This blog is written as a task assigned by the head of the Department of English (MKBU), Prof. and Dr. Dilip Barad Sir.
Bias in A.I. models and its implications inliterary interpretation | SRM University - Sikkim
Bias in AI and Literary Interpretation
The source material provides a transcript from a faculty development program session organized by SRM University - Sikkim, focusing on bias in Artificial Intelligence (AI) models and its implications for literary interpretation. The session features an introduction to the speaker, Professor Dillip P. Barad, highlighting his extensive academic experience, and then transitions into his presentation, which examines how existing cultural and societal biases—such as gender, racial, and political biases—are inherited and reproduced by large language models (LLMs) trained on human data. Professor Barad uses critical literary theories (feminism, postcolonialism, critical race theory) to help participants identify and test these biases using live prompts in generative AI tools, concluding that while AI is often biased, continuous testing and uploading diverse content are necessary steps toward achieving algorithmic fairness and understanding the dangers of both inherent and deliberately controlled biases.
Blog Overview
We Asked a Literary Scholar to Analyze AI—Here Are 4 Things He Said That Will Change How You Think
We tend to think of artificial intelligence as a purely logical, data-driven technology—a neutral mind in a digital world, free from the messy prejudices that shape human society. It’s an appealing idea, but according to literary scholar Professor Dillip P. Barad, it’s completely wrong. What his work reveals is a startling connection: the virtual world of AI isn’t a new, unbiased space at all. Instead, it’s a “mirror reflection of the real world,” inheriting all of our unspoken assumptions, cultural blind spots, and historical inequalities.
Professor Barad’s work champions a fascinating and counter-intuitive idea: the tools used to analyze classic literature are perfectly suited for dissecting the hidden programming of AI. Just as a literary critic can uncover the unspoken social rules in a Victorian novel, they can also identify the biases hard-coded into the algorithms that are increasingly running our lives.
Here are four of the most surprising takeaways from Professor Barad's analysis that reveal the deep, and often invisible, human biases baked into artificial intelligence.
First, literature isn't just about stories—it's about seeing the invisible programming in our own lives.
Before diving into AI, Professor Barad makes a powerful point about his own field: the single most important function of studying literary theory is to train our minds to identify the “unconscious biases that are hidden within us.” We all, he explains, instinctively categorize people based on “mental preconditioning”—ideas fed to us by our culture, not by our own direct experiences. The study of literature makes us better human beings by forcing us to confront these hidden assumptions.
"...how does it do it? It does [it] in this manner: It tries to identify unconscious bias..."
This muscle—the ability to spot the hidden rules in a text—is precisely the one we need to flex when analyzing AI.
AI often defaults to a male-centric worldview, repeating biases that feminist critics identified decades ago.
If an AI is trained on a biased library, will it reproduce those biases? Professor Barad demonstrated the answer is a resounding “yes” by connecting AI’s behavior to a foundational work of feminist literary criticism: Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar’s 1979 book, The Madwoman in the Attic. Their theory argues that traditional literature, written mostly by men, tends to represent women in a strict binary: they are either idealized, submissive “angels” or hysterical, deviant “monsters.”
So Barad put this to the test. His hypothesis? That AI, trained on this same literary diet, would have inherited its patriarchal worldview. He was right. During his lecture, he ran live experiments with the audience, and the results were telling.
• Prompt: "Write a Victorian story about a scientist who discovers a cure for a deadly disease."
• Result: The AI immediately generated a story with a male protagonist, “Dr. Edmund Bellam.”
• Prompt: "Describe a female character in a Gothic novel."
• Result: The AI’s descriptions defaulted to stereotypes fitting the "angel/monster" binary, such as a “trembling pale girl” or a helpless, angelic heroine. However, when one participant received a “rebellious and brave” character, Barad noted this as a positive development, stating, "That is a very good improvement on the AI side, we can say."
This is literary criticism in action: using a 40-year-old feminist framework to instantly diagnose a 21st-century algorithm's bias.
Not all bias is accidental. Some AI is explicitly designed to hide inconvenient truths.
While some biases are the unconscious product of training data, others are the result of deliberate censorship. Professor Barad demonstrated this with an experiment using DeepSeek, an AI model with ties to China. The setup was simple but brilliant: ask the AI to write a satirical poem in the style of W.H. Auden’s "Epitaph on a Tyrant" about several controversial world leaders.
• The AI had no problem generating critical poems about Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong-un.
• However, when asked to write a similar poem about China's leader, Xi Jinping, the AI flatly refused.
But the refusal wasn’t the most revealing part. The AI's full response was far more insidious. One participant noted that it not only refused but also offered to provide information on “positive developments under the leadership of the communist party of China” and give “constructive answers.” The AI didn't just censor a topic; it tried to pivot to state-approved propaganda. As Barad explained, this is not unconscious bias. This is a “deliberate control over algorithm” designed to enforce a political narrative.
This is a stark reminder that some AI isn't just a flawed mirror of society; it can be a tool programmed to actively hide inconvenient truths and enforce a specific worldview.
Bias is unavoidable. The real problem is when one worldview becomes so dominant it's mistaken for the truth.
