Rudyard Kipling: Difference between revisions

Later in life Kipling came to be recognized (by George Orwell, at least) as a "prophet of [[British Empire|British imperialism]]."<ref name=orwellonrk>{{cite web

[[Image:Malabarpoint governmenthouse bombay.jpg|thumb|right|Malabar Point, Bombay, 1865]]

In January 1878 Kipling was admitted to the [[United Services College]], at [[Westward Ho!]], Devon, a school founded a few years earlier to prepare boys for the armed forces. The school proved rough going for him at first, but later led to firm friendships, and provided the setting for his schoolboy stories ''Stalky & Co.'' published many years later.<ref name=oxfordchildren/> During his time there, Kipling also met and fell in love with Florence Garrard, a fellow boarder with Trix at Southsea (to which Trix had returned). Florence was to become the model for Maisie in Kipling's first novel, ''The Light that Failed'' (1891).<ref name=oxfordchildren/>  

[[Image:Bundi palace1990.jpg|thumb|right|Bundi, [[Rajputana Agency|Rajputana]], where Kipling was inspired to write ''Kim''.]]

In early 1889, ''The Pioneer'' relieved Kipling of his charge over a dispute. For his part, Kipling had been increasingly thinking about the future. He sold the rights to his six volumes of stories for £200 and a small royalty, and the ''Plain Tales'' for £50; in addition, from ''The Pioneer'', he received six-months' salary in lieu of notice.<ref name=autobio/> He decided to use this money to make his way to London, the centre of the literary universe in the British Empire. On 9 March 1889, Kipling left India, travelling first to San Francisco via Rangoon, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. He then travelled through the United States writing articles for ''The Pioneer'' that too were collected in ''[[From Sea to Sea and Other Sketches, Letters of Travel]]''. Starting his American travels in San Francisco, Kipling journeyed north to Portland, Oregon; on to [[Seattle, Washington|Seattle]], Washington; up into Canada, to [[Victoria, British Columbia|Victoria]] and Vancouver, British Columbia; back into the U.S. to [[Yellowstone National Park]]; down to Salt Lake City; then east to [[Omaha, Nebraska|Omaha]], Nebraska and on to Chicago, Illinois; then to [[Beaver, Pennsylvania]] on the Ohio River to visit the Hill family; from there he went to [[Chautauqua]] with Professor Hill, and later to [[Niagara]], Toronto, Washington, D.C., New York and Boston.<ref name=pinney1>Pinney, Thomas (editor). ''Letters of Rudyard Kipling, volume 1''. Macmillan and Company, London and New York.</ref> In the course of this journey he met [[Mark Twain]] in [[Elmira, New York|Elmira]], New York, and felt much awed in his presence. Kipling then crossed the Atlantic, and reached Liverpool in October 1889. Soon thereafter, he made his début in the London literary world to great acclaim.<ref name=rutherford/>

In London, Kipling had several stories accepted by various magazine editors. He also found a place to live for the next two years: <blockquote> Meantime, I had found me quarters in Villiers Street, [[Strand, London|Strand]], which forty-six years ago was primitive and passionate in its habits and population. My rooms were small, not over-clean or well-kept, but from my desk I could look out of my window through the [[fanlight]] of [[Charing Cross Music Hall|Gatti’s Music-Hall]] entrance, across the street, almost on to its stage. The [[Charing Cross]] trains rumbled through my dreams on one side, the boom of the Strand on the other, while, before my windows, [[Old Father Thames|Father Thames]] under the [[Shot tower|Shot Tower]] walked up and down with his traffic. </blockquote>

It was also in this cottage that the first dawnings of the ''Jungle Books'' came to Kipling: "workroom in the Bliss Cottage was seven feet by eight, and from December to April the snow lay level with its window-sill. It chanced that I had written a tale about Indian Forestry work which included a boy who had been brought up by wolves. In the stillness, and suspense, of the winter of ’92 some memory of the Masonic Lions of my childhood’s magazine, and a phrase in [[Rider Haggard|Haggard’s]] ''Nada the Lily'', combined with the echo of this tale. After blocking out the main idea in my head, the pen took charge, and I watched it begin to write stories about [[Mowgli]] and animals, which later grew into the ''[[The Jungle Book (disambiguation)|Jungle Books]]''".<ref name=autobio/> With Josephine's arrival, ''Bliss Cottage'' was felt to be congested, so eventually the couple bought land—{{#ifeq:|on|<span style="display:none">{{padleft:10|16|0}}</span>}}{{convert/LoffAoffDbSoffNa|10|{{#ifeq:{{#expr:m2*0}}|0|0}}|m2||s=|r={{#ifeq:{{{sp}}}|us|er|re}}

|n=acre

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|j=3.607117796-0}} on a rocky hillside overlooking the [[Connecticut River]]—from Carrie's brother Beatty Balestier, and built their own house.

