APSC CCE Mains PYQ 2024, Essay Paper: Artificial Intelligence is today’s Frankenstein

The Essay Paper in the APSC Combined Competitive Examination (CCE) is often the deciding factor for aspirants aiming for the top ranks. Unlike General Studies papers, the essay requires a blend of factual knowledge, philosophical depth, and—most importantly—local context.

In the APSC 2024 Mains, one of the most thought-provoking topics was: “Artificial Intelligence is today’s Frankenstein”

For an aspirant from Assam, this topic provides a unique opportunity to juxtapose cutting-edge technology with the state’s deep-rooted humanism. It allows you to move beyond global tech debates and ground the “Frankenstein” metaphor in the local realities of the Brahmaputra valley

Here is a structured, detailed look at how to approach this topic.

APSC Mains Essay Paper, 2024: Artificial Intelligence is today’s Frankenstein

Model Answer:

Artificial Intelligence is today’s Frankenstein

The moon reflects the sun’s light, but it has no warmth of its own. Similarly, humanity has long sought to create an artificial reflection of its own cognitive brilliance. In 1818, Mary Shelley introduced Victor Frankenstein, a scientist who, driven by the noble ambition of conquering death, stitched together a creature that eventually escaped his control and wrought havoc. Today, as we “stitch together” lines of code and neural networks, we face a similar “Frankenstein moment.” What was once the realm of speculative fiction has become our daily reality, and we find ourselves standing at the crossroads of a digital revolution that is as promising as it is terrifying.

To understand why Artificial Intelligence (AI) is often labeled as today’s Frankenstein, we must first look at the intent of the creator. Victor Frankenstein was not a villain; he was a man of science seeking to push the boundaries of human limitation. Likewise, the pioneers of AI—from Alan Turing to modern-day researchers—aimed to solve the “unsolvable” problems of disease, climate change, and poverty. In the context of Assam, this “digital creature” has already begun to show its benevolent side. AI-driven early warning systems for the Brahmaputra floods or precision agriculture in our tea gardens are modern miracles that Victor Frankenstein would have envied.

However, the “monster” in Shelley’s novel was not inherently evil; it became a source of terror because it was abandoned by its creator and left without a moral compass. This is where the multidimensional threat of AI emerges. If we examine the political and social sphere, the “Frankenstein” nature of AI manifests in the erosion of truth. The rise of deepfakes and algorithmic biases represents a creature that has outpaced our ability to govern it. When an AI can manipulate public opinion or mimic a person’s voice to commit fraud, it is no longer a tool; it is a force that threatens the very fabric of social trust.

Is the threat merely limited to the digital world, or does it bleed into our physical survival? If we take a chronological approach—moving from the individual to the global stage—the impact becomes even more profound. For the individual, AI offers a “hyper-personalized” world, but at the cost of the “privacy of the soul.” At the national level, it promises economic dominance, yet it risks creating a “digital divide” where those without access to silicon power are relegated to the sidelines of history. Globally, the race for autonomous lethal weapons creates a scenario where the “creature” could literally decide the fate of humanity without a single human finger on the trigger.

This brings us to an essential question: Have we prioritized “intelligence” over “wisdom”? In our rush to build faster processors, we have often ignored the ethical “guardrails” that keep technology human-centric. The document of our progress is being written in code, but it lacks the “ink of empathy.” When we automate jobs in the manufacturing or service sectors, we are effectively “displacing” the very people the technology was meant to serve. This is the “structural injustice” that turns a masterpiece of engineering into a monster of socio-economic despair.

Yet, we must remember that the story of Frankenstein is ultimately a tragedy of “neglect.” The creature’s path was not set in stone; it was shaped by the lack of responsibility shown by its maker. We have the opportunity to change the ending of our own story. By aligning AI with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we can ensure that our “creation” works toward the “common good.” For instance, using AI to achieve “Quality Education” (SDG 4) in the remote corners of the North East can turn this digital force into a “Vishwa Mitra” rather than a predator.

To achieve this, our approach must move from “unregulated growth” to “principled governance.” We need a framework where “transparency” is the foundation and “human agency” is the ceiling. Just as the great Assamese polymath Jyoti Prasad Agarwala envisioned a society where art and technology serve the “man of the soil,” we must ensure that AI serves the “last man in the queue.” We cannot afford to be like Victor Frankenstein, who fled in horror from his own laboratory. We must stay, govern, and nurture this technology with the “Dharma” of responsibility.

The “Empires of the Future” will not be built on silicon alone, but on the marriage of silicon and spirit. If we treat AI as an “ever-flowing river,” we must be the banks that guide its course. We must integrate the “wisdom of the past” with the “tools of the future.” In the philosophical tradition of our land, knowledge (Gyan) is incomplete without realization (Vigyan). We have achieved the “Gyan” of creating AI; we now need the “Vigyan” to use it for the welfare of all living beings.

As we look toward the horizon, the mirror of AI reflects both our greatest hopes and our deepest insecurities. It is a reflection of our “discontent with the status quo” and our “thirst for the infinite.” Whether this reflection becomes a “Frankenstein” that haunts our future or a “Genie” that solves our greatest challenges depends entirely on us. In conclusion, Artificial Intelligence is indeed a “Frankenstein” in its potential for unintended consequences and its sheer, overwhelming power. However, unlike the fictional scientist, we have the collective hindsight of history and the foresight of ethical philosophy to guide us. A machine has no “soul,” but it can be guided by the collective soul of humanity. Let us not be remembered as the generation that “stitched together” a disaster, but as the one that “tethered” the lightning of technology to the chariot of human progress. As the immortal lines of our culture remind us, “Siro senehee mor vasa jononi”—just as we love and protect our mother tongue, we must protect the “human language” of ethics and morality in the digital age. Only then will our creations be a source of “Dhonye punye” (blessing and virtue) rather than a cause for regret.

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