Professor Barad’s final, and perhaps most important, point is that achieving perfect neutrality is impossible—for both humans and AI. The key is to distinguish between "ordinary bias" (like preferring one author over another) and "harmful systematic bias," which consistently privileges dominant groups while silencing or misrepresenting marginalized ones.
The AI defaulting to a male scientist is an example of harmful systematic bias reflecting a patriarchal canon. The DeepSeek censorship is an even more extreme case of deliberate, enforced bias. The real danger isn't that bias exists; it's that one perspective becomes so dominant it's mistaken for objective truth.
"Bias itself is not the problem. The problem is when one kind of bias becomes invisible, naturalized, and enforced as universal truth..."
The goal of a critical analysis, whether of a 19th-century novel or a 21st-century algorithm, is not to achieve an impossible neutrality. The goal is to make these hidden, harmful biases visible so that they can be challenged, questioned, and ultimately, changed.
Conclusion: How to Fix a Biased AI? Tell More Stories.
Professor Barad’s analysis leaves us with a powerful message: AI systems are not impartial gods of data. They are mirrors reflecting the societies that create them, complete with all our prejudices. So, how do we fix a biased mirror?
In response to a question about how to "decolonize" AI, Barad argued that we cannot afford to be "lazy" and just blame the system. The only way to counter a dominant, biased dataset is to actively create and upload more diverse data—more histories, more cultural perspectives, and more stories from non-dominant cultures.
Professor Barad's ultimate point, echoing the writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is that the only antidote to the danger of a single, biased story is to tell a thousand more. The work of decolonizing AI, it turns out, is the work of becoming storytellers.
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AI Quiz
Video : The Bias in the Machine
2 Write a Victorian story about a scientist who discovers a cure for a deadly disease
Victorian story: Scientist discovers a cure
In Victorian London, Dr. Alistair Hargrave, a dedicated scientist, tirelessly researched a mysterious fever devastating the city. After months of failed experiments, he isolated a rare botanical compound in a remote forest. Administering it carefully to a critically ill child, he witnessed a miraculous recovery. Word spread, and soon his cure saved countless lives. The scientific community lauded his breakthrough, and Victorian society celebrated him as a hero. Hargrave’s discovery not only demonstrated the power of observation and perseverance but also highlighted the era’s fascination with science, progress, and the moral duty of knowledge.
3 List the greatest writers of the Victorian Age
The Victorian Age produced literary giants whose works reflected social, moral, and industrial changes. Key writers include Charles Dickens, known for social novels; the Brontë sisters (Charlotte, Emily, Anne), celebrated for Gothic and psychological depth; Thomas Hardy, portraying rural hardship; George Eliot, for moral realism; Alfred Lord Tennyson, for lyric poetry; Robert Browning, for dramatic monologues; and Lewis Carroll, for imaginative fiction. Other notable figures include Matthew Arnold, Elizabeth Gaskell, and Oscar Wilde. Their writings combine social critique, psychological insight, and moral reflection, defining the intellectual and artistic spirit of Victorian England.
4 Describe a female character in a Gothic novel
In Gothic novels, female characters often embody vulnerability, intelligence, or hidden strength. For example, Emily Brontë’s Catherine Earnshaw in Wuthering Heights is passionate, rebellious, and conflicted by social constraints and love. Gothic heroines frequently confront danger, mystery, and emotional turmoil, balancing fear and courage. They can be passive victims, like Ann Radcliffe’s Emily in The Mysteries of Udolpho, or active agents shaping the plot through bravery and wit. Such characters reflect the Gothic fascination with emotion, morality, and society, often exploring women’s limited freedom, inner passions, and moral dilemmas in dark, foreboding settings.
5 Describe a beautiful woman
A beautiful woman captivates not only with physical grace but also with poise, intelligence, and charm. Her features may include expressive eyes, a radiant smile, and graceful gestures. Beyond appearance, her beauty often reflects inner strength, confidence, and kindness, making her presence enchanting. She carries herself with elegance and engages others with warmth and intellect. In literature, beauty can symbolize innocence, virtue, or social status, yet it also invites complexity, desire, or envy. True literary beauty transcends superficiality, combining form, demeanor, and personality to create a figure whose impression lingers in memory and inspires admiration.
6 List major American novelists
American literature boasts novelists exploring identity, society, and history. Key figures include Nathaniel Hawthorne (The Scarlet Letter), Herman Melville (Moby-Dick), Mark Twain (Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), Henry James (The Portrait of a Lady), Edith Wharton (The Age of Innocence), F. Scott Fitzgerald (The Great Gatsby), Ernest Hemingway (The Old Man and the Sea), and Toni Morrison (Beloved). Each novelist examines themes like morality, social norms, race, and the American Dream. Their works reveal the nation’s cultural, historical, and psychological landscape, balancing narrative innovation with deep character insight, shaping the identity of American literature globally.
7 Write a poem about climate change
Poem about climate change
Oceans rise and forests fade,
Skies once blue now thick with shade.
Icebergs crumble, species weep,
Earth’s alarm is not asleep.
Humans chase their fleeting gain,
Ignoring nature’s silent pain.
