Boosting Your Business Acumen
Despite reaping considerable financial rewards from their time in the limelight, Siamese twins Chang and Eng were regarded merely as assets by their managers, Hunter and Coffin. The duo’s welfare seemed inconsequential to the businessmen, who starkly viewed the twins as items for profit. Abel Coffin even boasted of “owning” the siblings, reducing their role to mere commodities.
As the twins’ protests fell on deaf ears, it became clear that their well-being was secondary to the financial ambitions of their handlers.
Hunter and Coffin, undeterred by ethical concerns, leveraged medical endorsements to bolster the show’s appeal, reassuring potential patrons that the exhibition was suitable for all audiences, devoid of any potential harm or offense.
The promotional tactics, however, crossed the line into exploitation. Chang and Eng endured invasive and degrading medical examinations, all designed to satiate public curiosity and line the pockets of their managers. Such examinations added a layer of indignity to the already challenging spectacle of their lives on display..