what is fictosexuality, this attraction to fictional characters?

Who has never had a crush on a fictional character? This attraction to individuals who do not exist has a name: fictosexuality. We explain everything about this sexual orientation more and more discussed on the internet.

We have all once had a crush on a fictional character: in a book, a film … Not to mention the regular infatuation around cult franchises, which only reinforce the fascination for certain characters. The saga Twilight is the perfect example: were you team Edward or team Jacob? Today, memes and gifs accentuate the fantasies around certain heroes. The proof: impossible to miss the hype around the Duke of Hasting, played by actor Regé-Jean Page in The Bridgertons Chronicle, on Netflix. But if the diversions around small screen BGs make us laugh, the attraction to fictional characters is indeed real among fictosexuals. On discussion forums, we observe that they take fictitious relationships very seriously … We explain everything about this sexual attraction which those concerned are particularly active on the Web.

What is fictosexuality?

"Fictosexuality is a sexual attraction to fictional characters", summarizes Tanja Välisalo, researcher at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, and co-author of the study Fictosexuality, Fictoromance, and Fictophilia: A Study of Love and Desire for Fictional Characters, published in January 2021. She continues: "The object of desire can be a character from a book, comic book, television, cinema, games, etc. Fictosexuality does not necessarily exclude other forms of sexuality or attraction to real people." Indeed, according to the LGBTA Wiki page, fictosexual people can sometimes also be attracted to video game characters: they are gamosexuals. There are also cartosexuals, for those who are attracted to cartoon and / or comic book characters. Finally, there are novelosexuals who, they themselves, have a penchant for characters from novels.

The relationship between pop culture and spectator.rice.s

Strange inclinations? Not that much. Because moviegoers or not, series fans or not, pop culture is an integral part of our daily lives, and undoubtedly, the cult of celebrity is anchored in collective thought. The term "celebrity workship", studied by Lynn E McCutcheon, Rense Lange and James Houran, in 2002, for the British Journal of Psychology, is defined in three stages: "social entertainment" https://www.aufeminin.com/ ", "intense personal" and "borderline-pathological." : "The first stage reflects the sharing of experiences (learning about celebrities and discussing them with friends), the second stage brings together intense or compulsive feelings (frequent emotions and thoughts), and the third stage refers to a viral obsession. erotomania (risky behavior) ", can we read.

Fictosexuality is nothing new

While celebrity worship can turn out to be pathological, not sure the same can be said for fictosexuality. Tanja Välisalo reminds aufeminin that this term, "celibrity workship", has become so common today that it "is used to bring up discussions around the relationship between elements of pop culture and fans". Moreover, fictosexuality is nothing new: "What is new is the term itself and how people can meet on the internet to discuss their fictional experience and understand its meaning, debate it and embed it into their identities." But should we be worried about such a buzz around our favorite characters?

Fictosexuality, an embarrassing attraction

On forums and online discussion spaces, we notice that some people worry about being stigmatized. First of all, they are afraid of this negative image of the fan. "hysterical, obsessive and dangerous teenager", confirms us Tanja Välisalo, who analyzed online discussions between fictitious people."Then, for adults in particular, fictosexuality is often considered immature, something acceptable to adolescents, but not to them.", she adds.

Others are even concerned about their mental health: “Discussions about fictophilia and fictosexuality are usually started by people who have a deep love, desire or attachment for a fictional character and who often wonder if this is 'normal' or 'healthy' https: //www.aufeminin.com/ ", reads in the study co-authored by Tanja Välisalo, in collaboration with Veli-Matti Karhulahti. Yet their research shows that, for now "Fictophilia and fictosexuality have not been subjected to a specific health diagnosis by the World Health Organization or the American Psychiatric Association."

There is a fear of being stigmatized, of not being 'normal'

However, some deplore the fact that it is associated with a simple "kink", a purely sexual tropism. "It is not necessarily a fantasy, but the perception that the person in question has of love (whether it involves sex for a fictosexual, or not for a fictoromantic) ", defends, for example, an Internet user on the miss.

It is still difficult to talk about fictosexuality outside of discussion forums. This is why the work of Tanja Välisalo, focused solely on the Western public, seeks to highlight the debates between fictosexual people, the main ones concerned by the subject, rather than providing an outside perspective. Fortunately, fictitious people find solace and benevolent support on the Web by chatting with real people who, like them, have a relationship with fictional characters.

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https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.575427/full

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https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11522051_Conceptualization_and_measurement_of_celebrity_worship