The Man Who Would be King Flashcards
by Rudyard Kipling — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Man Who Would be King
Who are the two main adventurers in the story?
Daniel Dravot and Peachey Carnehan, two roguish British ex-soldiers who set out to become kings of Kafiristan.
Who narrates the outer frame of the story?
An unnamed journalist based on Kipling himself, who works as a newspaper correspondent in India.
Where do Dravot and Carnehan plan to establish their kingdom?
Kafiristan, a remote and largely unexplored mountainous region in what is now northeastern Afghanistan.
What is the "Contrack" that Dravot and Carnehan sign?
A written agreement forbidding them from drinking alcohol or pursuing women until they become kings, symbolizing the self-discipline needed for their quest.
What weapons do Dravot and Carnehan bring to Kafiristan?
Twenty Martini-Henry rifles, which give them a decisive military advantage over the locals who have only bows and arrows.
How do the adventurers initially gain power over the local tribes?
They take sides in a local tribal conflict and use their superior firearms and British military training to win victories.
Why are the Kafir people inclined to worship Dravot as a god?
The locals possess ancient Masonic symbols, and Dravot exploits his knowledge of Freemasonry to claim he is the "Son of Alexander" and a divine being.
What does Dravot do after becoming king that violates the Contrack?
He declares the Contrack fulfilled and demands a native wife, breaking the agreement to abstain from women.
How is Dravot revealed to be mortal rather than a god?
His terrified bride bites him during the wedding ceremony and draws blood, proving to the people that he is human.
How does Daniel Dravot die?
The rebelling Kafirs cut the rope bridge he is standing on, and he falls into the gorge below.
What happens to Peachey Carnehan after Dravot dies?
He is crucified between two pine trees but survives the night; the Kafirs consider this a miracle and release him.
What does Carnehan bring back to India as proof of their adventure?
The severed head of Daniel Dravot, still wearing its golden crown.
What happens to Carnehan after he tells his story to the Narrator?
He dies shortly afterward, broken in body and mind from his ordeal.
What is the central theme of hubris in the story?
Dravot's ambition grows unchecked from king to emperor to god, and this overreach directly causes his destruction.
How does the story serve as an allegory for British imperialism?
Dravot and Carnehan's venture mirrors the imperial project: arriving with superior weapons, imposing Western systems, exploiting local beliefs, and ultimately failing due to cultural ignorance.
What does the "Contrack" symbolize thematically?
It represents the moral discipline and self-restraint necessary to maintain power; abandoning it triggers the catastrophic downfall.
What is the theme of delusion versus reality in the story?
Dravot comes to believe his own myth of divinity, but reality reasserts itself violently when his mortality is exposed.
What narrative technique structures the story?
A frame narrative: the journalist Narrator tells the outer story, within which Carnehan recounts the inner tale of the Kafiristan adventure.
How does Kipling use foreshadowing in the story?
The Narrator predicts early on that Dravot and Carnehan will be "cut to pieces" before reaching Kafiristan, hinting at the violent ending.
What is the primary irony of the story?
Two low-class vagabonds and con men actually achieve kingship, only to lose everything because they cannot resist the temptation of believing their own deception.
What historical figure is alluded to throughout the story?
Alexander the Great, whose legendary conquest of the region provides the basis for Dravot's claim to divine kingship.
When was "The Man Who Would Be King" first published?
In 1888, as part of the collection The Phantom 'Rickshaw and Other Tales.
What real historical figures may have inspired the story?
James Brooke (the White Rajah of Sarawak) and Josiah Harlan, an American who tried to become a prince in Afghanistan in the 1830s.
What famous 1975 film adapted this story?
John Huston directed the film starring Sean Connery as Dravot and Michael Caine as Carnehan, with Christopher Plummer as Kipling.
What does Dravot's crowned, severed head symbolize?
It represents the ultimate irony of his ambition: he achieved his golden crown but paid for it with his life, and even in death he wears the symbol of his hubris.