Have you ever heard the poem?

The Man Who Thinks He Can – by Walter D. Wintle

 

If you think you are beaten, you are;

If you think that you dare not, you don’t.

If you’d like to win, but you think you can’t,

it’s almost certain that you won’t.

 

If you think you’ll lose, you’ve lost;

For out in the world you’ll find

Success begins with a fellow’s will –

It’s all in the state of mind.

 

If you think that you are out-classed, you are;

You’ve got to think high to rise.

You’ve got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

 

Life’s battles don’t always go

to the stronger or faster man;

But sooner or later, the man who wins

is the man who thinks he can!

The theme of this poem is about, if you don’t believe in yourself you will never win the prize. I can tell that this is the theme of the poem because I found the key sentences that he said such as, “If you think you’ll lose, you’ve lost;” This was one thing that helped me out a lot because just these seven little words describe so much about the entire poem. I have definitely given up before. I’ve given up on things that I know I could have won or I know I could have gotten a good grade on, but instead I gave up. After reading this poem I truly feel that I could have won or gotten a better grade on little things that could have turned into incredible things, but I guess we will never know because I gave up. How do you feel after reading this poem? Have you ever given up?

-Gwen Varley