If By Richard Kipling Analysis

Encyclopaedia Britannica defines parenting as “the process of raising children and providing them with protection and care in order to ensure their healthy development into adulthood” (“Parenting”). In the poems “If” by Rudyard Kipling, and “Point B” by Sarah Kay, published in 1895 and 2011 respectively, the authors of the poems and the speakers in them as well, share a heartfelt connection with the children the poems feature. In Kipling’s case, he was inspired by Leander Starr Jameson and his relationship with his children. Kipling also went on to have a son two years after writing “If” and was likely thinking of parenting at the time of publishing. For Sarah Kay, she was likely considering having children at the time of publishing, as she
In “If” by Richard Kipling, he concludes the poem by saying, “And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!” (Kipling 32). Kipling states that if the person the poem features follows his advice, that he will become a man. Encyclopaedia Britannica defines adulthood as, “the period in the human lifespan in which full physical and intellectual maturity have been attained” (“Adulthood”). If the child follows the advice that Kipling gives, he will grow to possess the physical and mental maturity that Britannica describes as adulthood. The concept of the child becoming a man gives this poem a theme of growing up. In “Point B” by Sarah Kay, Kay states, “And she's going to learn that this life will hit you hard in the face, wait for you to get back up just so it can kick you in the stomach. But getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air” (Kay 0:35). Kay says that her daughter will learn that life can be hard, and that it will knock her down sometimes. However, being knocked down will help her appreciate life more, because it allows her to realize how nice things are for her typically. Finding that life is difficult is part of becoming an adult; everybody comes to that realization at one point or another, and Kay’s daughter is no exception to that rule. She will learn about the difficult parts of life, and this will allow her
In “If” the poem ends with, “And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!” (Kipling 32). Kipling addresses the person the poem features as his son at the end of his poem. Since Kipling calls him his son, it is fair to assume that Kipling possesses the role of the father of the child the poem features. Kipling did not have any children at the time of publishing this poem, so he puts himself into the shoes of a father in “If.” In the first line of “Point B,” Kay says, “If I should have a daughter” (Kay 0:12). Kay uses the word “if” and did not have children at the time of writing the poem. Kay thinks about what it would be like if she has a daughter in “Point B,” and how she will raise her. She imagines hypothetical situations her daughter gets into, and speaks about how she plans to respond to said situations. Due to those conditions, it is fair to assume that Kay only imagines herself as a parent in “Point