Question

What was Rudyard Kipling's attitude toward the British Empire, and how did he convey his message in his novella, The Man Who Would Be King?

Answer 1

Kipling was a staunch imperialist seeing it as ''the White Man's Burden'
Daniel and Peachey represent the Empire expanding to the benefit of the natives. The 'White man's magic' of course impresses the credulous natives, and they reap the benefits of their modernity by ruling.
It is only when they start familiarising with the locals that their prestige is destroyed.
Kipling is warning to keep them at arms length, and stay with your own.

Answer 2

Kipling was an advocate of British imperialism. For example, he wrote the poem The White Man's Burden, which reveals Hegelian master-servant dialectics and racism: the white man drags the colored people with him as a burden and teaches civilization.

After the Massacre of Amritsar, where hundreds of protesting Indians were killed on 13 April 1919 under the authority of General Reginald Dyer, Kipling called him "the man who saved India".

The Man Who Would Be King was published in 1888. It tells the story of two unscrupulous British adventurers in the British Raj who plan to become kings of Kafiristan, a remote region of Afghanistan. This story shows the author's position regarding European supremacy over other peoples, giving European characters behaviors that reflect greater intelligence and boldness than the other characters.