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Kipling: The Selected Poems
Whether it was the hill stations of the Raj or the markets of Allahabad, India provided an extraordinary inspiration to Rudyard Kipling's work. This collection of 168 poems by the Nobel Prize winning poet was printed in Great Britain by the Bath Press, Bath, on Munken pure paper, and bound by them in quarter leather and cloth sides, with a design by George Tute.
The British poet Rudyard Kipling was born on 30 December 1865 in Bombay, where his father, Lockwood Kipling, was Professor of Architectural Sculpture. He was enrolled in the United Services College in Devon, a school designed to prepare children for service in the British Army. In 1882 Kipling returned to India to work as a journalist on the Lahore-based Civil and Military Gazette. A fiercely enthusiastic writer, he produced verse and stories for the newspaper as well as writing features on Anglo-Indian life. As Kipling travelled India for the newspaper he became absorbed in the local stories.
Kipling and Caroline Balestier were married in London in January 1892. Following their marriage they went to live in the United States near her family’s home in Vermont, in a house named ‘Bliss Cottage’. It was there in December 1892 that Kipling’s daughter Josephine was born. That year, the most famous Rudyard Kipling book was written, The Jungle Book. Published in 1894, it was greeted with widespread acclaim, not only as brilliant adventure stories but moral touchstones for the Victorian era. During a brief spell in Devon, where Kipling’s son John was born in 1897, Kipling wrote his most controversial works, the poems ‘Recessional’ (1897) and ‘The White Man’s Burden’ (1899). These poems, though hugely influential and popular, mark a shift in his writing into the political realm.
A staunch supporter of the British Empire and the high ideals of colonialism, Kipling's fame increased, and he would become known as ‘the Poet of the Empire’. By the turn of the century Kipling's literary career was at its peak. His largely autobiographical novel Kim was published in 1901 and in 1907 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature; the youngest ever recipient and the first to speak the English language. With his reputation now secured his writing became even more political as he used his fame to promote causes from Freemasonry and Ulster Unionism to the arms race with Germany.
In 1910 he published his most celebrated poem, ‘If…’ cataloguing the qualities necessary to become a decent man, it remains Britain’s most popular poem. Kipling's love for the Empire led to his enthusiastic support for the First World War in 1914. Since his death on 18 January 1936, there has been much debate over Kipling's militant enthusiasm for the British Empire. However, few critics fail to praise the quality of his stories and poems, with many great authors, from George Orwell to Jorge Luis Borges, citing Kipling as a key inspiration. Though he remains controversial in his beloved India, the post-Independence Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru always claimed Kim was his favourite book.
The British poet Rudyard Kipling was born on 30 December 1865 in Bombay, where his father, Lockwood Kipling, was Professor of Architectural Sculpture. He was enrolled in the United Services College in Devon, a school designed to prepare children for service in the British Army. In 1882 Kipling returned to India to work as a journalist on the Lahore-based Civil and Military Gazette. A fiercely enthusiastic writer, he produced verse and stories for the newspaper as well as writing features on Anglo-Indian life. As Kipling travelled India for the newspaper he became absorbed in the local stories.
Kipling and Caroline Balestier were married in London in January 1892. Following their marriage they went to live in the United States near her family’s home in Vermont, in a house named ‘Bliss Cottage’. It was there in December 1892 that Kipling’s daughter Josephine was born. That year, the most famous Rudyard Kipling book was written, The Jungle Book. Published in 1894, it was greeted with widespread acclaim, not only as brilliant adventure stories but moral touchstones for the Victorian era. During a brief spell in Devon, where Kipling’s son John was born in 1897, Kipling wrote his most controversial works, the poems ‘Recessional’ (1897) and ‘The White Man’s Burden’ (1899). These poems, though hugely influential and popular, mark a shift in his writing into the political realm.
A staunch supporter of the British Empire and the high ideals of colonialism, Kipling's fame increased, and he would become known as ‘the Poet of the Empire’. By the turn of the century Kipling's literary career was at its peak. His largely autobiographical novel Kim was published in 1901 and in 1907 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature; the youngest ever recipient and the first to speak the English language. With his reputation now secured his writing became even more political as he used his fame to promote causes from Freemasonry and Ulster Unionism to the arms race with Germany.
In 1910 he published his most celebrated poem, ‘If…’ cataloguing the qualities necessary to become a decent man, it remains Britain’s most popular poem. Kipling's love for the Empire led to his enthusiastic support for the First World War in 1914. Since his death on 18 January 1936, there has been much debate over Kipling's militant enthusiasm for the British Empire. However, few critics fail to praise the quality of his stories and poems, with many great authors, from George Orwell to Jorge Luis Borges, citing Kipling as a key inspiration. Though he remains controversial in his beloved India, the post-Independence Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru always claimed Kim was his favourite book.
423 pages, Leather Bound
Published January 1, 2004
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About the author
Rudyard Kipling
7,081 books3,657 followersJoseph Rudyard Kipling was a journalist, short-story writer, poet, and novelist.
Kipling's works of fiction include The Jungle Book (1894), Kim (1901), and many short stories, including The Man Who Would Be King (1888). His poems include Mandalay (1890), Gunga Din (1890), The Gods of the Copybook Headings (1919), The White Man's Burden (1899), and If— (1910). He is regarded as a major innovator in the art of the short story; his children's books are classics of children's literature; and one critic described his work as exhibiting "a versatile and luminous narrative gift".
