Analysis
The structure of “The White Man’s Burden” by Rudyard Kipling tells us that the poem consists of seven stanzas that all explore the challenges faced by the white man as he attempts to civilise the natives in the lands he colonises. The poem has a traditional rhyme scheme and uses alliteration.
In the poem, the speaker makes a call to action to the white man to inspire him to help civilise the 'primitive' peoples living in colonies.
The other characters in the poem include the white man (which stands for Western civilisation and imperialism) and the colonised peoples.
The setting portrays the colonised lands as dangerous, bleak places for the white man to live in. The social setting of the poem deals with racism in the sense that the white man has a negative and stereotypical view of the natives.
The language is formal, with an emphasis on action verbs and the use of the imperative. The poem includes various poetic devices, such as personification, irony, and allusion.
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