Twins: Special Bonds Not Usually Seen With Other Siblings
Twins and other multiple-birth babies often share a closeness, other than birthdays, that may not be found with single-born siblings. The pregnancy and childbirth may or may not be more difficult. However, once the babies arrive, many things change, some of which are confusing, while others lead to humorous situations. Let’s take a look at twins and other multiple births.
Different Types of Twins
Twins are born at the same time, meaning from the same pregnancy, within a reasonable time of each other. However, there are different types.
Monozygotic twins (identical) come from a single egg that splits in two. The two babies are virtually carbon copies at birth. Monozygotic twins are of the same sex. Worldwide, the chance of having identical twins is between 3 and 4 in every 1,000 births. Although they appear to be the same, hopefully, they have minor differences, such as birthmarks, that help distinguish them from one another. If not, the parents must come up with a creative way to always identify who is who.
Dizygotic twins (fraternal), while more common, result from two eggs being fertilized by two separate sperm. The result is two siblings being born from one pregnancy, with no more in common than full siblings from different pregnancies. The incidence of fraternal twins worldwide varies significantly from country to country. When IVF (in vitro fertilization) is used to induce pregnancy, the rate of fraternal twins is nearly 21 pairs per 1,000 births. While identical twins are of the same sex, fraternal twin births, on average, consist of 25% female-female pairs, 25% male-male pairs, and 50% female-male pairs. On average, they share 50% of the same genes.
Twins in Pop Culture
Twins are an interesting concept in the movies and in TV series. Two lookalikes can definitely add to the humour of a situation. And, being twins, they don’t even have to look alike to get involved in unusual situations.
The Parent Trap
The Parent Trap was a 1961 movie starring Haley Mills playing both identical twin sisters Sharon McKendrick and Susan Evers. The two meet at a girls’ summer camp. (What are the chances, eh?) They discover that they are twins who were separated shortly after birth when their parents divorced, and each parent took one of them.
Sharon lives in Boston with their mother and grandparents; Susan lives on a ranch in California with their father. They both want to meet their other parent. So, after some discussion and preparation, they decided to switch their lives. You can only imagine the confusion and chaos that ensues as the twins try to get their parents back together. The movie was remade in 1998, starring Lindsay Lohan.
Full House
Full House was an American TV series of 192 episodes that ran from 1987 to 1995. Although it wasn’t a critical success, it had its followers and still exists in reruns. I was never a fan of the series. It consisted mainly of feeble jokes and ridiculous misunderstandings in a made-up family.
The show revolved around a recent widower bringing up three young daughters with the help of his brother-in-law and his best friend. One big happy family, right? The brother-in-law was a rock musician, and the best friend was a stand-up comedian.
So why have I included Full House as an example in an essay about twins? The youngest daughter, Michelle, who was only a baby, was played by twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Twins playing one part is the opposite situation of the Parent Trap above, where one actress played both twins in the movie, as well as in the remake. Having twin babies for one role made the taping of the series more flexible. Anyway, Google Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen to see what the actresses who played that cute little baby look like now. You will be surprised!
Twins
Let’s look at an extreme example of twins who don’t look alike at all. In 1988, the movie Twins arrived in movie theaters. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito as fraternal twins was a huge stretch. However, as unbelievable as this situation might be, the movie and the twins were a hit with moviegoers.
These very unalike twins in both stature and attitude were the product of experimental reproduction using the DNA from six different men with one mother. Obviously, the twins came from different eggs fertilized by different men. The story unfolds as they search for their individual fathers among the six men who participated in the experiment. It’s an odd premise, to be sure, but humorous and entertaining.
The Simpsons
If you are a true fan of The Simpsons, you will know that Marge Simpson has older twin sisters, Patty and Selma Bouvier, both voiced by Julie Kavner. The Simpsons is a very popular TV series which debuted in late 1989 and has been a hit ever since. It is the longest-running sitcom and animated series on American television.
The series has a plethora of interesting and unusual characters. Patty and Selma are memorable for their masculine-sounding, gravelly voices, typical of chain smokers and their nasty attitudes. They are identical twins, only differentiated by their hairstyles. Both are energy vampires, sucking the very life out of those around them. As part of the character dynamics, they both have a particular dislike of their brother-in-law, Homer.
As you can see from the examples above, twins come in various shapes, sizes, and attitudes, just like other siblings.
