How many people should a conjoined twin be allowed to marry?

@poingly (605)
United States
January 13, 2010 11:42pm CST
Should a conjoined twin be allowed to marry two people? Should a single person be allowed to marry both of the conjoined twins? Do either of these fall under polygamy? It is certainly a unique (and rare) situation, but what do you guys think?
2 people like this
6 responses
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Conjoined twins are two different individuals so, yes, they should be afforded all of the rights and all of the restrictions that *normal* folks are subjected to. Any law that prohibits each from acting as an independent person violates his/her rights so of course each twin should be allowed to marry independently of the other. Polygamy laws would still count as these are two people who are connected...not one person with two heads.
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
14 Jan 10
I don't believe so because a polygamous marriage involves exchanging vowes and considering more than one woman your wife. If only one twin were to marry it would still be a traditional marriage although the other twin would still be there.
@poingly (605)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Well, I suppose this hinges on the fact of WHY you believe polygamy is wrong. Do you think it's wrong because it is harmful to society in some ways or simply because someone's religion (yours, presumably) or government says so? If it is because of the former, doesn't one twin choosing to get married, while the other doesn't, effectively create this sort of polygamous situation, even if it is not intended? If it is the latter, what about religions that say it's okay? How can we place one religion over another. If it is just a government thing, where does the government get it's basis for this (presumably by one of the two reasons above, which presents the same problems above)?
@poingly (605)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Wouldn't one twin married to one other person still have the elements of a polygamous marriage?
• United States
14 Jan 10
Is it anyone's business who marries who as long as they are consenting adults? I don't think so. People need to mind there own business more and stop trying to dictate how other people live their lives.
• United States
15 Jan 10
True the complicates things....I would have to say the twins would have to work it out for themselves as far as spouses go and how they work out their marriages. I don't see it as a legal issue but more of a personal issue that would have to be worked out the individuals involved and not a court of law or our government.
@poingly (605)
• United States
15 Jan 10
Well, one, marriage licenses are a government matter. Obviously, there is some reason for this one some levels (taxes, etc.). Also, what if they can't work it out personally? Wouldn't that be the time a court of law or government SHOULD interfere?
@laglen (19759)
• United States
15 Jan 10
wow what great food for thought. I would think one person should be enough but what if each person fell in love with some one else? wow
@poingly (605)
• United States
15 Jan 10
If it was the twins married to one person, couldn't it be considered polygyny or polyandry. If they were each married to two separate people, couldn't it be considered a group marriage? All of these are just various forms of polygamy.
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
14 Jan 10
I was thinking 372, but only on Tuesdays and leap years.
@poingly (605)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Only on leap years in Ireland!
@Rollo1 (16679)
• Boston, Massachusetts
14 Jan 10
Legally speaking, for anyone to marry two distinct persons (personhood being based on something other than physical attributes) would be polygamy. Conjoined twins have married. The most famous were Chang and Eng, brothers who were the original "Siamese Twins" who appeared in P.T. Barnum's show. They married sisters and strangely, they kept separate households and alternated spending time at each. They had 22 children between them. How twins are conjoined may allow both to marry and have marital relations or it may prevent both from doing so. I suppose it may be possible to allow only one to do so, or it may be they share one reproductive system. In those cases, I would find it odd if one or both decided to marry. Generally, twins that are that closely and intimately joined choose to have only each other as lifelong companions. Anyone attempting to marry both conjoined twins would obviously be doing so out of some need for notoriety or worse, some aberrant desire. I would find the situation to be not only illegal but repugnant as well. Perhaps though, he would be allowed to do so in some other countries or cultures which already allow polygamy. The wolf boy should just run off into the woods where no one can tell him what to do or not to do. However, if he plans on marrying a wolf, he should also be extremely careful of those love bites.
@poingly (605)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Repugnant? Don't you think that it's possible for two people who have been forced to share things their entire lives would also develop the thought to share a husband? Do you really think it's impossible for someone to be committed to two people who share body parts (in some cases even sharing literally the same heart)?
1 person likes this
@irishidid (8687)
• United States
14 Jan 10
They are two people who just happen to be conjoined. The are considered two people in the eyes of the law. When a pair of conjoined twins got their drivers license each one had to pass the test, not just one.
@poingly (605)
• United States
14 Jan 10
I'm not talking legally so much as philosophically. But assuming for you they are one in the same: you are saying that they couldn't be married to the same person; they would have to marry two different people?
@irishidid (8687)
• United States
14 Jan 10
Okay, I get you. I think it would make a difference in how they were conjoined and what parts they shared, if you get what I mean.