Animal Representations... read for details

[Arya Raiin]

Yes, animal representations. Or, I will loosly define them as fursonas. NOT furries, but general fursonas. My definition is:

The outward, animal representation of one's inner self.

Now, on to my question. Are fursonas good or bad? I've heard many opinions, but nothing with solid evidence for or against.

However, I would like to establish one thing I know. Like anything in this fallen world, a fursona can let darkness into your life. Because of that, I want us to discuss my question from a literal and Biblical view point, not because furries have fursonas.

I'm looking forward to (hopefully) a good answer! Remember the rules!

[goldenspines]

Since it's not really mentioned in the Bible, I think fursonas are made up by people simply because they like the romanticized versions of animals. (e.g. Lions represent bravery, Foxes are clever, etc.) In other words, it is man-made and probably flawed in some way spiritually; from a logical standpoint, at least, since no human is perfect.

Are they bad from a Biblical standpoint? I dunno. That depends if they pull you away/separate you from God or not. Are you just like, "Yay, my inner self is like a cat because I take naps all the time!" or are you like "My inner animal self controls my actions in my life/bring darkness in/whatever and I can do nothing to stop it."
If something separates you from giving everything to God, it's probably not good.


On a side note, while you do define those who have "fursonas" as "Not all furries", it is something that leads to the furry lifestyle, I believe. Thus, it can't just be ignored.

[Atria35]

Now, on to my question. Are fursonas good or bad? I've heard many opinions, but nothing with solid evidence for or against.

I don't think you can ever have solid evidence! I mean, this isn't exactly something the Bible covers... at all.

But from personal experience, I know someone who likes to play animalistic characters (like, in RPs and in games like Skyrim). She has a fursona. There are multiple reasons for it, from just being an animal lover and liking to think about what the world is like from their perspective, to exploring what they represent (something Goldie brought up) because there is so much legend and lore and meaning behind different animals, to allowing for more creativity when thinking about races and powers for her fantasy and sci-fi stories since human and human-based races come up time and again and she finds them cliched and bland. She has no inclination to be a furry, but there are others of her aquantence who do.

From what I've seen, fursonas no different from any other form of role-playing. I have RP'd as criminals, guys, and even one or two animal-based characters. I have no inclination to be a criminal, guy, or an animal.

For some fursonas are an escape from how they feel about their life (some people do this with games like World of Warcraft, Second Life, and other games that allow them to build other personas online, it's just that fursonas happen to be animal-based instead of Night Elves). For others, they just identify with whatever fursona they've created and feel freer to be themselves under a persona that's clearly fantasy and has -no- relation to real life. There are a lot of factors that go into it, and no real clear-cut answers.

[Xeno]

I want to point out something that came across kind of ridiculous sounding in your post, at least to me.

Like anything in this fallen world, a fursona can let darkness into your life.

This sounds no less ridiculous than "Like anything in this fallen world, macaroni and cheese can let darkness into your life." This sounds excessively obtuse, but it prove the point. Not everything has to have a solid biblical basis for people to do it. The Bible doesn't say anything about using the internet, or watching tv, or drinking caffeine-free diet coke (or regular caffeinated coke for that matter), or having fursona.

I don't have one, I don't know of any animal I'd readily identify with, but I know people who do and quite separately I know people who are actually furries. I don't see having a fursona as a "gateway thing" to becoming a furry, or anything else, it's just something some people identify with. It has to do with psychology, and unless one has a degree in psychology (which I don't think any of us do), we'd be hard pressed to say this is anything other than that and some kind of satanic and/or demonic influence.

[Arya Raiin]

This sounds no less ridiculous than "Like anything in this fallen world, macaroni and cheese can let darkness into your life." This sounds excessively obtuse, but it prove the point. Not everything has to have a solid biblical basis for people to do it. The Bible doesn't say anything about using the internet, or watching tv, or drinking caffeine-free diet coke (or regular caffeinated coke for that matter), or having fursona.

Ooh! Mac 'n Cheese!! Gluttony!! lol Yes, what I said was a wee bit strong...