The Special Twin Bond
Twins are as entertaining on TV and in movies as they are in real life. Twins have a special bond that seldom occurs among other siblings. They can be best friends or biggest rivals, depending on the day and their individual moods. As in most relationships, many sets of twins consist of a leader and a follower, but their bond is strong, and they are always there for each other.
Twins have been known to be so close that they finish each other’s sentences, and when one hurts, physically or emotionally, the other hurts as well. Especially with identical twins, mix-ups, misunderstandings, and comedic situations can easily occur. They may even converse in a special language known only to them, eluding all others. Being twins with a special connection sounds like a wonderful relationship. However, it has also been described as akin to being married from birth, given its very close nature.
And Even More Babies
While not as common as twins, multiple births with more than two babies do occur. Triplets, quadruplets, quintuplets, and so on, add to the potential complications during pregnancy and childbirth. They also add to the expense of raising children. However, multiple births add to the joy of having a bigger family, along with the mix-ups that might occur.
Interestingly, multiple births can be identical, fraternal, or a combination of both. Therefore, the possibility of mixing identities, as seen in identical twins, can still exist. Now, there is a greater chance of mix-ups and misunderstandings. Imagine having three, four or more lookalikes. So, how will you tell them apart? Good luck with that!
Conjoined Twins: When Two Become One
Formerly known as Siamese twins, conjoined twins result from a special situation during pregnancy where the egg splits, but not completely. Conjoined twins occur in about 1 in 50,000 pregnancies.
Each set of conjoined twins is unique. Surgical separation is possible in some situations. Where they are joined is the prime consideration when considering surgery. The most common types of conjoined twins are joined at the chest (thoracopagus), joined at the skull (craniopagus), and joined at the backside (pygopagus). While surgical separation is possible, it is always a challenging procedure. If they share vital organs such as the brain, heart, liver, or lungs, separation surgery may be impossible, with the risk of one or both dying.
Famous Conjoined Twins
Conjoined twins are a rarity in nature and therefore hold special interest. Although being joined holds significant challenges in day-to-day living and even survival, most sets of conjoined twins cope, and many even live satisfying and productive lives. Let’s briefly look at one example.
Daisy and Violet Hilton were born on February 5, 1908, in Brighton, Sussex, England. Their birth mother was an unwed barmaid. Her employer, Mary Hilton, either purchased the girls or tricked their mother into giving up custody. The girls were exploited as exhibits in “freak shows”, as they were called at that time. However, later in life, they became performers in vaudeville and even starred in a couple of movies.
The Hilton twins died on January 4, 1969, at the age of 60.
The above essay is for entertainment and English language study only. For suggestions on how to use this post to improve your English reading and listening comprehension, click here.
Vocabulary
- siblings – noun (plural); each of two or more children having one or both parents in common; brothers and sisters
- multiple births – noun (plural); more than one offspring (baby) from the same pregnancy
- monozygotic – adjective; (of twins, triplets, etc.) derived from a single ovum; identical (as in identical twins)
- dizygotic – adjective; not identical (as in fraternal twins)
- induce – verb (transitive & intransitive); bring on labour artificially, esp. by use of drugs; help begin the birth process
- eh – interjection (Canadian English); ascertaining the comprehension, continued interest, agreement, etc. of the person or persons addressed; do you understand, do you agree
- chaos – noun; utter confusion; complete confusion
- ensue – verb (intransitive); be subsequent or happen afterwards; happens because of
- feeble – adjective; weak; lacking effectiveness; not funny (in this context)
- premise – noun; the basic plot or circumstances on which a play, film, etc. is based; idea or situation
- plethora – noun; an oversupply, glut, or excess; unnecessarily too many
- differentiated – adjective; differences between or in; something different
- dynamics – noun (plural); relationship between characters (in this context)
- converse – verb (intransitive); engage in conversation; talk to each other (in this context)
- elude – verb (transitive); escape from or baffle (a person’s memory or understanding); unable to understand (in this context)
- conjoined twins – noun (plural); twins joined at any part of the body and sometimes sharing organs, etc.; twins that are joined
- vaudeville – a form of variety entertainment popular esp. in the US from about 1880 until the early 1930s; stage entertainment including music, semi-nude dancing girls, and comedy
Comprehension Questions
- Do monozygotic twins (identical) come from one egg or two?
- Do dizygotic twins (fraternal) come from one egg or two?
- Who starred in the 1961 version of The Parent Trap?
(a) Haley Mills, (b) Juliet Mills, (c) John Mills, or (d)