QUESTION 6(b)
GS4
10 marks
Nearly all men can withstand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power. — Abraham Lincoln.
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Explain why power, more than hardship, reveals a person's true character, with public-life illustrations.
ExplainMake clear how and why it happens: causes, process, and an example for each point.
Demand-wise check
- 1Meaning: adversity imposes discipline from outside; power removes external checks, so conduct reflects inner values≈30 words
- 2Failures: abuse of discretion, VIP culture, nepotism, harassment by officials, corruption of elected leaders≈30 words
- 3Positive tests: leaders who gave up or limited power when they could have kept it≈30 words
- 4Safeguards: institutional checks, transparency, accountability, cultivating humility≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
MeaningWhy power tests more than adversityNegative and positive examplesSafeguardsConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Only examples of abuse with no example of restraint
- Not explaining why adversity is the 'easier' test
Draw this
- Two-column chart: adversity (external checks) vs power (no checks) and the trait each reveals
Value addition
- ThinkerLord Acton: 'Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.'.Lord Acton, letter of 1887
- ExampleGeorge Washington refused a third term, setting a two-term convention.US history, 1796
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Jitendra · Page 15 ↗Reviewed PYQ reference
- P Vibisha · Page 15 ↗Reviewed PYQ reference
- Satyam Gandhi · Page 16 ↗Reviewed PYQ reference
- Vidushi Singh · AIR 13 · Page 5 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.