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Furry

(Redirected from Headfur)
Fox versions of Robin Hood and Maid Marian, from the Walt Disney Robin Hood, a major example of the predominant character design style of Furry art

Furry is a colloquial term that indicates a particular type of fictional anthropomorphic animals. Put simply, a furry is a funny animal taken "seriously" for the benefit of an older audience.

The term "furry" is also used to refer to a furry fan. Usage of the term "furry" is limited almost exclusively to members of furry fandom or other groups aware of furry fandom; it is not widely used in the mainstream.

Furry subculture has become much more popular with the advent of the internet. Furry content (visual art, stories, music, and games) on the internet is sometimes sexualized, being a source of criticism against the furry community.

Table of contents

Inspirational Sources

Furry is a fandom centered around anthropomorphized animals. It includes characters from popular novels, films, comic strips, and stories but also encompasses original creations generated by furry fans.

Since the 1980s, furry fandom has focused on animal characters from cartoons (e.g. Roger Rabbit, Bugs Bunny, and Mickey Mouse), animated feature films (e.g. Disney's Robin Hood), TV shows (e.g. Father of the Pride), comics (e.g. Usagi Yojimbo, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Omaha the Cat Dancer), novels (e.g. Richard Adams' Watership Down, Andre Norton's Breed to Come, Brian Jacques' Redwall series, Steven Boyett's The Architect of Sleep, S. Andrew Swann's Moreau Series), games (e.g. RuneQuest, EverQuest, the Sonic the Hedgehog series, graphic novels (e.g. Maus), as well as some short stories and films. Each has been cited as a source of inspiration by those who create works within the furry fandom. They are also the inspirational source of the online personas (or fursonas) that furry fans adopt, the characters they play in furry-themed Computer role-playing games, mostly MUCKs, as well as fursuits, the animal costumes that furry fans are known for.

Although many of the non-furry creators of such material are aware that some of their audience consists of furry fans, the official term used by cartoonists to describe anthropomorphic animals is "funny animal," regardless of whether the animals are funny or not. As well, in many video games from Japan, anthropomorphic animal characters are actually kemono, an independent genre with different cultural associations.

There are dozens of web comics based on furry characters, such as Newshounds, Boomer Express, Suburban Jungle, and Kevin and Kell. Many are created by furry fans and, as such, are referred to as "furry comics". "Kevin & Kell", by contrast, was created by non-furry illustrator and cartoonist, Bill Holbrook.

Slang & Terminology

Furry slang is uniquely recognizable to anyone familiar with the fandom although elements of it have been adopted from or crept into the larger SF Fandom.

The terms "morph" or "anthro" (both contractions of anthropomorph) are also used for furries. The name of the animal the furry is based on is often prepended (e.g. rabbitmorph or lionmorph) to provide a more specific description. Morphic rabbit or morphic lion are other ways to describe such creatures. They can also be referred to with anthro preceding the name of the animal, as in anthro rabbit.

The base animal is not necessarily limited only to those animals with fur: sometimes terms such as "scaley" and "feathery" or "avie" are also used when dealing with animals possessed of the corresponding skin (or plumage) type.

Some terms used by people in the furry fandom include:

  • Avie (n.) – Same meaning as Feathery.
  • Babyfur (n.) – A furry who is also an infantilist and/or involved in one or more of the variations of infantilism.
  • Feathery (n.) – A furry character with feathers (for example, a gryphon).
  • Fursona (n.) – A furry fan's "furry persona" or personal "avatar" that they feel most closely represents themselves.
  • Fursuit (n.) – A furry costume.
  • Furvert (n. – derogatory) – Someone who is into the sexual aspects of the fandom.
  • Footpaw (n.) – A furry's foot.
  • Greymuzzles (n.) – Older furries; often seen as those over 30 or individuals who have been in the fandom since the 1980s.
  • Handpaw (n.) – A furry's hand.
  • Headfur (n.) – Fur on top of the head that grows as human hair does, and may be styled similarly.
  • Hyperfur (n.) – A furry with disproporionately large sexual characteristics.
  • Macrofur (n.) – A very large furry character; a giant (similar to "King Kong"). (See also: "Macrophilia").
  • Microfur (n.) – A very small furry character; often mouse-sized or smaller (like a Lilliputian). Also "tinyfur." (See also: "Microphilia").
  • Otherkin (n.) Associated group, but not furry, typically seeing fey or mythological features as part of their identity.
  • Scaly (n.) – A reptile character (for example, a dragon).
  • Scritch (v.) – Gentle scratching, usually on the head or shoulders as with a pet dog or cat.
  • Shifter (n.) – Someone who changes the species of their fursona frequently.
  • Vore (n.) – A person who is also a vorarephile and/or an endosomatophile. Also used by non-furries.
  • Were (n.) – a subgrouping for human/fur shapechangers.
  • Whelpday (n.) – A furry's birthday. (Sometimes, "Yerfday").
  • Yiff (n. and v.) – A synonym for "sex", "sexy", "aroused" and so on. Also a verb meaning "to engage in sex."

