Rudyard Kipling is widely regarded as a staunch defender of the British Empire. However, Kipling's prose work, "The Man Who Would Be King," reveals a deeper ambiguity about Empire, exposing many of the flaws that were at the heart of imperial expansion. In this play, two men, Daniel Dravot and Peachy Carnehan, grow tired of the stagnant and impractical rule of the British colonies in India. They embark on an ill-fated adventure to become kings in their own right. Additionally, Kipling's work "The White Man's Burden" also discusses the mistakes in creating and governing an imperial empire. However, the two works do so in very different ways. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay “The Man Who Would Be King” is the story of two men, Peachey Carnehan and Daniel Davrot, a couple of uneducated adventurers and drunkards. , trusted artists and blackmailers, who try to establish themselves as the god-kings of Kafiristan. Kafiristan is described as the eastern province of Afghanistan, located on the southern slopes of the Hindu Kush mountains. The two men have no legitimate rights to this region but Davrot becomes king by declaring himself god with the extraordinary coincidence that the Masonic symbols on his robe correspond to those of local prophecies and legends. However, when he attempts to extend his power far and wide by taking a native girl as his wife, in direct defiance of the natives' traditions and culture, the girl bites him and draws blood from him, proving that he does not he's actually not a god. The mini-empire is founded on deception; and once Davrot reveals himself to be "neither God nor devil, but a man", he is attacked and ultimately killed by the natives. Kipling's point here is that a direct invasion of a native-foreign culture for the sole purpose of ruling, subjugating and exploiting is never a good thing and is doomed to failure. Daniel and Peachy were not trying to elevate their subjects or improve their situation; but were simply seeking personal wealth and gain, as shown in the following quote: “The country is not half exhausted because those who govern it will not let you touch it. They spend all their blessed time governing it, and you can't lift a spade, or break a rock, or dig for oil, or anything like that without the whole government saying, "Leave him alone and let's govern. "Therefore, as things stand, we will leave this alone and go to another place where a man is not crowded and can come to his home...we are leaving to be kings. This follows a discussion between Daniel and the narrator – a representation of Kipling himself – about how menial work and the governance of the British Empire do not allow a man to create wealth. Both see empire as a means of generating wealth. personal wealth, and not as an exercise in political, social and cultural development. It could perhaps be argued that it is this quality that makes Peachey and Davrot unfit to rule and ultimately leads to their downfall. If their intentions had been less altruistic, they would not have lied and would have set themselves up as gods, but as leaders wishing to improve the people. Instead, they ruled through fear and submission, just like the British Empire. They prepared themselves for fall when their lie was exposed. Likewise, actual British imperialist tendencies almost always collapsed as superficial altruism.