History of women in the military - Research Paper Example

History of Women in the Military History of Women in the Military Prior to the 1900s, women were regarded as only mothers and housewives. It had long since decided that having any part in any way was against their nature, and was therefore only left for the men to do. It was a topic shrouded by heavy controversy when a woman wanted to be accepted into the military and participate in a war. Before women were legally allowed to be sworn in to the military, many of them would either sneak into battle or disguise themselves as men so that they would be able to fight.

33,000 women served in the first World War, with almost half a million serving in the second World War (Wilson, 1996). It has only been since recent decades that women have been welcomed into the military, but before this, it was something that was often done discretely. Even though women had often be seen in wars in the ancient and medieval battles, such as Joan of Arc in 1429 (Willens, 1996), it was in the early 1900s that women were being spoken against about why they should not participate in war.

One of the biggest arguments was that women should stay at home and tend to their family, leaving their husbands to battle. Many women accepted this, though many more had the counterargument that the men could stay home while the women went off to fight. This was always quickly shot down, though, as the mothers were the ones that children really relied on. Other arguments included the fact that women were not physically built as men were, and therefore unlikely to handle the physical burden of being in a war; the emotional nature of a woman was also looked down upon, with many males and military officials believing that women did not have what it took to handle to emotional and often traumatic impacts of war.

Women, however, fought their own battle to be allowed the chance to fight the other battles. The more that military officials realized how many women were sneaking into the wars, the more open they became to accepting them, also realizing that they could be huge assets in the outcome of the wars. Their male counterparts took their willingness as something positive that could be applied to the war; after all, nobody could deny someone who sincerely wanted to fight for a cause or for their country.

Men quickly found the positives in this level of strength. It was World War I that really brought the change that women had been fighting for when the United States Navy began to accept women for enlisted service. After a successful first World War, it became clear that it would be beneficial to have women enlisted by time the second World War came around. It was this latter war that so the most difference in regards to how many were fighting alongside the men. Unfortunately, many of these jobs did not involve fighting but the construction of war vehicles and aircrafts, though these women set the standards for those that were capable of fighting in the war.

By the end of World War II, women all over the world were being accepted into military positions. It became the theory that even if the military officials denied the women, that the women would still find a way to fight; it was almost pointless to turn them down, and as equally pointless to deny them of something that they were more than willing to do. By time Pearl Harbor came around on December 7 of 1941, America had the largest amount of females holding ranks in the military than in any other war (Sherrow, 2007).

The United States-Iraq era, however, has equally the same amount of females fighting as there are males, making it, without doubt, the most successful battle for the women that have wanted to fight. The only difference with this war as opposed to previous wars is that women are being allowed to fight on the frontline. Due to their perseverance to have a place in the military, the women got just that. Various equal rights movements aided this achievement and have further helped women to be regarded equally in many aspects.

Though the earlier parts of history show the oppression of women, the later decades have shown that they can take on the same challenges as their male counterparts. ReferencesSherrow, V. (2007). Women in the military. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. Willens, J. (1996). Women in the military: Combat rules considered. Center for Defense. Retrieved April 20, 2009, from http://www.cdi.org/issues/women/combat.html. Wilson, B.A. (1996). Military women veterans. Retrieved April 20, 2009, from http://userpages.aug.com/captbarb/.