If—

As a didactic poem, “If—” offers instruction on various levels. On one hand, it’s a poem wherein a father instructs his son on righteous living. The poem also operates on a larger level, where the speaker counsels readers in general on how best to live a life of virtue.

The poem’s tone is upbeat, reminiscent of contemporary self-help books that provide advice in a familiar, optimistic, and engaging voice.

Many of the poem’s lines begin with “if,” which gives the poem its title. This conditional introduces conditions, or requirements, that readers must meet to ensure virtuous living.

The first stanza establishes the “if” scenario that continues throughout the poem. With the first two lines, “If you can keep your head when all about you / Are losing theirs and blaming it on you” (Lines 1-2), the speaker impresses upon the reader to be sensible when those around them may not be.

The next “if” situation presented in the third and fourth lines, “If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, / But make allowance for their doubting too” (Lines 3-4), emphasizes two characteristics that we must possess: self-confidence and empathy, even if others do not agree with you.

Lines 5-7 stress the importance of tolerance when tempted by impatience, being lied to, and being hated. The stanza’s final line, Line 8, continues the stoic concept of modesty: “And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise” (Line 8).

The “if” clauses continue into the second stanza, where the speaker encourages the reader to dream and to think while not being controlled by dreams and thoughts.

Next, two concepts, “Triumph” and “Disaster,” are introduced and personified as imposters. The speaker advises the reader to avoid getting swept up by success or failure, and the speaker follows this advice with another set of imperatives: “If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken / Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools” (Lines 13-14). These imperatives inform the reader to stand firm in their principles and disregard the misinterpretation of those beliefs. The sentiment of picking oneself up and starting again is expanded in the final lines of the second stanza.

The first half of the third stanza is about never forgetting where you came from. If the reader loses everything, they should keep their head held high and not dwell on loss. In the second half of the third stanza, the speaker encourages the reader to endure, even when endurance feels both emotionally (“heart and nerve”) and physically (“sinew”) difficult:

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on where there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’ (Lines 21-24).

The capitalization of “Will” in this stanza emphasizes the word as a noun and the capacity by which a person decides on and initiates action.

The final stanza begins with the idea of maintaining modesty. No matter who the reader is associated with, they need to treat the common person the same way they would treat a person of nobility.

Next, the speaker reminds the reader that it is important to be resilient to disappointment. One must not dwell on critics and adversaries. Finally, the speaker gives his final bit of advice: “If you can fill the unforgiving minute / With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run—” (Lines 29-30). Here the speaker is advising the reader to be patient and never give up. He is also pointing out the value of time.

The outcome of the “if” imperatives is revealed in the last two lines of the poem: “Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, / And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!” (Lines 31-32).

“If—” concludes with the reward of maintaining virtue. The poem’s if-then scenarios all lead to this answer: readers will become “men.” One way to interpret this conclusion for contemporary readers is to say that this dichotomous element represents the stoic idea of enduring hardship without complaint, or what Christopher Hitchens calls a “reconciliation of opposites” (Hitchens, Christopher. “A Man of Permanent Contradictions.” The Atlantic, June 2002). This coda reveals that by following the directives of the previous 30 lines, you will be able to endure anything the world throws at you.