If – Rudyard Kipling
If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on
you – one should keep calm during difficult and challenging situations even when
others are losing control over themselves and blaming you.
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you but make allowance for their
doubting too - we should believe and trust ourselves when everyone doubts us
but also consider some of their doubts to improve ourselves.
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting – patience is an important quality to
have and that we shouldn’t be tired by waiting while we can wait.
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies – honesty is an important quality to have,
and one should not resort to lies when facing false accusations or misinformation.
Or being hated, don’t give away to hating – even when you are being hated, you
should not hate others and maintain a positive attitude.
And yet don’t look too god, nor talk too wise: - we should have good qualities
such as these and have a proper balance between confidence and humility, and
shouldn’t think too high or low of themselves.
If you can dream – and not make dreams your master; - we should have
aspirations but not let them consume us and take control over our life.
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim; - we should think but not get
lost in our thoughts.
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two impostors, the
same.” – we should be able to handle both success and failure and not be overly
affected by either. They are called impostors as they are not always what they
seem to be and one can easily get deceived by them.
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken twisted by knaves to make a
trap for fools – we should be able to face the lies told by cunning people to
deceive others.
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, and stoop and build’ em up
with worn out tools – even when dreams that one dedicated their time and life to
are destroyed, we should not give up and despite the hardships continue
rebuilding.
If you can fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run - we
should make the most out of every moment and manage our time wisely as time
is unforgiving.
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And – which is more – you’ll be a
Man, my son – If you do all these then the world will be yours and more
importantly you’ll become a man.
Q) What does the poet say about –
a) keeping your head
b) lies
c) hate
Ans)
a) The poet says that we should always keep our head and even when people
blame us for losing control over their emotions and problems.
b) The poet says that we should not resort to lies even when we have to face
them.
c) The poet says that we should not hate others even when they hate us.
Q) List the qualities which make a man according to the poet.
Ans) According to the poet the various qualities which makes someone “a man”
are confidence, humility, faith in ourselves, honesty, compassion, hard work, time
management, etc.
Q) Why does the poet call ‘Triumph’ and ‘Disaster’ impostors?
Ans) The poet calls Triumph and Disaster impostors as they are temporary, they
are both not what they seem to be and easily deceive people. If we get overjoyed
by a success it will lead to failure and if we work hard after a disaster it leads to
success. Hence, we can say they both are the same thing and come in disguise to
deceive you.
Q) What does the poet mean when he says we should treat Triumph and Disaster
‘just the same’?
Ans) The poet says that we should treat both Triumph and Disaster the same.
Through that line he wants to suggest that one should treat success and failure
the same. We should not be overjoyed or depressed over a success or failure as
they are temporary.
Q) What are examples of personification from the poem?
Ans) Some examples of personification from the poem include – “if you can
dream – and not make dreams your master” since being a master is a human
quality, as well as “if you can meet triumph and disaster and treat those two
impostors the same” as both triumph and disaster are being called impostors.
Q) What do you think is meant by the following?
a) If you can dream – and not make dreams your master.
b) If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim.
Ans)
a) We should always dream and have goals but we should never let our
dreams consume us and take over us.
b) We should always think but not get lost in our thoughts.
