| " | Codelizard wrote: |
|
Expressing our preferences is a way to claim individuality. The more at once, the better - there's tons of rat furries, but how many of them are also nurses? Throw in "ranch dressing enjoyer" and "Debian user" and the intersection of all these things starts to get very narrow. But it can also be a way to find like minds. Someone might post about liking classic Disney movies, or garlic bread, or Pokemon, in the hopes that someone else will reply "Me too!" and then there can be a conversation about shared interests. Or the "me too" is the end goal, a way to feel less alone and alienated by knowing there are other people out there with similar tastes. |
| " | Codelizard wrote: |
| Sometimes the preference may not be all that interesting, but the rationale behind it might be. Different people have different reasons behind their fursona's species, favorite video games, kinks, or professions. That, too, can either be used to pursue individuality (picking a different reason from others) or to find like minds (finding people who made different choices for similar reasons). |
| " | claviarm wrote: |
| There are times that I feel isolated because "furry" is kind of my default group, and there's very little overlap with certain other things that I'm interested in. I suppose it would be neat to find someone who matched up in uncommon ways. |
| " | claviarm wrote: |
| Indeed, the reasons behind the choices are where the real meaning is. Getting the true answer to why someone identifies with a certain species can be quite personal, though as the community grows broader I feel like it's becoming more common for furries to choose for less profound reasons. |
| " | Codelizard wrote: |
| I can also agree with this, and that also plays into the original point. Someone picking a species for a superficial reason ("I just think they're cute") versus something more meaningful ("I used to have one as a pet" / "It has traits that I feel represent me" / "I've enjoyed seeing them ever since I was a kid") can tell you a great deal about that person, their thought processes, and so on. It's the difference between a mere character and a fursona, where the former is just someone you associate with yourself in some way, and the latter is meant to actually be 'you' on some level or another, at least in my interpretation. |
| " | claviarm wrote: |
| My early furry days were mostly on Usenet, specifically alt.lifestyle.furry, so that gave me a bit of a slanted impression I suppose. I was surrounded by people who all felt deep connections to their species. But regardless, I think "fursona" certainly has to be "self" on some level, that's half the portmanteau. |
