Need help with the question below about the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling

Question

In the last stanza, the speaker urges his son to fill the "unforgiving minute." Why would Kipling attribute such a negative connotation to something that seems so small?

Answer 1

Great question! The reason Rudyard Kipling uses the adjective "unforgiving" when describing something as small as a minute is to imply that time is notoriously short. It is ultimately a metaphor for the amount of time we as humans are given to experience this life. I hope that helps you in your understanding.