Author Topic: Are you a Fury a Therianthrope (Read 11572 times)

Silver · « **on:** July 14, 2003, 03:21:30 pm »

As I said in the description this is perhaps a stuipd question since the name of the site is furtopia, but some people don't even make the distinction. I know that I've harped on about this for a very long time, but I feel strongly about the distrinction between the two and I just wanted to know whether people thought themselves furies or therianthropes, or if people know the difference (I do but there might be people that don't) I'm just curious I guess

zackary_rainheart · « **Reply #1 on:** July 14, 2003, 03:37:39 pm »

Humm.. well if it means what I think you mean it as I'm the latter.

'>

But just so I'm sure could ya go into a bit of detail about the diffrences between the two.. there really isn't much of one.. I personally feel ones just an "spinoff" of the other.

Benjamin · « **Reply #2 on:** July 14, 2003, 04:19:55 pm »

I feel that furry is more like a general umbrella term that encompasses therianthropes, lycanthropes, animal cartoons, and so forth. Furry is a pretty vague term, and therianthropy seems more like a specific branch off of the definition of furry.
Furry's not a very scientific word though, of course. It's just a catchy word used to describe the basis of this fandom and it's fans.
Though if you could write up a contrast of the definitions of furry and therianthropy, that would likely help some people out.
You can be both, as far as I'm concerned. You can also be just one or the other, of course. It all depends on how you identify or describe yourself.

Benjamin

zackary_rainheart · « **Reply #3 on:** July 14, 2003, 04:29:13 pm »

Ah.. Lyconthrope I do know.. thats me as well as being furry. Deffently!
*ROARS*

'>

Patrick Rangerwolf · « **Reply #4 on:** July 14, 2003, 06:32:21 pm »

I'm a pedigree furry. Although, I believe that I am an animal, it is more of a psychological thing for me rather than spiritual.

Jadnar · « **Reply #5 on:** July 14, 2003, 06:54:56 pm »

Here are some stuff that I had gained from the Therians. It may elaborate on the already known stuff It's from a document that I was compiling. If you don't want opinions just look at the quotes Other then that You free to read it all:

http://www.were.net/therian.html Therian Material

There are many differences that I had not realized between the Therians and the Furries.
Quite in fact I didn't even know there as a border between the two worlds. This document
is made to help others understand the differences that lie between them, and to help
increase the understanding between the two groups. I'll start off explaining the Furry
Fandom.

Furries: Believing you are something, and you want to be it. Some don't know what
creature they may be, or how much into furry they are. You can consider furries to be the
fans, while Therians are the true ones. Think of it like the kiddies show pokemon. Yes, a
lame example but a good one. You have the people whom created pokemon, whom have
developed parts of it, and ultimately gave it life. Then you have the fans. The ones that go
to conventions, the ones that worship the creators as if they were gods.

This isn't that much of an extreme between Therians and Furries, but the same idea is
applied. Here is a quote that I have received while in my trip in the Therians. It proves the
point quite well.

Quote

WordWolf

"A) NO were ever got to choose their animal. They may well like one animal, or
several animals. That has nothing to do with the animal they ARE.
In high school and college, I could have named 1/2 a dozen animals I LIKED.
NONE of them was wolf. Frankly, if I would have chosen, I would have chosen one
of them. If asked, I would have said I did NOT like wolves. What little I knew about
them was what we were all taught then-which was wrong.

B) NO were got to choose whether they are were or NOT. If I had been given a
choice initially, I would have refused it. ANOTHER reason to be misunderstood and
separated from other people? No, thank you-I have a short stack of them already.

