To put it in the language of sexual frankness, these two operas are monuments to castration anxiety.

Although Freud regarded castration anxiety as a universal human experience, few empirical studies have been conducted on this topic.

Although typically associated with males, castration anxiety is experienced in differing ways for both the male and female genders.

A link has been found between castration anxiety and fear of death.

Essentially, castration anxiety can lead to a fear of death, and a feeling of loss of control over one's life.

These results were consistent with Freud's theory of castration anxiety.