The writing life in ''Naulakha'' was occasionally interrupted by visitors, including [[John Lockwood Kipling|his father]], who visited soon after his retirement in 1893,<ref name=gilmour/> and British author Arthur Conan Doyle, who brought his golf-clubs, stayed for two days, and gave Kipling an extended golf lesson.<ref name=mallett>Mallet, Phillip. 2003. ''Rudyard Kipling: A Literary Life''. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. ISBN 0-333-55721-2</ref><ref name=ricketts>Ricketts, Harry. 1999. ''Rudyard Kipling: A life''. Carroll and Graf Publishers Inc., New York. ISBN 0-7867-0711-9.</ref> Kipling seemed to take to golf, occasionally practising with the local [[Congregational]] minister, and even playing with red painted balls when the ground was covered in snow.<ref name=carrington>Carrington, Charles. 1955. ''Rudyard Kipling: His Life and Work. Macmillan and Company, London and New York.</ref><ref name=ricketts/> However, the latter game was "not altogether a success because there were no limits to a drive; the ball might skid two miles (3&nbsp;km) down the long slope to [[Connecticut river]]."<ref name=carrington/>  

In early 1898 Kipling and his family travelled to South Africa for their winter holiday, thus beginning an annual tradition which (excepting the following year) was to last until 1908. With his newly minted reputation as the poet of the Empire, Kipling was warmly received by some of the most influential politicians of the Cape Colony, including [[Cecil John Rhodes|Cecil Rhodes]], [[Alfred Milner|Sir Alfred Milner]], and Leander Starr Jameson. In turn, Kipling cultivated their friendship and came to greatly admire all three men and their politics. The period 1898–1910 was a crucial one in the history of South Africa and included the Second Boer War (1899–1902), the ensuing peace treaty, and the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910. Back in England, Kipling wrote poetry in support of the British cause in the Boer War and on his next visit to South Africa in early 1900, he helped start a newspaper, ''The Friend'', for the British troops in [[Bloemfontein]], the newly captured capital of the Orange Free State. Although his journalistic stint was to last only two weeks, it was the first time Kipling would work on a newspaper staff since he left ''The Pioneer'' in Allahabad more than ten years earlier.<ref name=gilmour/> He also wrote articles published more widely expressing his views on the conflict.<ref name="NYT1900">{{Citation| last = Kipling| first = Rudyard| title = Kipling at Cape Town: Severe Arraignment of Treacherous Afrikanders and Demand for Condign Punishment By and By| newspaper = The New York Times| pages = 21| date = 18 March 1900| url = http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9401EFDC1339E733A2575BC1A9659C946197D6CF }}</ref> Kipling penned an inscription for the [[Honoured Dead Memorial]] (Siege memorial) in [[Kimberley, Northern Cape|Kimberley]].

On a visit to the United States in 1899, Kipling and his eldest daughter Josephine developed pneumonia, from which she eventually died. During World War I, he wrote a booklet ''[[The Fringes of the Fleet]]''<ref>''The Fringes of the Fleet'', Macmillan & Co. Ltd., London, 1916</ref> containing essays and poems on various nautical subjects of the war.  Some of the poems were set to music by the English composer [[Edward Elgar]].

In 1934 he published a short story in [[Strand Magazine]], "Proofs of Holy Writ", which postulated that William Shakespeare had helped to polish the prose of the King James Bible.<ref>''Short Stories from the Strand'', The Folio Society, 1992.</ref> In the non-fiction realm he also became involved in the debate over the British response to the rise in German [[navy|naval]] power, publishing a series of articles in 1898 which were collected as ''A Fleet in Being.''

The first decade of the 20th century saw Kipling at the height of his popularity. In 1907 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. The prize citation said: "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." Nobel prizes had been established in 1901 and Kipling was the first English language recipient. At the award ceremony in Stockholm on 10 December 1907, the Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, C. D. af Wirsén, praised both Kipling and three centuries of [[English literature]]:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1907/press.html |title=Nobel Prize in Literature 1907 - Presentation Speech |publisher=Nobelprize.org |date= |accessdate=2008-09-10}}</ref>

"Book-ending" this achievement was the publication of two connected poetry and story collections: ''Puck of Pook's Hill'' and ''[[Rewards and Fairies]]'' in 1906 and 1910 respectively. The latter contained the poem "[[If—]]". In a 1995 BBC opinion poll, it was voted Britain's favourite poem. This exhortation to self-control and stoicism is arguably Kipling's most famous poem.

Many have wondered why he was never made Poet Laureate. Some claim that he was offered the post during the interregnum of 1892-96 and turned it down. It also appears—surprisingly—that Queen Victoria disapproved of him.