Kipling was one of the most popular writers in the United Kingdom, in both prose and verse, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Henry James said: "Kipling strikes me personally as the most complete man of genius (as distinct from fine intelligence) that I have ever known." In 1907, at the age of 41, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, making him the first English-language writer to receive the prize, and its youngest recipient to date. He was also sounded out for the British Poet Laureateship and on several occasions for a knighthood, both of which he declined.
Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907 "in consideration of the power of observation, originality of imagination, virility of ideas and remarkable talent for narration which characterize the creations of this world-famous author."
Kipling kept writing until the early 1930s, but at a slower pace and with much less success than before. On the night of 12 January 1936, Kipling suffered a haemorrhage in his small intestine. He underwent surgery, but died less than a week later on 18 January 1936 at the age of 70 of a perforated duodenal ulcer. Kipling's death had in fact previously been incorrectly announced in a magazine, to which he wrote, "I've just read that I am dead. Don't forget to delete me from your list of subscribers."
Kipling's works of fiction include The Jungle Book (1894), Kim (1901), and many short stories, including The Man Who Would Be King (1888). His poems include Mandalay (1890), Gunga Din (1890), The Gods of the Copybook Headings (1919), The White Man's Burden (1899), and If— (1910). He is regarded as a major innovator in the art of the short story; his children's books are classics of children's literature; and one critic described his work as exhibiting "a versatile and luminous narrative gift".
Kipling was one of the most popular writers in the United Kingdom, in both prose and verse, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Henry James said: "Kipling strikes me personally as the most complete man of genius (as distinct from fine intelligence) that I have ever known." In 1907, at the age of 41, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, making him the first English-language writer to receive the prize, and its youngest recipient to date. He was also sounded out for the British Poet Laureateship and on several occasions for a knighthood, both of which he declined.
Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907 "in consideration of the power of observation, originality of imagination, virility of ideas and remarkable talent for narration which characterize the creations of this world-famous author."
Kipling kept writing until the early 1930s, but at a slower pace and with much less success than before. On the night of 12 January 1936, Kipling suffered a haemorrhage in his small intestine. He underwent surgery, but died less than a week later on 18 January 1936 at the age of 70 of a perforated duodenal ulcer. Kipling's death had in fact previously been incorrectly announced in a magazine, to which he wrote, "I've just read that I am dead. Don't forget to delete me from your list of subscribers."
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November 1, 2024
Two things to say about Kipling's poetry. First the range is extensive, remarkably so. The Folio edition of his poems into 17 thematic sections from India to Animals. Kipling had a versatility in range that he didn't have in form. And that is the second thing. Kipling famously thought himself a writer of verse rather than a poet, a judgement that T.S. Eliot endorsed. Indeed these do feel more like verses. A surprising number of them can be sung along to the tune of Praise my Soul the King of Heaven which highlights their origins as light verse in stories or shows.
As is often the case in selected poems, the famous ones (and usually best) are the ones that have already been anthologised: Danny Deever, Recessional and the ubiquitous If. Others have well known lines, even if the poems and the context have been long lost. The English Flag ("And what should they know of England who only England know?"); I keep six honest serving men etc.
Like much of Kipling's work, the Twenty First century is an inhospitable environment for their survival. The White Man's Burden and Fuzzy Wuzzy are known now for the wrong reasons. Boris Johnson, as foreign secretary, was caught reciting Mandalay on a tour to Myanmar ("the temple-bells they say: "Come back you British soldier; come you back to Mandalay") and was quickly hushed by the ambassador. The poems that deserve to survive, and are perhaps not read enough, are his poems on the First World War where he lost his son. Recessional (my favourite Kipling poem) also sounds this, slightly, humber note. As for If, the Bohemian Rhapsody of English poetry I that it consistently gets voted Favourite Poem of All Time. There is certainly a beauty about it, and is so easy to memorise and recite, but it's stoical advice for living is not one, I think, that is particularly helpful. Personally I think it's better not to risk the heap of all your winnings on one turn of pitch-and-toss, but that probably says something about my attitude to risk.
As is often the case in selected poems, the famous ones (and usually best) are the ones that have already been anthologised: Danny Deever, Recessional and the ubiquitous If. Others have well known lines, even if the poems and the context have been long lost. The English Flag ("And what should they know of England who only England know?"); I keep six honest serving men etc.
Like much of Kipling's work, the Twenty First century is an inhospitable environment for their survival. The White Man's Burden and Fuzzy Wuzzy are known now for the wrong reasons. Boris Johnson, as foreign secretary, was caught reciting Mandalay on a tour to Myanmar ("the temple-bells they say: "Come back you British soldier; come you back to Mandalay") and was quickly hushed by the ambassador. The poems that deserve to survive, and are perhaps not read enough, are his poems on the First World War where he lost his son. Recessional (my favourite Kipling poem) also sounds this, slightly, humber note. As for If, the Bohemian Rhapsody of English poetry I that it consistently gets voted Favourite Poem of All Time. There is certainly a beauty about it, and is so easy to memorise and recite, but it's stoical advice for living is not one, I think, that is particularly helpful. Personally I think it's better not to risk the heap of all your winnings on one turn of pitch-and-toss, but that probably says something about my attitude to risk.
Displaying 1 of 1 review