On the other hand, Â
furries get to choose whether or not they are furries, just like bowlers can choose
whether they are bowlers. They get to choose their "fursona".
A furry can wake up one day, throw out all his furry artwork, erase all his furry
computer links, and take up photography (or anything else). A were/therian can
TRY to do that, which results in miserable failure. Â

Let me try a strange analogy.
Let's say a minority of the population-one in every ten thousand across the planet-
started developing a third arm below their right arm, fully sized within months.
No pattern or cause has been detected among the 3-armed. They woke up one
morning and it was just growing there. Â
Let's say these 3-arms begin associating with each other, online and off.
The younger are sometimes able to get advice from the older, and they can relax
among each other without having to explain themselves every 30 seconds.
Society being what it is, one day, some people start to draw people with an extra
set of arms below their current ones. Some of the art only draws one arm, some
draws 2 arms. It catches on. Some people collect the artwork, some set up
online RPGs where they have 4-arm or 3-arm communities. Â

Then one day, the RPGers start finding the 3-arm websites.
"Oh, how nice! MORE 4-arm and 3-arm websites! I shall go join them!"

Tell me, Â
what do you think the response of those communities would be?

How do you think they'd respond to being called "fans"?

I hope my odd little story made its points."

You see. From the description you can suddenly understand how Therians feel about
furries, and what some of their beliefs are.

Quote

Ravell

"To explain the difference between furries and Therianthropes further, referring to the part you posted
about the fact that furries can take their state of mind very seriously as well.

I think its best explained as follows:

Furries, including the lifestylers who take it very seriously, feel a close bond or affection for one or more
types of animals. They create characters to play RP games or as a reflection of their selves, create art,
etc.

For Therianthropes it's much more complicated, complicated even more by the fact that for every were
it's different. The relation to an animal is not just affection but a mental state of mind. Most experience
shifts where they are not playing their animal, the are the animal. The animal is 100% part of them and
can not be changed or selected, most believe (including me) it is determined at birth. Put simply, part of
their mind is in fact the animal and it stays that way until death."

Quote

KodeKitten

Furry fandom is a collection of people who pretend to be other things, and roleplay. I seriously hope
you're not implying that I'm here because I kid myself on a daily basis. Please read
http://www.were.net/therian.html to give you an idea of what we're about here on were.net.

If you feel this is applicable to you, ok.

Quote

Ravell

I hope you understand that this forum is based on therianthropy, which is very different from a fandom.
For one, it isn't a choice to be a were. Therians don't play a character, they are simply themselves.

Then again, their are no objections on my part for furries to come here and actively participate, as long
as you understand that weres are very different from furries. If that is the case, welcome!

If you read these quotes and the links given, I'm pretty sure that you will gain an
understanding as well of the Therians, as well as the differences.

Note: All Quotes are from the Authors respectable of each one. Quotes copied from Were.net.

Drake Blackpaw · « **Reply #6 on:** July 14, 2003, 07:48:51 pm »

I would definitely put myself in the furry category.

I would have guessed that their was a difference, but really didn't know much about Therins. The information Jadnar provided helped open my eyes to what some of the differences are.

Drake

Kez Bentley · « **Reply #7 on:** July 14, 2003, 09:06:18 pm »

I am just BARELY furry. Just enough to be on this web board.

Manethran · « **Reply #8 on:** July 14, 2003, 09:23:39 pm »

Well, after reading through the provided material I see something. I am furry and proud of it, but I do have some ties to the Therian beliefs too. I'm just too much Fur to be one of them completely...

Benjamin · « **Reply #9 on:** July 14, 2003, 10:30:42 pm »

I find Jadnar's examples to be more amusing than anything. That's the basic sort of mentality that people from the were community often have. I know some a 'were' or two, and they tend to believe that the beliefs that some of their fellow weres are a bit over the top. Actually, one particular were I know prefers to hang around with furs for basically those reasons.

Oddly enough, therianthrope can't be found in the online dictionary I use, but I did find this tidbit from using Google...