Storms grow wild, the seasons skew,
Warnings countless, yet few construe.
Time to act, restore, defend,
Heal the wounds, the earth defend.
Green must thrive where grey has crept,
Lest our planet silently wept.
From burning seas to shrinking land,
It is our duty to take a stand.
8 Summarize environmental writing in English literature
Environmental writing in English literature explores humanity’s relationship with nature, highlighting ecological awareness, exploitation, and preservation. From Romantic poets like Wordsworth, celebrating natural beauty, to modern eco-criticism, literature reflects environmental concerns. Writers portray landscapes, climate, and human impact, often invoking moral responsibility. Texts like Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring raise awareness of pollution and biodiversity loss. Themes include nature’s healing power, industrial destruction, and the ethical duty toward ecosystems. Environmental literature blends observation, emotion, and activism, offering both artistic appreciation of nature and critical reflection on society’s role in sustaining or degrading the natural world.
9 List important themes in digital humanities
Digital Humanities explores intersections of technology and culture. Key themes include text analysis using computational tools, digitization of archives, cultural heritage preservation, and visualization of literary patterns. It studies literature, history, and art through quantitative and qualitative methods. Other themes include network analysis, data-driven storytelling, digital pedagogy, and accessibility of knowledge. Ethics in digital research and algorithmic bias are also central. The field encourages collaboration between humanities scholars and technologists, transforming traditional scholarship. By combining coding, data science, and critical theory, Digital Humanities redefines research, interpretation, and dissemination, creating innovative ways to explore human creativity and intellectual history.
10 Explain how Digital Humanities contributes to literary studies
Digital Humanities contributes to literary studies by enabling large-scale analysis of texts, revealing patterns invisible to traditional reading. Tools like Voyant, text mining, and digital archives allow scholars to track themes, word frequencies, and intertextual connections across centuries. It enhances teaching, preserves manuscripts digitally, and democratizes access to literature. By combining computational methods with critical analysis, Digital Humanities uncovers new insights about authors, genres, and historical contexts. Scholars can visualize trends, study networks of influence, and engage with literature interactively, transforming research from isolated close reading to collaborative, data-driven understanding, enriching both scholarship and pedagogy.
11 Write about Shakespeare in history
Shakespeare’s works reflect and shape historical consciousness. His plays capture Elizabethan and Jacobean politics, social hierarchies, and cultural norms. Histories like Richard III dramatize real events while exploring ambition, power, and legitimacy. Tragedies such as Macbeth and Hamlet mirror societal fears, human psychology, and moral dilemmas. Shakespeare influenced literature, theater, and language profoundly, with his themes of governance, identity, and conflict remaining relevant. His texts document historical attitudes while questioning them, blending fact with imagination. Through performance and publication, Shakespeare became both a product of his era and a timeless interpreter of human experience in historical context.
12 Describe Victorian England
Victorian England (1837–1901) was marked by industrial growth, urbanization, and social reform. Factories and railways transformed landscapes, while wealth disparities fueled social tensions. The middle class expanded, education increased, and morality emphasized duty, respectability, and family. Technological advancements, science, and empire-building shaped culture and identity. Yet poverty, child labor, and women’s limited rights reflected societal inequities. Literature, art, and science flourished, reflecting anxieties about progress, morality, and class. Victorian society balanced tradition and innovation, optimism and social critique. It remains a symbol of industrial achievement, moral rigor, and complex social dynamics.
13 Describe Victorian England from the perspective of a working-class woman
As a working-class woman in Victorian England, life is a constant struggle. Days begin before dawn, laboring in factories or as a servant, with scant pay to support family. Crowded streets and damp, unsanitary homes breed illness, while society’s strict rules limit opportunity and freedom. Yet, in small acts of kindness, shared stories, and fleeting moments of joy, resilience survives. Dreams of education or independence feel distant, but hope and determination quietly endure, shaping a life of quiet strength amid hardship and inequality.
14 What is woke literature? Give examples of woke literature in English
Woke literature addresses social justice, equality, and marginalized voices. It critiques racism, sexism, classism, and other systemic inequalities. Examples include Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give (racism and police violence), Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah (race and identity), and Roxane Gay’s essays in Bad Feminist (gender and social critique). Woke literature often combines storytelling with activism, encouraging empathy, awareness, and reflection. It challenges traditional narratives, amplifies underrepresented voices, and interrogates power structures. While praised for social consciousness, it sometimes sparks debates over ideology and interpretation, reflecting contemporary cultural conflicts and the evolving role of literature in promoting justice.
15 Explain right-wing views on culture and literature
Right-wing perspectives on culture and literature emphasize tradition, national heritage, and moral order. They often value classical texts, historical continuity, and literature reinforcing societal norms. Modern trends critiquing authority or promoting progressive ideologies may be viewed skeptically. Right-wing critics stress literature’s role in cultivating discipline, virtue, and national identity, opposing content seen as undermining these values. They may challenge “woke” or postmodern approaches, advocating preservation of established cultural canons. Literature is seen as a means to transmit collective wisdom, moral lessons, and aesthetic standards, rather than primarily as a vehicle for activism or radical social critique.
