Here is a really bizarre question :o I would like to have an answer to. I didn’t get Cecil’s answer :(, so, please, somebody - would you be so kind?
I post it in the same form as in the letter (copy+paste):
I know this will sound a little bit of weird (sick or retarded), but hey - it’s not that you haven’t got used to it! It’s not that it’s some kind of fantasy or something, but one day this strange thought came into my mind. I wondered about whether there is a possibility for a woman in coma to get pregnant. Not that somebody is going to make her, but just theoretically - (1) is it possible for an unconscious woman to get fecundated? And if it is possible (2) has a fetus any chance to survive? I understand that you can’t give a birth while being unconscious, but what about using Caesarean section?
And speaking of fetuses, (3) if a pregnant woman falls into coma, can her baby survive?
And finally: (4) what is the longest time a person has spent in coma? What are the consequences after waking up?
I would presume that any such case would have to be considered rape, since a person in a coma can’t give consent to anything. There are many cases of women who gave birth while in a coma (that she fell into long after the conception) and the baby was O.K. I don’t know if it’s always necessary to do a cesarean in that case.
Welcome to the Straight Dope Message Boards, Sragde, I’m glad you posted here. Cecil only answers one question a week in his column, alas – that’s what he’s paid for, that’s what he does. So I thought you’d get faster response here.
As I recall there was a case not too long ago where the husband of a comatose woman had sex with her on several occasions, and claimed that she would want him to do so. Pregnancy was not an issue in this case, but I seem to recall that he was told, basically, “don’t do it again”.
There have been a number of cases where a woman has had sex with a comatose (and terminal) husband, specifically for the purpose of getting pregnant with his child. For some reason, concerns about consent don’t seem to come up in these cases. A curious asymmetry.
Unless that’s in writing that she gives him permission, it would be. A spouse can rape another spouse… it’s called (wait for it) spousal rape. There’s no exception just because it’s your husband.
Yes there is, legally speaking. Again, it depends in the jurisdiction. Until recently, most rape laws did not apply to a husband having sex with his wife.
amazing … given how fast the world has changed in the last 25 years alone it would be like one of the SF movies where someone goes into suspended animation and wakes up hundreds of years in the future.
Imagine, going from Soviet to Polish in a nap!:eek:
Not all cultures and countries recognize the concept of “spousal rape”. In fact, for most of history a woman had no right to say “no” to her husband, and in many parts of the world that is still true.
It’s not that it’s some kind of fantasy or something, but one day this strange thought came into my mind. I wondered about whether there is a possibility for a woman in coma to get pregnant. Not that somebody is going to make her, but just theoretically - (1) is it possible for an unconscious woman to get fecundated? And if it is possible (2) has a fetus any chance to survive? I understand that you can’t give a birth while being unconscious, but what about using Caesarean section?