Furry fandom

Main article: furry fandom.

Much furry interest centers on artistic representations, often cartoon-like, of furry creatures; Yerf and the VCL are two online repositories of such furry art. Amateur and professional artists ply their wares online, by mail order, and at furry fandom conventions. In 2003, Anthrocon's art show tallied sales of almost $50,000, about 25% of which was for erotic or pornographic images. Further Confusion's art show in 2003 and 2004 exceeded $60,000 in sales, with one piece going for $10,000 in the 2004 auction.

Comics creator Steve Gallacci is believed by some to have popularized this usage of "furry" through his association with some science fiction and comics conventions and the small-press "funny animals" APAzine Rowrbrazzle.

Charitable works are a tradition in furry fandom; many conventions feature an auction or fundraising event with the proceeds often going to an animal-related charity. Since 1997, furry fans have raised more than $100,000 for various animal-related charities.

Some members of the furry community see furry animals not simply as art or fiction, but as representations of their true selves; these are often called "furry lifestylers" to distinguish them from "furry fans".

Many furries (term commonly used to describe members of the furry community) have a character (furry) of their own in which they use to represent themselves in a fictional environment and for some a realistic environment. Generally this is referred to as roleplaying, and the character as a fursona or avatar. Many will use these characters as images of themselves for others to view them as.

A more common way to look at it would be popular video or role-playing games in which people can design their own character. People see these characters and interact with them as if they were the real person, and generally the person behind the character acting as if they are the character. In the end the character is used to represent themselves to others.

Sexuality

Some furry art and stories are erotic or pornographic; some furries incorporate their furry identity into their sexuality while some others bring their sexuality into their expression as a furry. There are discussion forums, online communities, and internet art galleries devoted to erotic furry artwork and stories.

Criticisms often focus on the quantity and easy accessibility of sexual content; some view the fandom as a fetish. Other members of the furry community do not feel that their "furriness" is related to their sexuality and are uninterested in sexualized furry works.

Online furries sometimes engage in cybersex (or "online yiff"). The popularity of yiffing is demonstrated by the existence of Tapestries, an adults-only MUCK game with the theme of furry sex. Of those who are interested in the non-sexual aspect of furries, some feel that those who incorporate a sexual aspect make a bad impression on the furry fandom. As with many creative interests there are usually those who enjoy a sexual representation, as in Star Trek fandom, manga, or anime.

It has been demonstrated that mainstream media reports over-represent the sexual element at the expense of accuracy. For example, an episode of the popular TV show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation ("Fur And Loathing") featured the murder of a "fursuiter" fetishist and is generally regarded as being ill-researched. As a result, the show has suffered significant criticism by furries throughout the fandom. Other reports in Vanity Fair, MTV's Sex2k, and various newspaper accounts suffer similar disproportionate focus on sensationalistic sexual descriptions of furry behavior.

Conflicts

Some people view the furry community with contempt. This is highlighted in Lore Sjöberg's Geek Hierarchy. The popular website Something Awful (in particular, the Something Awful forums), Portal of Evil, and a portion of the furry community have been critical of the furry fandom for a long time, just do it because it's "fun" (for them, at least) to do so. Like a puppy that misbehaves, doing something bad and getting a reaction gives them attention they want. Other sites, like Crush Yiff Destroy, cater to disgruntled furry fans who spread misinformation as a way to "get back" at the fandom for whatever reason. Trolling furries was (and continues to some extent to be) popular amongst these groups.

However, many people, including a significant number in the previously mentioned groups, now believe that furry-related humor is played out. In 2003, R. K. Milholland, author of the webcomic Something Positive, expressed his annoyance with the flamewars between furries and their detractors. This was followed up in 2004 with Brad Hicks' essay, "Lay Off The Furries, Okay?", in which he stated that anti-furry humor is hackneyed.

In-fighting in the furry community has also occurred regarding the presence of extreme fetishes and pornography in the fandom. The group Burned Fur was formed to protest this kind of material and led to a number of volatile conflicts and the formation of a counter-group called Freezing Furs. The Burned Fur group is now defunct.

See also

External links








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