单项选择题

Most of the jobs in society that are high-paying, powerfhl, and demand a lot of responsibility are held by men. I do not believe this situation arose because women are incapable of doing high-level work. I believe society could benefit if more women were in positions of power and therefore I think the government should reserve a percentage of these jobs for females.
Why should government encourage a certain percentage of high-level jobs for women Firstly, the problem of unfair employment distribution appears to come from social convention and not competence or true ability. At a young age most girls are not encouraged to pursue political office, business, or professional prestige. On the other hand, boys are told to do these things. As a result, men hold the high-level jobs but this does not mean they are very good at what they do. If the government set quota for hiring women to do high-level work, such as working in the government itself, then perhaps women would be more inspired to be ambitious in their life plans and contribute to a less-than perfect society.
Furthermore, regulations in the workplace for hiring women would not be a new thing. Although not written or made into law, there seems to be rules for who can and cannot have high- level jobs. For instance, if a man and a woman both competed the presidency of a company or even the country, and both were equally qualified and had the same experience and background, there is little doubt who would get the job. Even more, if the man was less qualified and less experienced than the woman, the man would still probably get the job because of his sex. Therefore, to legislate a percentage of high-level jobs for women would work to fight the unwritten existing rules of the workplace.
On the other hand, there are many arguments against the use of a quota system for women. It is true that the injustice and discrimination could be reversed. This is to say that some qualified men might be denied a job while some unqualified women would be given one. Also, the problem of sexism at work could be worsened instead of being overcome. People would doubt whether a woman with a high-level job was "truly capable"--men might feel bitterness and resentment, while women might think less of themselves and begin to depend on government "charity". Furthermore, there is the problem of defining what is a high-level job and determining an appropriate percentage. Nonetheless, a quota system would break down some barriers in the short term. Sexism in the workplace will not just magically disappear.
To sum up, I have outlined some advantages and disadvantages of making quotas for the number of women in high-level jobs. Despite some of the obvious problems I believe that men and women can and should share power, wealth, and prestige. It is a cause worthy of our efforts.

What does "quota" mean in Paragraph 4()

A. Allotment.
B. Fixture.
C. Inequality.
D. Equality.