If

comented by Ben Freer

The poem If by Rudyard Kipling is a well-known poem that is referred to in countless instances. The nature of the poem is that with is also seen quite a bit in different formats. This nature is that of giving advice. Many of these works that give advice to the reader are successful because it is human nature to accept a challenge. They see the advice not as it is, advice, but as something more. It is seen as a goal, or even an order. These works that contain this advice are very common through history. Perhaps, one of the most well-known ones is in Hamlet by William Shakespeare. In Act I Scene III, Polonius gives advice to his son Laertes. There are many connections to this, which may have been an inspiration for Kipling to write such a poem. A specific example is this section from Hamlet, which explains that you should avoid fights, but remember that the opponent is trying to as well. "Beware of entrance to a quarrel; but being in, Bear't that th' opposed may beware of thee." This common theme of allowing another the same rights as you is in this section of If. "If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too." The two poems have another major similarity. They are both written in the style of telling you what to do, but then limiting the amount of it that you should do. This gives the reader even more a challenge. Not only is there the general order of what they should do, but now it is coupled with another factor that the reader must limit himself by. Another example is the supposed Cornell 1997 graduation speech. This was then taken by Baz Luhrmann who had turned it into a popular song. Part of its popularity may be a result of the advice that it gives. This song also contain the same way of limiting the readers acts." Don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself too much." Lines like this one almost make the task impossible, but perhaps this is why they are so popular, because people strive to do just that.

Extracted from: http://home.att.net/~freer6/kipling/index.htm