The poem "If,"by Rudyard Kipling, is about acting in a mature way, not with pettiness and vindictiveness. So, you just have to choose which lines apply to you, and write why that is. Since you are a young person, perhaps you might choose:
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
Have you ever been among friends who might be pressuring you to do something you know is wrong, and yet you resist? Do they criticize you for being lame or a wimp? If so, then these first two lines apply to you
Perhaps these lines apply to you:
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
Has anyone ever said something untrue or mean about you, and yet you refuse to stoop to their level by saying something mean back or telling a lie about them? If so, then these lines might apply to you.
Perhaps you like these lines:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you have dreams but can turn your dreams into plans that you achieve instead of leaving them as dreams only, if you have good thoughts and act upon those thoughts - put those thoughts to work to help others and not just let them stagnate as mere thoughts, then these lines might apply to you.
Or:
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can accept success as well as disaster and not let either of these two things defeat you, perhaps these lines apply to you. Note that the author calls them "imposters" - sometimes disaster works out for the good, and sometimes what seems like triumph is truly a disaster - but can you survive them both?
Hopefully these ideas will get you started. The premise of the poem is that a “true man” acts in this way – with dignity.
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
Good luck!
No comments:
Post a Comment