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Just what is "a furry"? Your opinions?
13 years ago
So guys, I'm curious about something.
I see all kinds of people on this site who say "I'm not a furry, I just like drawing them", or something to that effect. Which is all fine and dandy, as far as I'm concerned, but I always kind of wonder just how people define what "furry" is.
To me, a "furry" is simply someone who claims membership in the furry fandom. Full stop. You don't have to believe you're really an animal, and in fact I'm not sure most of us do. To the best of my knowledge, that's something else entirely, though there's maybe some overlap. You don't have to wear a costume or go to 'cons, even though both of those seem to be pretty popular pastimes. To me, being a "furry" is no different than being, say, a "Trekkie".
But that's just my opinion, and I certainly don't claim to speak for anyone but myself. So let's hear it. What is a "furry" and what do people think it means to be one? Why are you part of this group? Or why are you not?
Again, it makes no difference to me, but I'd love to hear people's thoughts or ideas. Only thing is, I ask that you be polite.
I see all kinds of people on this site who say "I'm not a furry, I just like drawing them", or something to that effect. Which is all fine and dandy, as far as I'm concerned, but I always kind of wonder just how people define what "furry" is.
To me, a "furry" is simply someone who claims membership in the furry fandom. Full stop. You don't have to believe you're really an animal, and in fact I'm not sure most of us do. To the best of my knowledge, that's something else entirely, though there's maybe some overlap. You don't have to wear a costume or go to 'cons, even though both of those seem to be pretty popular pastimes. To me, being a "furry" is no different than being, say, a "Trekkie".
But that's just my opinion, and I certainly don't claim to speak for anyone but myself. So let's hear it. What is a "furry" and what do people think it means to be one? Why are you part of this group? Or why are you not?
Again, it makes no difference to me, but I'd love to hear people's thoughts or ideas. Only thing is, I ask that you be polite.
People who identify strongly with a certain animal are Therians, and while some *do* believe they are actually that animal, that's about as rare as people who have sex in fursuits. But I think Therians can still be lumped in under the catagory "furry", since many of them still participate in the fandom.
pretty much hits the nail on the head
As for Therians, I apologize if I seem ignorant or insulting to those people who identify as such. I was trying to be inclusive, not just Therians but anyone who might feel like they have some kind of spiritual/mystical/magical link to animals. If there's anyone else like that around, that is. Though I appreciate that I worded things poorly. Just to be clear, too, I'm not attempting to judge anyone for their beliefs or cast them in a negative light.
Personally though I'd rather a split in names between those who believe they are/ want to be one and people who are just fans of the work.. at least itll give some people less reason to feed the trolls
Hope this answers your question a little.
gives me an excuse to stare at some girl's butt for awhile..
And I agree, if you're registered here, if you've drawn anthro characters and have one yourself you're a furry. This has been on my mind a lot it kind of bothers me, like the idea of being a furry is something below them.... idk...
I don't particularly mind if someone who uses this site doesn't want to refer to themselves as "furry", though it's true that if they frequent sites like FA they should be prepared to accept that people are going to see them as such regardless of what they think. I was simply curious as to what distinction was being made, whether it was just "I don't want to be part of your fandom" or if they had some notion of what it meant to be "furry" that didn't fit them, such as that all "furries" go to 'cons, act like animals, etc. Really it's just me being nosy.
As for "you're not a real furry because" nonsense, those people aren't worth listening to anyway, but your example has to be the silliest thing I've ever heard. Whether or not you're a "real" furry depends on whether you can get your FA porn fix at home or not? Sounds to me like someone was just trying to pick a fight.
Though I will say that I tend to think that if you're on a furry website, and drawing furry art, you're a bit closer to being part of this fandom than not.
I think the only thing that truly unites us is a liking for some kind of anthropomorphic animal. Beyond that, it's such a broad church that you can't see from one end of the pews to the other. =;) To my way of thinking, therians are furry -- but it doesn't bother me that some of them may not want to use the label. Who am I to dictate how anybody else should classify themselves?
Actually, the fuzziness of definition is something I rather like about furry. After all, what are we, if not fuzzy? =;)
As for who is and who isn't a furry, I tend to only count those people who make it clear that they wish to be a part of the fandom. If some, or all, therians, for example, wish to disavow the fandom and go their own way, that's up to them. Which isn't to say that I wouldn't welcome those who want to be part of this fandom, too. Just that I don't like blindly labeling people.