It is doubtful that Kipling meant his poem to be taken seriously as a whole. ... One can see the parallels between these ideas presented in the poem and those in Heart of Darkness. ... Two of his most oft-condemned poems, Recessional and The White Man's Burden, actually were used by both sides of the colonial issue at the time.1 A reading of Recessional, taken in the context of the prevailing attitudes of the time, seems to indicate that it is a piece about hubris rather than a promotion of the Empire. ... A collection of poems written in the voice of a London cockney, they display Kiplin...

• Word Count: 4292
• Approx Pages: 17
• Grade Level: High School