Here's a question: is it ever possible to be a prodigy and still have the practice of one's subject be hard work but not intensely grueling? Is prodigiousness painful to child and family in ALL arenas?
I think it depends on what one is a prodigy in. I feel like it is probably painful to be a true classical music or athletic prodigy (but some sports might be less so than others..for instance, maybe a snowboarding prodigy has it easier than a prima ballerina...probably a less competitive sport is better).
Chess? I don't know. It's a less glitzy, high-stakes world. Then again, there have been some really insane grandmasters...
Math? Not the same kind of pressure, I don't think. Intense pressure to achieve could backfire, but then we are in the realm of PG-kid pressure like we talk about here, I think...
We haven't talked about child actors. Could that ever be considered a type of prodigy? They seem MOST at risk of disaster to me, perhaps.
