Anthro Societal Norms(??)
3 years ago
I am a storyteller by nature. I come up with worlds to base characters in and fashion adventures for them to go on, so as a result, I have a tendency to ask myself... questions... when I see tropes and repeating motifs in art found here and elsewhere. Recently, a couple of tropes/motifs/whatever-you-call-them have been drawing my inquisitive mind and I'm curious what the rest of you think. They are presented below in no particular order, but please identify which one you are talking about if/when you respond, as I'm curious how you think things would work.
Given:
1. A fully anthropomorphic "talking animal" society (a'la Zootopia or even a more 'humanized' phenotype)
2. Animals having "human-average" intelligence
3. All the issues animals still must face (one major example is 'heat', another would be carnivore/herbivore/omnivore relations)
A) Do you think that the trend of 'cum-dumpster' or 'free usage' style artwork depicts a method for females in heat to deal with their needs in a societally-approved fashion? I ask this because, at least 90% of the time, the individual in said position certainly seems to be enjoying themself, so it is unlikely that it is being forced (on at least the majority of those images presented).
B) Do you think that 'tat/fur-toos' are a regular thing that you can go and get at the local salon? Inked into the fur until it grows out and then replaced? Is it subdermal (ie. permanent) and the skin tone causes the fur to grow in that color?
C) How thin IS fur on the ventral portion of an anthro character? Is it millimeters in length and almost invisible? Is it longer, but some shave? Obviously, the variation of 'races' will have their own variations, but I am thinking "in general." Can you feel it, or is it so thin as to be like it's not there?
D) Given the predilection for (most) animals to not actually practice monogamy, do you think the races that do not would still practice marriage (if only for the social benefits it can offer to advanced beings - ie. a stable home and family members, income and the like)? If not, how open do you think they would be?
E) Similar to D, how 'free' do you think intelligent anthropomorphic characters would be sexually? Animals don't seem to have a concept of 'jealousy' (except in very specific instances of certain birds or mammals)... Are they in "open" relationships for the most part and only stick around to raise children (when that occurs)?
F) A lot of furry art shows characters in sexual or sexualized clothing. Some characters seem embarrassed by this fact (many do not - this can be put down to a trope or the like, but again, in general...). Do you think they would be embarrassed to be seen by anyone, or when they are seen by anyone other than their 'significant other'?
G) Lastly, regarding food... If all animals are intelligent (there are furry-lovers who like birds and reptiles and the like), what do they eat? Is there a line where they go from 'intelligent' (and therefore inedible) to 'dumb' (and therefore edible)? Sure, there are likely those who like to hunt live prey, and I'm assuming that such things would be either illegal or highly-frowned-upon (as in recent anime depictions), but there are still going to be those (especially those in power or decadent wealth) who will choose to cross that 'line'.
I understand that this is a matter of debate throughout the fandom and that there are novels and series about the ideas above, but I was curious as to the "general" consensus. No one is wrong. I'm just curious as to what people generally 'agree' upon, were the furry universe REAL. Feel free to list your replies below!
Given:
1. A fully anthropomorphic "talking animal" society (a'la Zootopia or even a more 'humanized' phenotype)
2. Animals having "human-average" intelligence
3. All the issues animals still must face (one major example is 'heat', another would be carnivore/herbivore/omnivore relations)
A) Do you think that the trend of 'cum-dumpster' or 'free usage' style artwork depicts a method for females in heat to deal with their needs in a societally-approved fashion? I ask this because, at least 90% of the time, the individual in said position certainly seems to be enjoying themself, so it is unlikely that it is being forced (on at least the majority of those images presented).
B) Do you think that 'tat/fur-toos' are a regular thing that you can go and get at the local salon? Inked into the fur until it grows out and then replaced? Is it subdermal (ie. permanent) and the skin tone causes the fur to grow in that color?
C) How thin IS fur on the ventral portion of an anthro character? Is it millimeters in length and almost invisible? Is it longer, but some shave? Obviously, the variation of 'races' will have their own variations, but I am thinking "in general." Can you feel it, or is it so thin as to be like it's not there?
D) Given the predilection for (most) animals to not actually practice monogamy, do you think the races that do not would still practice marriage (if only for the social benefits it can offer to advanced beings - ie. a stable home and family members, income and the like)? If not, how open do you think they would be?
E) Similar to D, how 'free' do you think intelligent anthropomorphic characters would be sexually? Animals don't seem to have a concept of 'jealousy' (except in very specific instances of certain birds or mammals)... Are they in "open" relationships for the most part and only stick around to raise children (when that occurs)?
F) A lot of furry art shows characters in sexual or sexualized clothing. Some characters seem embarrassed by this fact (many do not - this can be put down to a trope or the like, but again, in general...). Do you think they would be embarrassed to be seen by anyone, or when they are seen by anyone other than their 'significant other'?
G) Lastly, regarding food... If all animals are intelligent (there are furry-lovers who like birds and reptiles and the like), what do they eat? Is there a line where they go from 'intelligent' (and therefore inedible) to 'dumb' (and therefore edible)? Sure, there are likely those who like to hunt live prey, and I'm assuming that such things would be either illegal or highly-frowned-upon (as in recent anime depictions), but there are still going to be those (especially those in power or decadent wealth) who will choose to cross that 'line'.