I get what you mean. But honestly, I think anything can be corrupted. Especially things created by man that are meant to be an expression of the soul. Without God's guidance in the process of doing that, fursonas can bring a lot of long term misery. One of my friends used her fursona to get a lot of dark and depressed feelings out. However, it only made things worse because to some extent her fursona became a coping strategy, which is... well problematic is your fursona which represents your inner self represents your depression. It was a vicious cycle that made her drop the idea of fursonas completely. :<

I've had my fursona since I was... 10 I think. I wasn't a Christian then, and she reflected that. However, changing and becoming a Christian radically changed me and thus my fursona. I've always thought it was cool that I can tell how my character has changed and developed by looking back over old rps I used her in.

So, both a bad and a good way to use fursonas.

[Davidizer13]

I don't think fursonas are really a spiritual issue, more like an extension of someone's ego/trying to be unique. Most of the people I hear about (online, of course) who have them are in the deviantArt crowd: artsy teenagers trying to express themselves in the most outrageous ways possible. I'm playing armchair psychologist here, but in high school, the students are in the middle of finding their identities and being themselves; you've seen all them teen movies about that, right? This process can take the form of some sort of arms race, where they try to be the most *special*: "I've got a boyfriend!" "Yeah, well, my boyfriend owns a car!" "My boyfriend's the quarterback of the football team!" That sort of stuff.

But sometimes, that takes some very strange turns. Like people believing they're werewolves. Now, normally, that would be the strangest thing out there, but these days we've got the Internet. That arms race about trying to be the most unique I just talked about? You ain't seen nothin' yet. So Wolfgirl here may be the most unique at her high school, but on the Internet, there's always someone trying to top her. Wolfgirl might be a warwulf or have a wolf for a fursona, but someone else is married to Sonic on the astral plane, and someone can transform into a winged centaur cat who pukes laser beams and can only transform when nobody's watching. (That new anime, Chuuni-whatever, it's got a thread on it here, seems to be about just that, I guess. Haven't seen it, but whatever.)

So yeah, fursonae, in my experience, are a product of teenagers engaged in a never-ending battle to be more of a special snowflake than anyone else on the Internet; this is especially true and hilarious when otherkin and other aligned groups start claiming their acceptance is as much a civil rights issue as racism/sexism/*-ism. They just want to be special, you see, and will run roughshod over history and actual issues with serious implications to do it.

[Atria35]

Ooh! Mac 'n Cheese!! Gluttony!! lol Yes, what I said was a wee bit strong...

I get what you mean. But honestly, I think anything can be corrupted. Especially things created by man that are meant to be an expression of the soul. Without God's guidance in the process of doing that, fursonas can bring a lot of long term misery. One of my friends used her fursona to get a lot of dark and depressed feelings out. However, it only made things worse because to some extent her fursona became a coping strategy, which is... well problematic is your fursona which represents your inner self represents your depression. It was a vicious cycle that made her drop the idea of fursonas completely. :<

This type of behaviour can be used for any type of online or RP persona, though - it is in no way, shape, or form unique to fursonas. There are a lot of people that do the exact same thing with other games where they play dwarves or elves, and no one blinks an eye. The reason fursonas get singled out is because they're a little more unusual.

Does it lead to being a furry? Honestly, I don't believe so. Nothing I've seen about fursonas and knowing people who are furries has ever led me to believe that there is a connnection.

[Okami]

I'll keep my post short...
I am a wolf. I am not a furry.

[goldenspines]

I don't have one, I don't know of any animal I'd readily identify with, but I know people who do and quite separately I know people who are actually furries. I don't see having a fursona as a "gateway thing" to becoming a furry, or anything else, it's just something some people identify with. It has to do with psychology, and unless one has a degree in psychology (which I don't think any of us do), we'd be hard pressed to say this is anything other than that and some kind of satanic and/or demonic influence.

Does it lead to being a furry? Honestly, I don't believe so. Nothing I've seen about fursonas and knowing people who are furries has ever led me to believe that there is a connnection.

