Porn-sonas
by Reindeer Roger

Part 4 - New Discourses
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Most of the appeal of creating/using a porn-sona, and its transformative potential, is the product of the freedom and autonomy of the Internet meeting the freedom and autonomy of art . . . with both of these, in this case, used in the service of sexuality. It is natural that sexuality, being one of the most heavily regulated and restrained aspects of our existence, tends to become a major aspect to any exercise of freedom. Despite all of these origins in freedom and autonomy, however, it is difficult to disambiguate the extent to which furry porn is sexually, personally, or literally freeing. But occasionally, sexual expression is so wholly and intrinsically satisfying in itself that it embodies a freedom of its own, making other considerations seem secondary, less immediate or important. Given the large number of sexually and socially marginalized people the furry fandom draws, I believe that this has to add to the motivation, and pleasure taken in, creating and consuming furry porn on such a large scale.

Much like a fursona becomes the idealized projection of oneself on the Internet, with only self-imposed limitations regarding any responsibility for it to be similar to oneself, the use of a fursona is an exploration of the freedom and potentiality enabled by creating an artistic representation of oneself. It allows us to reimagine ourselves, the world, or reality, through variation, invention, or omission.

Seeing as porn-sonas are generally created by, and placed in situations only according to the creator's consent or permission, the extent of sexual exploration the character does is limited only by the permissiveness of the creator, and not by social, legal, or other RL circumstances.

This transformation and projection, from oneself to an Internet representation of oneself, creates new possibilities for interaction, and it allows us to affect the circumstances of this interaction through self-creation and engaging with the self-creations of others.
This refracted/projected/constructed/chosen relationship dynamic creates new discourses through which we can engage with others, or explore sexuality within.

Firstly, the way we interact with others on the Internet is itself a distinct system of communication from reality. But as a platform, it also enables understandings of self and the nature/logistics of communication to be complicated . . . such as through the creation of distinct personas, the differences in the way we would present ourselves or behave on a blog that generates content than on an account we use to favourite porn, the differences in personality employed on a public website versus in private communication.

Further than that, a furry porn artist engages with others on multiple levels, for example as the creator of their artwork, through the personality/character of their art style, and through the personalities of their characters.

But there are a multitude of possibilities for discourse created at the intersection of self-representation on the Internet and illustration, in the ways characters are designed, drawn, and used. Specific to the furry fandom, there are discourses that occur in the creation of images, scenes, stories, comics, character references, comments, and descriptions. Generated within these discourses is the sexual imagination particular to furry porn. This is the level on which much of furry culture transpires, if the proliferation of furry porn, word count of character descriptions, population of sexual fursonas, and volume of comments are any indication.

With the investment of time, and talent needed to create the illustrations that form this aspect of the culture, a certain level of thought, the curation of creation occurs. A drawn event, character, or situation is both non-canon, and more formal/real on Fur Affinity than ordinary discussions or descriptions of the same things/topics/ideas. After a character is invented, there is a strong desire, probably from witnessing Fur Affinity's visual furry art/porn discourse in operation, to draw it, or have it drawn.

Multiple discourses can operate in the act of posting furry porn or sexualized drawings of a character simultaneously. Posting a drawing of a character is, within this discourse, a way of advertising/sharing a character, soliciting reactions evaluating its merits, making it more real/defined/known. There are sexually oriented motives specific to furry porn. Posting a character, and soliciting a response to it, helps verify its attractiveness, compellingness, and interest, in regards to its design, the way it is drawn, and the situation it is presented in. This can be a personally driven motivation towards creation, or a socially driven motive for expression and recognition, but generally is a combination. Likewise, an artists' aspirations in conveying a character and creating a work may vary immensely, and often only aspire to the attractiveness of the work itself. (Which to a commissioner, can have the descriptive effect of having a finely made portrait.) The appreciation of a viewer is not necessarily related to these artistic, or character-driven discourses at all. But their appreciation/evaluation is a part of the discourse nonetheless, being what is solicited by the artist and contributors. As reading any comment list under a drawing posted on Fur Affinity will reveal, people react to it on a variety of levels.

It is worth noticing that the creation of a character, and the role of the commissioner in deciding what they want to have drawn, are important factors in determining whether an image will bring a desired reaction. Commenters are drawn to situations, themes, characters, that are interesting, appealing, and compelling, which are all attributes that are difficult to attain without thoughtfulness, creativity, or sometimes a personal compellingness or sense of style. (Though the artist is also a deciding factor in whether these qualities are brought out.) It is telling that, within the fandom, many commissioners, and characters, are as well known and followed/favourited as artists are. These artistic/ representational/ social discourses, as well as sexual ones, are the ones the construction and use of a porn-sona operate within.

Even when characters designed for use in furry porn have not been designated as specifically being personal representations, however, they are connected to their creators in a way similar to how a fursona would be. First of all, the process of the character's construction is likely to reflect the creator's interests, values, personality, and style. But we also see their attachment to their characters affecting which ones are drawn more frequently, and artists will often acknowledge that they feel connections to them. Another easy conclusion is that the characters an artist produces will have a strong relationship to their own desires, experiences, worldview, and psychology. Especially since, apart from commissions, art within the furry fandom is rarely drawn for profit, and in many cases these personal connections are the sole motivating factors contributing to their character designs.

The discourse I'm referring to then is one that includes both characters in furry porn that are explicitly the fursonas of their creators (with whatever relationship to themselves this word means to them), and the characters that occupy furry porn generally. The motivation to draw furry porn, and which determine its content, form, and style, are ultimately the product of the psychology/ experiences/ desires of the participants. There is a satisfaction not only to witnessing the acts depicted, but to the details, manner of drawing, and the choices made in drawing it.

The creation and use of porn-sonas is a way of participating in and encoding a visual language, participating in the discourses of porn-sonas and furry porn. It has the intentional or unintentional consequence of communicating personal beliefs, worldviews, experiences, desires, personality etc., though in variable combinations, and with an unresolved attachment to the artist/contributors. And this discourse is what motivates, flavours, lends interest to, evaluates, and gives meaning to furry porn. In this discourse, pleasure is found in the way positions, and characters are designed or rendered, and in the decisions made regarding anthropomorphization. It is this discourse that allows furry porn to be understood as furry porn in the first place, and in terms that are autonomous and predominantly self-referential in nature. It is the product, language, and consequence of the online platforms in which furry porn is presented, and the basis of furry porn aesthetics and communities. It enables and is the personal connections between artists, viewers, commissioners, furries, and their art. And this relationship finds its manifestation in the porn-sona, the way it is designed, manoeuvred, drawn, described, desired, and responded to.

Understanding the porn-sona, its meaning and purpose, is a way of understanding the significance and meaning of sexuality to the fandom, and many of the individuals within it. Perhaps due to the relative extents of personal and sexual freedom within the fandom versus outside it, however, these sexual elements of the fandom, and the investment of furries towards it, is something that is frequently downplayed those times the fandom is described, discussed, or represented.

I think there is a lot of potential for self-discovery, self-transformation, communication, healing, solace, and pleasure within this process of identification, world-building, and expression. It is something furries should find more pride and pleasure in, as it represents much of the attraction and potential the fandom offers participants. Likewise, I think furries should advertise, think about, and share their interest in furry porn with others, more, where possible. There is more potential to communicate our attraction to and relationship with furry porn, to share wisdom, orgasms, and become closer to one-another. (Well, perhaps this is an unlikely possibility, but perhaps privately, personally observing this loveliness is in order.)