You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Should museums and art galleries be free of charge for the general public, or should a charge, even a voluntary charge, be levied for admittance?
Discuss this issue, and give your opinion.
You should write at least 250 words.
Sample Answer 1
People have argued about the entrance fee to museums and art galleries. Some people believe it should be free of charge for the public, while others think there should be an entrance fee. The following essay will explain these contradictory opinions in detail, but from my point of view, I believe there should be levied for admittance.
For several reasons, many believe the public should not be charged any fee when they enter museums or art galleries. Firstly, the government funded these sites through taxes paid by residents. People pay double the charges when museums and art galleries charge entrance fees. Secondly, although these places contain historical and artistic artefacts, these places are not widespread and attractive. When these museums and galleries charge some fees, it is predicted that there will be fewer people who will visit these places.
On the other hand, another group of people think that the public should be charged either voluntary or admittance fees when they visit a museum or an art gallery. These people believe that charging visitors a certain amount of fee, educates them to appreciate the value of history and arts. Besides that, these fees can be used to reduce subsidies given by the government. The government could relocate the fund for other essential matters such as education, public health or transportation.
In conclusion, people often debate about the entrance fee of museums or art galleries. Several people think there should be no charges for visitors, while others disagree. I believe there should be proportionate charges for people when they enter the museum or an art gallery, as the fund could be used to cover the operational expense of these places and reduce the subsidy from the government.
( Written by – Darwin Lesmana )
Sample Answer 2
One very complex issue in today’s world is the funding of museums and art galleries. There is an argument that they should be free to the general public and funded by governments, but there is also a case for saying that they should charge an entrance fee like other attractions. In this essay, I will examine both sides of this issue.
Those who argue that museums should be free make one of two arguments. The first argument is that institutions like museums are a public service; therefore, there should be free access to the man in the street. If, for example, there was a charge, only the wealthy could afford to enjoy works of art. The second argument is that fewer people would go to museums if they did levy a charge. This would be serious as they are educational institutions, and standards would fall.
In contrast, there is only one central argument on the other side of the debate. This is because both museums and art galleries need to charge an entrance fee if they are to survive in the modern world. Governments do not have sufficient funds to subsidise all such institutions, and there are other priorities for public money. Therefore these galleries and museums need to charge their customers not only to survive but to update their exhibitions and make new purchases. By way of illustration, Tate Modern in London could not have been founded without revenue from admissions.
My position is that there is no clear answer to this question, as there are such strong arguments on both sides. Perhaps it is possible for some museums and galleries to charge fees and for others not to.
( This model answer can be followed as an example of a perfect answer. However, please note that this is just one example out of many possible approaches.)