Appreciation on if the poem written by rudyard kipling
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The poem if's appreciationThe Title- As a word, If suggests the idea of conditional fulfillment, as reflected in the statement: If you work hard you will do well. That is exactly how the word is used in this poem. Fourteen Ifs begin the conditions that can make one the master of the Earth and a perfect Man. The assumption, of course, is that normally people are not like this, but if they try hard they can become so. Kipling could have called the poem The Perfect Man or Mastering the Earth but by choosing If he stresses the conditions, the difficulties in fulfilling them and not the achievement itself. This contributes to the didactic intent of the poem.
Main Theme- If, is a didactic poem, that is a poem meant to offer moral lessons. In it, the poet describes the traits of the perfect man. According to Kipling, if one intends to be a Man or the master of everything on the Earth, then he has to develop some virtues. They include patience, courage, modesty, honesty, self confidence, determination, self control and hard work. It is obvious that one person cannot have all these, but can at least aspire towards them.
The poet speaks directly to the readers addressing them as a son. If was written in 1895 when Kipling was 30 yrs old-old enough to be a father. Therefore, the poem is addressed to a 'son'. Thirty years of life, Kipling things has prepared him to understand what makes a perfect man and that is the knowledge he wants to offer his readers.
Kipling's Style- Kipling uses simple and colloquial language in his poem. He uses contrast to emphasis his ideas. This poem contains four stanzas, eight lines each. Its structure and rhythm are regular. Kipling follows the abab, cdcd rhyme scheme. The regularity and uniformity of the poem creates a disciplined atmosphere in the poem that the poet would want his readers to developInteresting devices like metaphors, personification, symbolic senses and proverbial diction are used to help the young son/ readers understand clearly abstract ideals and virtues.