I get the feeling I probably know the odd stem of people since my experience has always been that fursonas ---> furries if pursued beyond the realms of fantasy into reality. In other words, more beyond just an animal you identify with. (maybe I know the wrong type of furries?)
Or to put it in clearer terms, if you start believing you were meant to be born a [animal here] instead of a human and thus start behaving like an animal in your day to day life. Er, maybe you're not a furry necessarily, but it would be worrisome that you lost your grasp on reality (or you're a teenager, whichever is closer to the truth).
"Furry" tends to be a loaded/sometimes derogatory term. Personally, I consider it someone who believes their "true self" is an animal and thus starts acting like one to varying extents (usually extreme ones in the case of most furries). Is it a bad thing? Not really if you're okay with it and as mentioned in my post before, it doesn't separate you from God.

But with that, I'd better leave the topic. I always forget it's not good to get mixed up in something I have strong opinions about. XD] have[/I] to be). It's not "being yourself", it's masking yourself behind something made up. But, then again, I could be just living a boring life. XP



P.S. Before Okami sends me an angry PM (or, um, you still can if you feel so inclined), since I don't know you super well, but still well enough, I don't think these remarks apply to you, in case you think they did.

[rocklobster]

I don't have a fursona, but if I did it'd be a platypus. Just saying.

[Okami]

P.S. Before Okami sends me an angry PM (or, um, you still can if you feel so inclined), since I don't know you super well, but still well enough, I don't think these remarks apply to you, in case you think they did.

Heh, no offense taken, Spiney. I plan on later expanding on my thoughts, just don't have the attention span as of right now to actual sit and expound them out at the moment.

[Dante]

A little old, but relevant to my interests.

Yes, animal representations. Or, I will loosly define them as fursonas. NOT furries, but general fursonas. My definition is:

The outward, animal representation of one's inner self.

So what's furry, that's an easy thing to tell.
It's an animal that happens to be human as well.
In technical terms we call it anthropomorphics,
but it's easy to tell without all the linguistics.

If it walks like a person and meows like a cat,
you've got yourself a furry it's a simple as that.
If talks like a person and it flies like a bird,
then it's still a furry even though that sounds absurd.

...

So, that's a furry character, but what about the rest?
A furry is a person to whom furries are of interest.
So both the character and the viewer are furry.
It'll all make sense soon...
So don't worry.

-Kurrel Raven, The Furry (Song)

Fursonas are furries, hence if you have a fursona, or like fursonas, you are a furry. You may be freaked out because of the stigma society has attached to us, but that doesn't mean you have to be THAT kind of furry.

Now, on to my question. Are fursonas good or bad? I've heard many opinions, but nothing with solid evidence for or against.

However, I would like to establish one thing I know. Like anything in this fallen world, a fursona can let darkness into your life. Because of that, I want us to discuss my question from a literal and Biblical view point, not because furries have fursonas.

I'm looking forward to (hopefully) a good answer! Remember the rules!

That's because the question makes no sense. That's like asking whether or not apple pie is good or evil. Give it to a homeless man and it can be good, smash it into an old lady's face and it could be evil. Most furries out there try to represent the person they WANT to be in their fursonas. If they're small and weak in real life, they may choose to make their fursonas big and powerful. Of course, the opposite can be true as well (my fursona, for instance, is shorter and potentially even a little dumber then me - but he's far more playful and lovable). Many furries are also shy, but their 'sonas themselves are quite outgoing and spend lots of time with friends.

It's a fictional character that is often used to represent a fantasy world we wish we lived in. Of course, there is variety here, as anyplace else. Villainous characters are rare, but some people do play them - but even they often have some kind of lovable nature to them that attracts friends.

As far as the Bible is concerned? It's a shame, but I don't believe furries were important enough to make it into the pages of prophecy or the law - and perhaps that's a good thing. The one thing I don't believe the Bible needs are any more rules that try to micromanage our lives. God wouldn't give you a free will if he didn't expect you to use it.

However, generally, most things that we ought to be doing require that we either love one another or love God. The fandom has caused me to love others, so consequently, I'd say my fursona was a good thing.

[USSRGirl]

So... I've always felt a connection to donkeys who are bad. Not bad as in inappropriate or misbehaving, but just BAD. Plain old normal bad.

Am I okay?

[Atria35]

^ Read posts above. Yes, you're okay.

[Dante]

So... I've always felt a connection to donkeys who are bad. Not bad as in inappropriate or misbehaving, but just BAD. Plain old normal bad.

Am I okay?

That would be [mod snipped].

Do I get a rice-ration cookie now? I got a real kick out of that one, though.