In 1922, Kipling, who had made reference to the work of engineers in some of his poems and writings, was asked by a [[University of Toronto]] [[civil engineering]] professor for his assistance in developing a dignified obligation and ceremony for graduating engineering [[student]]s. Kipling was very enthusiastic in his response and shortly produced both, formally entitled "[[The Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer]]". Today, engineering graduates all across Canada are presented with an [[iron ring]] at the ceremony as a reminder of their obligation to society.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ironring.ca/ |title=The Iron Ring<!- Bot generated title -> |publisher=Ironring.ca |date= |accessdate=2008-09-10}}</ref> The same year Kipling became [[Rector of the University of St Andrews|Lord Rector of St Andrews University]] in Scotland, a position which ended in 1925.

Rudyard Kipling was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium and his ashes were buried in [[Poets' Corner]], part of the South Transept of Westminster Abbey, where many distinguished literary people are buried or commemorated.

Various writers, most notably Edmund Candler, were very strongly influenced by the works of Kipling.  However, following his death, Kipling's work continued to fall into critical eclipse. Fashions in poetry moved away from his exact metres and rhymes. Also, as the European colonial empires collapsed in the mid-20th century, Kipling's works fell far out of step with the times. Many who condemn him feel that Kipling's writing was inseparable from his social and political views; they point to his portrayals of Indian characters, which often supported the colonialist view that the Indians and other colonised peoples were incapable of surviving without the help of Europeans, claiming that these portrayals are racist. However, one can also find a remarkably cosmopolitan spirit in much of his writing as well and a surprising respect for non-Europeans occasionally surfaces.  An example supporting this argument can be seen by denying any irony in the mention of "lesser breeds without the Law" in "[[Recessional (poem)|Recessional]]". The phrase was a contemporary reference to a speech made by Kaiser [[Wilhelm II of Germany]], at the time of the [[Boxer rebellion]] in China, Wilhelm had said that there was a "higher" law - and Kipling was ridiculing this. The reference to colonised people in general, as "half-devil and half-child" in the poem "[[The White Man's Burden]]" is also cited. However, George Orwell in his essay on Rudyard Kipling states that the lesser breeds referred to in "Recessional" are ‘almost certainly’ the Germans, and Orwell goes on to claim that the poem is a denunciation of power politics, both British and German.<ref>‘Rudyard Kipling’ by George Orwell, pub. Horizon February 1942</ref> Another short story, The Servants of the Queen, is told from the perspective of military camp animals. There is a war horse, camel, bullocks, mules and an elephant. They all wonder just what humans' wars are for, with an arguably anti-war message. In the end, a great parade is held to impress the visiting Afghan sheik, who asks how it was all done. The officer says all they had to do was give an order, and it was obeyed, telling him of the ranks they have. "Would it were so in Afghanistan," replies the sheik, "for there we follow only our own minds." While not true, it can be taken as subtly mocking the British, who fought three wars to defeat Afghanistan, failing even with greater numbers and weapons, like the USSR over a century later.

Those who defend Kipling from accusations of racism point out that much of the apparent [[racism]] in his writing is spoken by fictional characters, not by him, and thus accurately depicts the characters. They see [[irony]] or alternative meanings in poems written in the author's own voice, including "The White Man's Burden" and "Recessional".<ref>[http://www.netribution.co.uk/index2.php?option=com_content&task=emailform&id=378 Documenting 'Racist' Empire Writer Rudyard Kipling - Netribution<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Despite changes in racial attitudes and literary standards for poetry, Kipling's poetry continues to be popular with those who see it as "vigorous and adept" rather than "jingling". Even [[T. S. Eliot]], a very different poet, edited ''[[A Choice of Kipling's Verse]]'' (1943), although in doing so he commented that "[Kipling] could write poetry on occasions—even if only by accident!" Kipling's stories for adults also remain in print and have garnered high praise from writers as different as [[Poul Anderson]], Jorge Luis Borges, and George Orwell. Nonetheless, Kipling is most highly regarded for his children's books. His ''Jungle Books'' have been made into several movies; the [[Jungle Book (1942 film)|first]] was made by producer [[Alexander Korda]], and others by the [[Walt Disney Company]].  A number of his poems were set to music by [[Percy Grainger]]. A series of short films based on some of his stories was broadcast by the BBC in 1964<ref>http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298668/</ref>.

In modern-day India, whence he drew much of his material, his reputation remains controversial, especially amongst modern Hindu nationalists and some post-colonial critics. Other contemporary Indian intellectuals such as [[Ashis Nandy]] have taken a more nuanced view of his work. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, 1st Prime Minister of India, always described Kipling's novel ''[[Kim (novel)|Kim]]'' as his favourite book.  

* ''Stalky & Co.'' (1899)

* ''Puck of Pook's Hill'' (1906)