I understand that this is a matter of debate throughout the fandom and that there are novels and series about the ideas above, but I was curious as to the "general" consensus. No one is wrong. I'm just curious as to what people generally 'agree' upon, were the furry universe REAL. Feel free to list your replies below!
FA+

V.
For example, a hundred years plus ago people believed that women did not have orgasms, because they did not ejaculate. It was recognized that widows that did not remarry were missing something and build up 'stress', so Doctors had a special 'massage service' that relieved them of their 'stress'. This led to the development (rediscovery) of dildos and later vibrators, because it saved the Doctors time.
A) Depending on how people look at it it's possible, but it also might be seen as something people get shamed for. It could also be seen as something that is officially shameful, but due the physical needs of the women as something that is accepted as long as they are discreet about it. In that case the more prominent a woman is in society the more careful she would have to be, using cosmetics, perfume and other means to disguise their identity.
B) Again, it depends on the culture and also on religion. The human history of tattooing shows how varied this can be.
C) Here you might have a clash between physical well-being, looks and fashion.
In my opinion most anthropomorphic societies would have a rather low nudity taboo. While a family can keep the fur trimmed for health and physical well-being they will need a professional to do it really well and fashionable. Which means to be nude in front of a fur stylist on a regular base.
D) Given an emotional bond to their children and the longer period to raise their children some kind of committent will probably exist. Again id depends on society and history. For example, something like a kindergarten might not be an institution, but simply several families sharing resources and duties. That way they could free up some time for other activities. That might include duties like breast feeding, especially if some mothers have more than enough milk while others don't have enough.
E) Once more that depends on society. Though given the needs of a 'heat' they might be in more open relationships in general. Especially with a species were pregnancy is impossible.
F) Thanks for the need of fur stylists probably not so much. But yet they might. With no or a low nudity taboo nudity would not be automatically linked to sex. While sexy clothing could be linked to sex. So walking around in sexy clothing could be seen as an invitation to have sex, which could be embarrassing if they are being seen in it by anyone other than their lovers/partners.
One novel I recently read had high-tech clothing and the character set it so that anyone from her friends list could access the transparent setting.
G) That entirely depends on how you want to set up your universe.
One idea I had were I wanted little friction between species has that some people (wolves) cultivated a 'meat plant' that satisfied a carnivore's dietary needs. The same people wanted to build an empire, but wanted to distance themselves from a 'canine empire' in the past and used the knowledge from the meat plant to cultivate certain traits in themselves, which resulted in the various dog breeds. Their empire did not last very long and never grew very large, but the meat plant and their knowledge of changing a species survived.
Meanwhile Karno had this in the centre of his story. The first 6 pages show a lot more than I could quickly summarize:
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11106663/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11113635/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11119700/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11130087/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11138410/
https://www.furaffinity.net/view/11144534/
In short, everything depends on the story you want to tell and what you want to have in it. Looking at history can help, especially if you take the people's reasoning into account. Especially that which made no sense in hindsight, but for them was completely logical at the time and from their point of view. Not that their point of view had to be logical or even sensible.
Something in that regard is 'the great disappointment':
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z80wKIwW6w
You can find a reason for nearly everything you want.
V.
D) AFC focuses on a lioness whose father was the head of a pride, but due to age he is beaten in combat and loses his status to a younger new leader. Since the main character is no longer under the protection of her father, she is expected to become part of the new leader's harem, but she does not want to abide by this cultural norm even though it's expected of her. It's a good showcase of how the feral behaviors have been included in the anthro lifestyles while also displaying a case where an individual rejects that lifestyle. I would imagine other anthro species being influenced by the feral behaviors in the same manner.
G) AFC describes a complex system where you can procure "citizen cuts" of meat, but only on a legal market from those who have perished in accidents or by natural causes. Obviously there is a black market that bypasses this, loosely akin to Beastars, but since there is legal feral meat to consume it's not as big a story point. The main character in AFC often jokes with her zebra friend that due to his high risk lifestyle she has first dibs on him as a citizen cut if he ends up dying. But there is a very clear line between anthro and feral making it simple which is and is not allowed to be eaten.
In my own personal stories, which vary, I follow a general set of rules.
- Predators are anthro, prey remain feral. This limits the number of anthros and allows for meat consumption.
- Cross-species offspring cannot occur, so sexual encounters with other species is relatively consequence free, however each species' culture looks down upon such encounters with other species. Females in heat either end up pregnant with their own species or are seen as lacking self control and decorum for fraternizing elsewhere.
- Tattoos are dermal and affect the color of fur regrowth.
- Monogamy is more common while traditional human marriage is not. A marriage promise is generally only made in religious contexts. Because of the ability for anthros to detect scent details, it's not hard to know who has been sexually active together. Offspring will also carry a scent depicting the parents. Parents are expected by society to care for their offspring up to a certain age, but beyond that are free to find new partners or stay together as preferred.
However much I stick to or deviate from these guidelines depends heavily on what I'm writing about, and whether I'm relying on any existing structures not of my own making.
I like the idea of sticking to a series of anthros but leaving certain others as feral, along with the idea of feral 'culture' influencing anthro culture. Neat!
She comes to regret her decision and finds a way to be a huntress and a mother.