University of Wollongong Research Online University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 1954-2016 University of Wollongong Thesis Collections 2015 Representations of conjoined twins Claire Marita Fletcher University of Wollongong Follow this and additional works at: https://ro.uow.edu.au/theses University of Wollongong Copyright Warning You may print or download ONE copy of this document for the purpose of your own research or study. The University does not authorise you to copy, communicate or otherwise make available electronically to any other person any copyright material contained on this site. You are reminded of the following: This work is copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this work may be reproduced by any process, nor may any other exclusive right be exercised, without the permission of the author. Copyright owners are entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. 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For further information contact the UOW Library: [email protected] Department of Law, Humanities and the Arts Representations of Conjoined Twins Claire Marita Fletcher Supervisor: Professor Catherine Cole "This thesis is presented as part of the requirements for the award of Master of Arts in Creative Writing, at the University of Wollongong" March 2015 Declaration I, Claire Fletcher, declare that this thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the conferral of the Masters by Research, from the University of Wollongong, is wholly my own work unless otherwise referenced or acknowledged. This document has not been submitted for qualifications at any other academic institution. Claire Fletcher March 1st, 2015 Abstract This masters thesis comprises two elements. The first section, the exegesis, examines what it means to be a conjoined twin. It explores the representation of conjoined twins from early historical narratives to the present day. Each chapter reflects the shifting passage of their representation. Chapter 1, Freaks, traces their exploitation in sideshows and performances. Chapter 2, Separation examines medical narratives about modern surgical separation interventions. Chapter 3, Normal, explores contemporary representations in film and fiction. I also examine conjoined twins who have chosen to remain as they are and to live their lives in a single, joined state. The final chapter, Storytelling, explores my novella which is based on the lives of two conjoined sisters and what creative issues I faced as I wrote it. The second section of the thesis is my novella Silvie and Van, in which I create two conjoined sisters who undergo separation surgery. I trace their separated lives located in the contemporary world with its focus on beauty and so called normality. This novella attempts to creatively examine a number of the key questions I raise in my critical work, including: how conjoined twins are viewed by the external and single bodied world? What happens when these twins are separated? What is the potential emotional, physical and symbolic significance of separation on the human psyche? Through these critical and creative explorations I hope to demonstrate how conjoined twins have been represented and misrepresented through the ages, and how they have managed to maintain their agency, despite the complexities of their birth. i Acknowledgements I would like to thank first and foremost my supervisor Professor Catherine Cole, who believed in the project from inception to completion. I am thankful for the support of my family, my parents and two brothers, who told me to keep writing when I desperately wanted to stop. For the support of my writers group, Catherine Fargher and Matthew Young, who looked at early drafts of creative work and shared ideas. To Matthew Young, Sandy Lange and Luke Fletcher for their diligent checking. Thank you fellow artists, Nellie Blundell, Armand De Saint-Salvy and Alejandra Canales for words of wisdom. The Goods Café, for caffeine and writing therapy. Finally to the inspirational examples provided by the twins themselves, without whom the idea would never have taken flight. ii Table of contents Acknowledgements .................................................................................................. ii Table of contents ....................................................................................................... iii List of figures ............................................................................................................ iv SECTION ONE: EXEGESIS ...................................................................................... 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 2 Chapter one: freaks ................................................................................................. 16 Chapter two: separation ......................................................................................... 41 Chapter three: normality ........................................................................................ 68 Chapter four: story telling ...................................................................................... 98 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 112 References ............................................................................................................... 118 SECTION TWO: THE NOVELLA: SILVIE AND VAN ................................... 128 Part one, Silvie ....................................................................................................... 129 Part two, Van ......................................................................................................... 226 Part three, the collision ......................................................................................... 338 iii List of figures Figure 1 The Hensel sisters, http://www.windsorstar.com/entertainment from Cover of Life Magazine. 1996. /photos+conjoined+twins+over+years/74482 19/story.html#__federated=1 accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 2 The Two Headed Boy of Bengal http://www.allposters.com/-sp/1787-Two- by E. Home, 1787. Headed-Boy-of-Bengal-by-E-Home- Posters_i9955221_.htm accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 3 Chang and Eng, 1811-1974. http://wellcomeimages.org accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 4 Chang and Eng , http://wellcomeimages.org with artistic impression of Siam. accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 5 Chang and Eng, http://wellcomeimages.org the Siamese twins, Lithograph. accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 6 Chang and Eng , http://wellcomeimages.org the Siamese twins, in evening accessed Feb 20, 2015. dress. Figure 7 The Hilton sisters, http://funguerilla.com/circus-freak-people- in the film Freaks, 1932. when-nature-fails/2/ accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 8 Lin and Win Htut, as babies. From The Canadian Nurse. (no. 80, 1984, pages 18-20) Figure 9 Lin and Win Htut, http://www.photosensitive.com/project- in hospital in Toronto. gallery-n.php?i=15&id=2 Photo credit: Stan Behal. accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 10 Iranian sisters Ladan and Laleh http://multiples.about.com/od/conjoinedtw Bijani, 2003. ins/ig/Conjoined-Twins-Photo- Photo credit: Luis Enrique Ascui. Gallery/Bijani-Twins.htm accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 11 The Hensel sisters. http://theineptowl.com/2009/02/21/hensel- twins/ accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 12 The Hensel sisters, http://www.iwebstreet.com/conjoined- in Life magazine, 1996. twins-abby-brittany-hensel/ accessed Feb 20, 2015. Figure 13 The Schapell sisters, from film Face http://www.stephenbarker.com/heads/htm to Face. l/2.html Photo credit: Steven Barker. accessed Feb 20, 2015. iv SECTION ONE: EXEGESIS 1 Introduction By their very nature, conjoined twins challenge almost every possible perception of the lived human experience. By presenting us with two distinct humans confined to one body, such twins rupture the boundaries of what it means to be human. Across the centuries conjoined twins have ranged from objects of worship, specimens of scientific interest, entertainment icons, and the subjects of horror films. Where does the truth lie between these representations? What is it like to be a conjoined twin? This thesis analyses real life biographies and fictional representations of conjoined twins throughout history, examining the gaps between their lived experience and their representation. The research informs the creative component of the thesis, a novella which follows two conjoined sisters who decide to undergo a surgical separation. The lens through which I perform this examination is informed by theorists with subversive ideas about