specific traits of a good leader." So...

When you are trying to understand lines from “If,” by Rudyard Kipling, you have to remember that this poem is meant as advice from a father to his son. The father is saying “if you can be/do all...

"If—" is a timeless poem by Rudyard Kipling which is full of instruction in how to evolve into true adulthood or the best version of one's self. The context of this section of advice reads as...

Rudyard Kipling wrote the poem “If” to give his son direction on how to become a respectable man. He advises his son to stay calm in the face of adversity, to be truthful, self-righteous, and...

In this poem, the narrator is advising his son on how to face life if he wants to be a "Man." This involves, first, expecting disillusionment. The young men needs to hang on to his level-headed...

What a wonderful guide for how to handle all of life’s confusing situations! This is a manual for behavior written in 1896 that still applies to life in 2013. Kipling intended this poem to inspire...

When you paraphrase someone else's words (like those in a poem), it means you express their full meaning in your own words. It's different from summarizing. Paraphrasing means you keep all of the...

Over the Wimbledon Tennis court tunnel which takes the players back to the locker room is this phrase: If you can meet with Triumph and disaster And treat those two impostors just the same. What...

Rudyard Kipling's poem titled "If--" is a list of conditionals expressing ways to behave in order to be the best possible human being, a real "Man, my son!" For example, using the collective "you,"...

The classic "If" is Kipling's wonderful contribution to the genre of inspirational poetry. The first stanza, with its admonitions to "keep your head" and "make allowances" is an amazingly concise...

The famous poem "If—" by Rudyard Kipling was ostensibly written by the poet to his son John, but the tone of the poem is that of an authority figure in general instructing a person or persons under...

Rudyard Kipling is teaching his son how to be a virtuous man and a leader in his poem “If.” In the 25th and 26th lines of the poem he writes, If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,...

Alliteration is a device wherein a writer juxtaposes two or more words beginning with the same letter to draw emphasis or create a sense of cohesion. There are several examples of this in "If" by...

In the third stanza of "If," the author continues building his list of "conditions" for being a man. Specifically, in this stanza he addresses the importance of endurance, even in the face of...

If you can keep your head when all about youAre losing theirs and blaming it on you; These are two of the most famous lines of poetry in the English language. Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If” finds a...

"When all men doubt you," you need to "trust yourself." The poet asks you to be confident and brave enough to face criticism and disapproval from others. Not always will others' opinion about you...

In Rudyard Kipling’s piece of didactic poetry “If,” he is speaking to his only son, John. In the poem, he addresses his son as “you,” while he provides instruction on becoming a man of virtue. He...

The appropriate line in the poem is "If you can wait and not be tired by waiting." Patience is clearly a virtue to the old man as he proceeds to give his son some fatherly advice. Waiting is an...

The poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling is a lyric poem. Lyric poetry is defined as poetry which emphasizes musical qualities and encompasses a "spontaneous overflow of emotions." This poem emphasizes...

Personification is the attribution of human-like traits to nonhuman subjects. Sometimes writers use personification to describe inanimate objects or nonhuman animals. In this poem, Kipling applies...

The first line of the poem: “If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;” means that people should not let their dreams control their lives, but should be in charge of their own destinies....

Composed in 1895, Rudyard Kipling's "If" has become an iconic example of a late Victorian poem expressing the high-minded British ideal of the stiff-upper lip. Kipling wrote it for his son, John....

Line 31 of “If” reads thus: “Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it.” The speaker is declaring to his son that if he can succeed in being and doing all the things outlined previously in...

There are several life lessons taught in Rudyard Kipling's famous poem "If." For, this poem, addressed to Kipling's son, is a paean to the stoicism characteristic of the British of the Victorian...

The entire poem is an "if/then" statement. The speaker is trying to instill ideals that a boy must attain to in order to become an honorable, successful man. "If" is continually repeated because...

The "road map for life" that Kipling's "If" creates is one that guides the reader to choose the high road over the low one. The advice in the poem maps out ways in which one can live life with...

"Triumph" and "disaster" are two opposite situations of life. One confronts both in his or her life. Both are fleeting in nature as neither of these two lasts forever. By "triumph," the poet means...

Rudyard Kipling was a particularly fascinating figure in the literary world. A product of one of the greatest empires in history—he was born in India, the "jewel in the Crown" of the British...

The advice provided in stanza three fits in with the theme of the poem, which is to advise a young man of the qualities he has to strive for and acquire in order to become a morally upright and...

It is perhaps not completely realistic to expect four stanzas of poetry to serve as a complete guide to behavior for all people everywhere in the world. This poem was written in 1895, in part in...

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master; If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim; If you can dream and make use of your dreams, then it is good to dream, but if all you do is...

As always with any question that asks for the specific meaning of a particular part of a text, it is vitally important that you read the quote in context. This means that you pay particular...

The speaker is trying to convince his son that being a man means leading a life of integrity and having depth of character. Many of the admonishments the speaker presents are based on a...

In the first stanza, Kipling uses this rhyme scheme: AAAABCBC A: you, you, you, too B: waiting, hating C: lies, wise In the second stanza, Kipling uses this rhyme scheme: DEDEFGFG D: master,...

Five verbs used in Rudyard Kipling's If are: keep, trust, wait, bear, stoop. Five adjectives used are: good, wise, common, twisted, broken. These words develop a paternal, teaching tone, as of a...

This is a great question!Rudyard Kipling's famous poem, If, was inspired by Leander Starr Jameson, a military leader who led a failed raid on the Transvaal Republic in 1895. The poem basically...

"If" is intended to instruct its readers on the character qualities a good leader must possess. The first stanza of the poem counsels self-confidence and integrity, the ability to "trust yourself...

Rudyard Kipling's famous poem "If" is essentially an instruction manual written to his son on how to become a "man." In the second stanza of the poem, the speaker encourages his son to treat...

The speaker advises his son to be a man with strong belief in himself. If one is in the right, he or she must not be bothered by the allegations brought against them by others. Truth can’t lie...

In the poem "If" by Kipling, the speaker states that we should treat the two imposters the same: If you can meet with triumph and disaster And treat those two imposters just the same; The speaker...