Quote

THERIANTHROPE
A being that is part animal, part human.
The usual meaning of the adjective therianthropic is of a god that is represented as combining animal and human forms. The best known examples are the animal-headed gods of ancient Egypt, such as Bast (with the head of a cat) or Anubis (whose head was that of a jackal). The noun is rarer, but it appeared recently in reports of investigations into ancient cave art. The researchers found that some showed hybrid beings, such as cat-headed humans or men with the heads of antelopes. They argued these are the ancient relatives of such mythical human-animal hybrids as the minotaur (which had a manâ€™s body but a bullâ€™s head), satyr (part human, part goat), and werewolf. In the last of these, the creature exhibits its animal and human aspects serially rather than simultaneously, an extension of the usual definition, though a usage that is common online, and one that has been applied equally to other human-animal transformations. The word combines the Greek therion, wild animal, with anthropos, human being.

From this definition, it would seem like there's hardly any difference between therianthropes and "furries"... and weres included. They're all essentially the same thing.
Really, the main difference just lies in the prevailing attitudes and politics of the various fandoms, but it's really rather unfair to draw such broad generalisations as the weres often do.
The arm example that one were gave was rather pathetic, in my opinion. Yeah, the person has three arms. You can see those. You can feel the arm... or be felt by it. However, with the were community, some have invented a philosophy they call M-shifting (mental shifting), which is either an act of some sort or them displaying their need to be on medication. Ask them to P-shift (physically shift) and they'll give you a blank stare before they make up an excuse every time. They're basically like the pot calling the kettle black when it comes to their criticisms of the furry fandom. That's not all weres though. Just a few that take it to extremes, not unlike the few furs that take furry to extremes.
I'd consider myself a therian amongst furs, but I really have no interest in surrounding myself in weres since some of them are just a bit too whacko and stuck-up for my tastes. I'm not a were, anyways. I am always what I am, with no shifting or such nonsense.

Sorry if my post may seem a bit harsh, but the fandom politics and such are something that gets my blood boiling a fair bit. Too many people make issues out of inconsequential things.

Benjamin

Manethran · « **Reply #10 on:** July 15, 2003, 01:33:04 am »

Very True Benjamin. Tis all a state of mind.

Shiromatsuri · « **Reply #11 on:** July 15, 2003, 11:46:18 am »

I agree with Ben. Furry is a broad term...

I mean, look at anime. Then look at any other sort of cartoon. Honestly, there are only so many ways to draw two-dimensional bodies. It can all be grouped into the term Animation.

Myself? I'm not exactly sure if I'm Therian. I've been told that how I found my fursona through a dream is sorta Therian, so in a sense I guess I am. ^^;;

Kez Bentley · « **Reply #12 on:** July 15, 2003, 03:14:06 pm »

Yes, I have always been fascinated by the therians that actually believe in "p-shifts", as you call them. When you are so deeply rooted in your philosophies that your reasoning defies the laws of nature and biology, then there is probably an underlying mental illness feeding that belief. Never underestimate how far an unstable individual or a person with blind devotion will take something.

grasper · « **Reply #13 on:** July 15, 2003, 03:41:31 pm »

*shrug*
ive never really had an sort of weird experence like that, but i wouldnt put it past me. Im a firm beliver in the idea that a mind is capable of extrodianry things.

zackary_rainheart · « **Reply #14 on:** July 15, 2003, 03:52:05 pm »

HEY!!
I belive P-shifting is possable.. Not sure I've ever done it.. I was told I had but I'm not so sure about that but I'm fairly certain that at one time in hystory it was done and could be again.
I do know that I can arua shift and a few others like dream shifting.

tbear · « **Reply #15 on:** July 15, 2003, 04:59:17 pm »

I'm not sure.I'm living proof that at least for some furs Furry is not something that can be "Given up".I could pretend to,I HAVE pretended to,but try as I might I could not purge the "Furryness" from my mind and soul.
And I have had way too many strange things happen to me to dismiss the idea that my "furryness" isn't a very real part of who I am.I know at the very least that something is watching over me and that something isn't human.
I don't have a phenotype.I just feel a very strong kinship with all things inhuman.This goes for not only real animals,but fantasy creatures and even robots Â and machines ( I have three of those Sony Aibo robot pets that I'm extremely fond of.And I'm an Animist which basically means I have a belief that all things have a spirit including stuffed animals and machines ).It's been that way ever since I was an infant.

grasper · « **Reply #16 on:** July 15, 2003, 05:08:17 pm »

hmmm... intresting

Benjamin · « **Reply #17 on:** July 15, 2003, 06:06:01 pm »

To me, it's like comparing apples and oranges. They're both fruit. Dice 'em up, mix 'em together, and you've got fruit salad. ':p'

Furry is generally a fandom/lifestyle/religion/thingamajig where you get out of it what you put into it, and it's a very, very broad term. As insulting as some of the therians may find it, they're still furry in some way or another.

