Friday 18 October 2013

UPDATE: Redifining Marriage: Can I marry my goat?


Yes. If you live in Brazil and get permission first.

In my post entitled Redefining marriage: Can I marry myself? I looked at some of the legal changes that were necessary to bring the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill into law.  I also explored the broader idea of redefining marriage as being something other than between a man and a woman, something which is very controversial and which has and continues to be the topic of debate notwithstanding the fact that the bill was given Royal assent on 17 July this year. I looked in particular at a case in Brazil where three people were allowed to enter into an equal marriage. Brazil seems to have gone a step further now and has given permission for amarriage to take place between a man and…a goat!  Permission was given on the strict understanding that the man, 74 year old Aparecido Castaldo, will not consummate the marriage with the goat, who is named Carmelita.  Despite the union getting the official go ahead, Mr Castaldo is likely to have trouble convincing many of the legitimacy of the marriage, not least because even those who think marriage should extend to same sex couples are unlikely to support the definition extending to inter-species couples, but also because there is a strong chance that the bride, having already eaten her wedding dress, will no doubt try to munch the marriage certificate as well.

2 comments:

  1. Ironically I suspect that unfortunately the inter-specie "relationship" is far more healthy than many traditional married couples with a sex life which equally mirrors those of more traditional relationships. Terrible business for the law profession though as I can't imagine the divorce rate in human/goat marriages being particularly high.

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  2. How will the bride state her consent? Or lack thereof? If the first Mrs Rochester could indicate her distaste by tearing the wedding veil, surely the bride eating her own dress is a very bad sign?

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