Nguyen Hang

Topic 1: Some people believe that women should play an equal role as men in a country’s police force
or military force while others think women are not suitable for these kinds of jobs. Discuss both views
and give your opinion

Outline:

1. Equal role in police and military force

- Gender equality
+ Women: Recognition for contributions
+ Men: Eradication of stereotypes (masculine, dominance)
- Specific roles only suitable for women
+ Dealing with juvenile criminals (more sympathetic, gentle)
+ Investigation on female offenders (Sex difference in case of men – human rights)
2. Restriction of women’s enlistment
- Nature
+ Physical: Few individuals physically strong enough in combats
+ Mental: Emotional/ Sometimes irrational  unsound judgements
- Other responsibilities
+ Child bearing and rearing/ Homemaker
 Unsuitable for positions requiring quick presence/ night duty

Essay:

In this day and age, matters related to gender equality have never failed to capture public’s interest.
Opinions are divided on whether women should be offered equal opportunities as men in national
police and military forces or they are not qualified for these positions. This essay will elaborate both
points of view before an opinion is presented.

On the one hand, supporters of women’s enlistment in police and armed forces point to the fact that
this promotes gender equality, presenting mutual benefits to both sexes. Women whose contributions
to society have often been taken for granted, especially during the postwar era, are deemed to receive
deserving recognition should their roles in military or police work be well recognized by today’s general
public. Stereotypes about men’s duties including being masculine and performing so-called ‘real men’
works are also likely to be eradicated as a direct result of women’s rights movement, leading to overall
increased freedom for self-expression. Besides, women’s engagement in what originally perceived as
male-dominated fields is indeed of paramount significance, especially in dealing certain subjects. Female
officers are generally thought to be superior in tackling with juvenile criminals than their male
counterparts for their less aggressive and seeming gentler nature. Apart from young convicts, women
are also necessary to carry out investigations on female offenders, which otherwise actually put male
officers in an pretty awkward situation due to sex differences.

On the other hand, opponents of women’s engaging in the army and the police force, however, finger
point at female intrinsically inferior physical and mental strengths as their justification. This argument
seems sound as multiple researches have shown that women are mostly not as physically strong as men,
indisputably with the exception of a few cases. This very advantage of men over women makes
pronounced differences in battles, especially when confronted with notorious criminals. Aside from
physical strength, female officers often appear to be emotionally affected when it comes to coping with
ethical issues, thereby possibly resulting in irrational judgements during missions. Furthermore,
women’s other responsibilities potentially interfere with their work as a police or military officer. As
women are often bombarded with countless duties including child bearing and rearing as well as being a
homemaker, it would be very difficult for them to balance time for either work or childcare. This,
therefore, disallows them to be on duty all the time, which is almost part of an officer’s job, further
contributing a reduction in efficiency in these lines of work.

To conclude, the stronger argument appears to be in favor of women’s being given equal role as men in
the army and the police force with a view to erasing gender inequality and women’s capability of
tackling with juvenile and female offenders. However, it is noteworthy that women should not be given
any edge over men in the recruitment process so as to ensure fairness.