Surrogacy: From Plutarch to Alla Pugacheva

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Not all people feel this way of finding maternal happiness causes affection, and in many countries it is still prohibited. In Russia, despite the support of the legislation, the debate about the ethical side of these peculiar relations does not subside. In the meantime, the church, feminists and ordinary people argue about the admissibility of surrogacy, show business stars are actively using it.

History of the issue

Of course, surrogacy as we understand it now is the product of the latest scientific developments - the first successful experience was recorded in America in 1980. However, a situation resembling this was described by Plutarch about two thousand years ago:

In ancient Rome, there was also an interesting practice of helping childless couples. The husband of a "fertile" woman could give her "for rent" for a while for the birth of a child. But among the ancient Jews, slaves were used for these purposes, but the legal wife was sure to be the first to take the baby in her arms after childbirth.

Opinions are divided

Today, the main wave of controversy arises around ethical issues unknown in ancient societies. In those days, the feelings of slaves, carrying a child and then giving it away, worried the noble "customers" in the last place, but today it is this aspect that becomes the cornerstone of contradictions. The most famous case related to this issue is the "Baby M case" which occurred in the USA in 1988. The surrogate mother refused to transfer the newborn to his biological father, and the court that followed, by the way, recognized her right to visit the child and participate in his upbringing.

In addition, opponents of surrogacy talk about the transformation of children into a commodity, feminists fear a new way of exploiting women, and the church, of course, stands up for the preservation of morality, the sanctity of the family and marriage. Although in this matter, some confessions, unlike Orthodox Christians and Catholics, show loyalty. So, for example, for the Jews, in this case, the religion of the mother is important, and in Islam, a surrogate mother is not considered a sinner and has the right to breastfeed her child.

Stellar examples

Abroad, surrogacy is already gradually crossing the line between incredible exoticism and everyday life, so there are a lot of examples of star couples who decided to take this step. Moreover, for actors and singers, this method of finding a child without spoiling the figure and without interrupting a career is, whatever you say, very convenient. Therefore, at various times, Sarah Jessica Parker, Nicole Kidman, Michael Jackson, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ricky Martin and many others took advantage of it. In the case of Sir Elton John, for example, it was generally difficult to have a biological child with a loved one in a different way (for obvious reasons), therefore, the genetic material of both fathers was used to fertilize a surrogate mother, and who exactly became the biological dad of two sons, they do not know …

Alena Apina became the first swallow in our show business. Daughter Ksenia, who was born in 2001, was an incredibly long-awaited child for the singer - before that Alena had been treated for infertility for 7 years and had undergone artificial insemination 9 times. Today the girl has already grown up and makes her mother happy. The surrogate mother was a woman - a researcher, herself already having two children by that time.

Of course, Alla Pugacheva and Maxim Galkin became the brightest star couple in Russia who used the services of a surrogate mother. The twins Lisa and Harry were born in 2013. It is interesting that such a bold step required an egg that had been frozen 11 years earlier, since for a 64-year-old pop diva, even with the help of a surrogate mother, such an experience would have been impossible.

Alla Borisovna's ex-husband Philip Kirkorov is also raising a couple of adorable babies born with the help of a surrogate mother in 2011 and 2012, although both children were born in America. Philip Bedrosovich never hid that he used modern technologies, but recently he admits that his mother is involved in raising children, she is just not a public person.

Despite the inhuman practice of giving birth to children "to order" by slaves, in ancient times there was one day a year when everything was turned upside down: Ancient Roman Saturnalia: Festivals when slaves ruled over their masters