For some, there is an unmistakable determination for a man to surpass others in seemingly unimportant matters, and this determination sometimes blinds them from the danger they put themselves in to achieve these goals. This thought proves true when Peachy Carnehan and Daniel Dravot set out to become kings of Kafiristan, thus achieving the maximum human stature and allowing themselves to have ultimate power. Their downfall resulted from their own desire for women and power, which contributed to their inability to realize that these desires were overtaking their primary goal, kingship. Throughout the story, Kipling provides unmistakable evidence that the desires for power and women were directly linked to each other. These factors eventually resulted in the decapitation of Dravot and the near crucifixion of Carnehan.
The desire for power was seen from the first appearance of Carnehan and Dravot in the office. They revealed their plan to "go away to some other place" (161) because "they that governs [India] won't let [them] touch it" (161). It is seen that their desire for power is greater than being average, hard working men. Their basis of this trip, to become kings of Kafiristan, is based on the knowledge that, there, "a man who knows how to drill men can always be a king" (162). It almost seemed as though the two thought being a king was a "symbolic function" (350) where they could "engage in childlike games of power" (350). They were not highly educated, so they probably had no idea how a king was supposed to rule. In the beginning, nobody crowned Dravot king but himself. Since he was able to civilize the people, he named himself king. He would sit "by the side of old Imbra, and the people came and worshipped" (171). For Dravot and Carnehan, their kingship became the "basic unit around which all else must revolve" (351). They did not concentrate on improving the lives of their people, but only on the power that they could achieve.