Why Film & TV Erased Asexuality
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- čas přidán 2. 07. 2021
- This script was written by Anya Formozova. You can see more of her work here: / cue22
The saying goes that sex sells - so how do you market characters who aren't driven by sexual attraction? Asexuals have long been ignored by movies and TV, and while they have gained some onscreen representation in recent years, modern cinema still lacks proper conversations about non-sexual connection.
So a discussion of asexual representation opens up a broader conversation - why does everything have to be about sex, anyway? It's limiting to make a sexual relationship the only thing characters seek or need to be fulfilled, and surely there are better ways represent asexuality on screen. Here’s our take on Asexuals in media, and why it's important to recognize that romance and sex are just a part of how we connect.
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"Being gaslit by the entire world." Yeah, that's pretty much how it feels.
Elsa wasn’t erased by film, she was erased by fans that wanted her to be Lesbian instead.
The "married to work" asexual trope is hurting too. It is often portrait as the only acceptable way for aces. It's ok not to "love" someone, if you make a career. As if living is only about procreation and productivity.
There is love with sex. There is sex without love. Why is it so difficult to understand that there's love without sex too?
What's sad is that the story trope of “I thought I was asexual but then I met the right person” COULD be treated as a story of a demisexual person finding themself, but screenwriters always seem to frame the message as “asexuals are just wrong or confused and we're going to prove it!!” 🙄
This was well done, but I wish they had clarified that asexuality is about lack of sexual attraction, not lack of sexual activity.
Big Bang Theory made me so angry, his friends and girlfriend basically bullied and coerced Sheldon into sex. He literally had a panic attack on screen when his girlfriend was about to break up with him due to not wanting to have sex and so he just ended up “going with it” for her sake. How is that okay or romantic when he didn’t want it..?
As an asexual, what bothers me the most about people thinking aceness a biological "mistake" is that nature doesn't make "mistakes", it just is. We should only qualify natural variability as an issue (and try to treat it) when it results in pain or discomfort to the person, which isn't the case for most asexuals, so everyone arguing against it is just wasting their breath. Go focus on real issues, like cancer, or depression.
"Sexuality is fluid. Sex doesn't make us whole, so how could you ever be broken?" My absolute favourite quote from "Sex Education", which really acknowledges the struggle by Asexuals to be depicted in the media! 🖤🤍💜
I think Todd from Bojack Horseman is the best representation of asexuality I've seen so far. For a show about such a messed up person in Bojack, they handled asexuality with respectful humor and compassion.
You know what sucks? When NO ONE accepts you. Straight people think you're broken, LGBT people say you don't belong with them and aren't oppressed, and everyone refuses to accept that you just don't feel what they feel. You aren't a prude, you aren't afraid of sex, you don't have a sexual disorder, you just don't feel sexual attraction.
There's also the attitude that sex fixes your attitude. "Someone needs to get laid." It's really bad to hear as an asexual.
“You guys have no right to make someone’s sexuality or lack of sexuality a disability.”
Screenwriters having to write a motivation for a character that doesn’t revolve around romance or sex? Sounds like a lazy screenwriter
My parents when I was a kid: NO boys! NO dating!
I like Bojack Horseman's representation better than Sex Education's because Todd is a full character with flaws and humour and not just a small reoccurring character
I sincerely hope Elsa remains ace/aro (or single). I started to realize my own lack of interest in non-platonic relationships when people were pushing to give Elsa a lover. I was so happy and relieved when she made it through the second movie without a boyfriend or girlfriend. Her apparent asexuality is a big part of why she’s so dear to me as a character
The thing about fans actively erasing canonically asexual characters immediately reminded me of Alastor from Hazbin Hotel (who is asexual
Isaac Newton lived to be 86. Near the end of his life he said that one of his greatest achievements was... Dying a virgin.
It's funny, when I had a crush on my current boyfriend, I knew I was asexual, but I was willing to "give it a try" to make him happy. Turns out, while he doesn't really see himself as queer in any way, he's admitted that he's never really been into intimacy.