Essay Questions

How is Daniel Dravot's death foreshadowed?

In the preamble to his story, Peachey makes frequent references to "poor" Dan, who would not take advice, and who came to a bad end. He talks about how somebody hammered nails into his head, to make him "hear" better how Dan died.

Why is Freemasonry significant to the story?

Peachey induces the narrator to carry a message to Dan by appealing to him as a fellow Mason and asking a favor. Later, when Dan and Peachey reach Kafiristan, they find that the local people are aware of Freemasonry although they have an imperfict, limited understanding of the rituals and symbols. However a form of cult worship has grown up around the various signs, grips, and forms of recognition up to the Second Degree. Dan and Peachey, who are initiates of the Third Degree, have what the locals believe to be superhuman, godlike knowledge. Dan exploits their misunderstanding by passing himself and Peachey off as gods and by using their more advanced knowledge of Masonry to establish himself and Peachey as kings.

Why are the people of Kafiristan so frequently described as "English"?

Dan and Peachey notice that the natives of Kafiristan resemble Europeans as opposed to people from North Africa or the Middle East. They have pale skin, hairy hands and bodies, and other physical features Dan and Peachey associate with Englishmen. The men notice some similarities between English and Kafiristani customs, such as a tendency to use chairs inside their houses. Their aptitude at both Freemasonry and modern military technique such as rifle drill convinces Dan and Peachey that the men of Kafiristan are very much like themselves. This is a fatal error, however: there is no actual genetic kinship between the genuine Englishmen and the Kafiristani men, nor is there any cultural or spiritual brotherhood. The local people's loyalty to Dan and Peachey is based on the belief that they are gods, not in any actual shared affinity.

What forms of racist language exist in the text?

When Dan and Peachey describe the Kafiristani people as being "white" or "English", they mean that they are good or superior. They speak disparagingly of people with other colors of skin and who practice different religions, suggesting that they are less honest and less intelligent than themselves. This is very ironic since the two men are dishonestly presenting themselves as gods, and Peachey is unable to learn even the basics of the local language while some of the local men such as Billy Fish master conversational English.

Why does Peachey not want Dan to marry a Kafiristani woman? Why does Billy Fish object?

Peachey and Dan signed a contract saying they would not touch liquor or women until they were both established as kings in Kafiristan. Peachey takes the contract very seriously and believes, correctly, that the two men do not have actual physical or organizational control over the situation. Their rule is based on a lie: they are pretending to be gods. They are also extremely busy, and in Peachey's experience women can behave unpredictably in a way that causes serious trouble to the men who are romantically involved with them.

Billy Fish believes that when gods and mortals marry, the mortal person dies or is never seen or heard from again. He does not want that to happen to any of the girls or women of the village. He also suggests that he's aware Dan and Peachey are not really gods, and that if the local people find out they will react violently.

Who is Billy Fish, and why does he defend Dan and Peachey when everyone else in Kafiristan turns against them?

Billy Fish is a local chief who becomes one of Dan and Peachey's first allies. He is a very intelligent man who quickly learns enough English to communicate with Peachey. He owes his continued rulership to the two Englishmen, and particularly to the guns they brought which helped him to subdue or at least neutralize his rivals. Although he is not completely convinced that Dan and Peachey are gods, his association with them has raised him above all the other chieftains in terms of rank and privilege. So long as Dan and Peachey are in power, Billy's position is secure even though his rivals are still alive. When Dan and Peachey turn out not to be kings, Billy therefore risks his life to get the two Englishmen back to his own village where they will be relatively safe and where they can defend themselves. This attempt fails, and when Billy is captured along with Dan and Peachey, the men of Kafiristan consider him a traitor and execute him.

What abuses of authority do Dan and Peachey commit during their conquest and rule of Kafiristan?

Dan and Peachey use their rifles to kill several men they have never met, simply because they wish to establish their power. They pretend to be gods, and they open an unauthorized Masonic Lodge and initiate people into a very corrupt form of the Third Degree. Finally, Dan insists on marrying a local woman despite her objections and despite the local belief that gods and mortals should not marry.

How are Dan and Peachey similar to one another? How are they different?

Dan and Peachey are both physically large men, of English descent, who have been adventuring through India and other countries. They both want to establish themselves as kings in the far-off territory of Kafiristan. They are both third-degree Freemasons, and they both have military experience having been British soldiers.

Although both men can read, Dan is far more intelligent than Peachey. He is better at learning languages and making plans, and quickly establishes himself as the leader of the two. Dan is also far more ambitious than Peachey: having become a king, he is unsatisfied and wishes to immediately develop an empire with himself as a hereditary ruler. He is more charismatic than Peachey, and people follow him of their own will.

Compared to Dan, Peachey is more of a realist, and he understands the limits of his own abilities. He is in charge of the army, and he never learns the local language, so people tend to be afraid of him. He is more honest than Dan and reluctant to pass himself off as a god or to exploit the Masonic craft without authorization. But he eventually goes along with Dan's schemes. In Peachey's mind, because Dan is the leader of the operation, he is doing no harm.