RE: Is castrating young boys ethical?
February 4, 2013 at 2:45 pm
(This post was last modified: February 4, 2013 at 3:28 pm by rexbeccarox.)
I'm a classical singer, in fact, referencing the OP, Lascia Ch'io Pianga was one of the arias I performed for my senior recital... beautiful piece by Handel.
The castrati have always been fascinating to me. They were the rock stars of their time. I envy the flexibility that they had. No matter how much I practiced, I could never quiiiiiite get to the level of a castrato, and I'm a coloratura soprano.
That being said, in my opinion, pre-pubescent castration is unethical. I don't think a pre-pubescent boy can consent to that type of thing. Just the fact that he's pre-pubescent means he hasn't matured enough to consent to permanently alter his body. Back in the days of the castrati, their families made the decision for them, usually due to monetary or health reasons. Castration was a treatment for many childhood diseases back then, and a beautiful singing voice was often just a silver-lining to the cloud of losing one's balls.
The castrati have always been fascinating to me. They were the rock stars of their time. I envy the flexibility that they had. No matter how much I practiced, I could never quiiiiiite get to the level of a castrato, and I'm a coloratura soprano.
That being said, in my opinion, pre-pubescent castration is unethical. I don't think a pre-pubescent boy can consent to that type of thing. Just the fact that he's pre-pubescent means he hasn't matured enough to consent to permanently alter his body. Back in the days of the castrati, their families made the decision for them, usually due to monetary or health reasons. Castration was a treatment for many childhood diseases back then, and a beautiful singing voice was often just a silver-lining to the cloud of losing one's balls.