'>

People like to attach labels to things. It makes it easier to play the whole "us vs. them" game. Sad thing is that it happens in so very, very many facets of life... ':dead:'

Benjamin

GryphonMage · « **Reply #18 on:** July 15, 2003, 08:44:26 pm »

somehow i get the feeling i dont think i'll be saying anything that hasnt already been said twice of more this time around...

furry is simply a generalization, wether it be wolves trapped in human bodies, fellow spiritual shifters, or simply those who follow us because they like the artistic or roleplaying (or yes, even yiffy) side.

also, i consider anything possible, including things going as far as P-shifting though... it has to do with 'the force' though, and if anyone can do it, i'd believe he/she would almost have to come from an upbringing where he/she "knew" magic was real with absolutely no doubt (not very likely...)

as for therians, after reading some of their own rants, lets just say as much as i resemble a therian in beliefs i do not wish to be called one in the least.

i believe tis all a play on terminiolgy and mild "segregation" (cant think of a less harsh word, so this may be an overstatement) if you get right down to it

Kada-Ru · « **Reply #19 on:** July 16, 2003, 08:45:58 am »

"Spike"!!!!

'>

zackary_rainheart · « **Reply #20 on:** July 16, 2003, 03:13:09 pm »

*nods* Ya make a lotta sence GryphonMage.
and your right..totally.

Childamera · « **Reply #21 on:** July 22, 2003, 11:08:59 pm »

tbear is right about furriness not just being something you can force yourself to be interested in or give up, kind of like, 'I like soda. I didn't choose to like soda, I just do.'

Although ppl make it seem like the therians are "the group that takes it seriously" and furries are "the group that RPs and pretends all the time" <sarcasm>, that's not true. They are both legitimate groups that are closer than some ppl want to admit. No one group is a "wannabe" of the other. Furries can be spiritual. Therians can role play. It doesn't matter as long as it's a part of you and makes you happy!! ':cool:'

grasper · « **Reply #22 on:** July 24, 2003, 03:29:15 pm »

i couldnt agree more

Vulpes · « **Reply #23 on:** November 28, 2003, 12:54:44 am »

i have no idea what therian ore lycanthrowhatever mean, could someone give me an explanation. sorry for sounding stoopid.

Ursan · « **Reply #24 on:** November 28, 2003, 02:52:18 am »

I dont believe in p-shifting at all, nothing i know of physics or biology can possibly support the idea. Looking at it even from a laymans perspective (and i've studied biology and physics) where does all the extra mass come from/go to? Where does the necessary energy for such radical changes come from? I'm as open minded as it is possible to be, but I dont take on blind faith something that flys in the face of things I am sure of and trust in completely.

When it gets to the point of fanaticism like any other belief it can be dangerous, and some of the examples sighted above are zealous if not fanatic. M-shifting is a touchy subject too for me, because in the (admittedly few) cases i've read about recently and some of the anecdotes (again few) the individuals come across somewhere between mildly neurotic to plain schizophrenic and do not convince me at all that they are displaying animal behaviours.

Of course these are fairly extreme examples.

Now, what am I...

Well I never chose to be a bear. Not in the sense that I Â had free will in the matter. It was very obvious. Erasing all traces of furriness from my life tomorrow would not change that in the slightest. Do I believe I can change into a bear? No.

So what does that make me?

It fits neither the descriptions of furry or therian cited above.

(feel i need to add that Silver here is a great guy... i dont want to insult him at all and i'm not talking about him in this post).