Place For Plants
Date First Written: December 2013
The therian community is a community for those who identify as nonhuman animals on an integral and personal level. Since the community has been come about there has been a fair bit of back and forth on whether the “therian” label holds to only real-life Earth animals or can include any nonhuman animal real or not. Never the less though, there is no debate that therians specifically focus on what is a nonhuman animal. The otherkin community is a community for those who identify as nonhuman creatures or entities on an integral and personal level. Over the years of the community, and depending on who you ask, the term otherkin can mean any kind of nonhuman identified person or specifically mean only creatures and entities whom never have physically existed on Earth (that are mythical, folkloric, fictional, etc). These are the two largest and active communities online for nonhuman-identified people. There are also some other communities focused around certain groups other then just the therian community such as the draconic/dragonkin community, fictionkin community, and some parts of the mermaid community through they much smaller. So where does this leave phytanthropes, plantkin, greenkin, or however a person who identifies as (non-physically) one or more plants on an integral and personal level cares to label themselves?
In the ‘kin communities there is a significant lack of plant-identified people. Going on to any forum that is some years old, it can be seen that on occasion someone who identified as a plant might have joined at some time; however few, if any, stay for any real period of time. Plus forums might very well have only a few mentions of plant-identified people existing though they are spread years a part from one another. In the communities some people might have heard of a plant-identified person or two over their years, but when you look around their actual participation is often almost non-existent. So rare are plant-identified people, a fair lot of otherkin might even be surprised to hear plant-identified people exist at all having never seen or heard of them before.
Sadly, I can see why as well. In my experience the communities do not seem to know what to do with plant-identified people, or think to include them at times. The experiences of a plantkin mirrors those of therians from what I have seen as far as kinds of experiences, just with a plant in place of an animal. Yet therein lies a lot of differences at times on both sides. Both can experience phantom limbs, have to live with mentalities, reactions, and/or views that are attributed to a nonhuman being, etc. However plants have different physiologies than animals thus any phantom sensation may be very different than any animal-based phantom sensation. Plus the mentality of a plant-identified person might be more geared less toward movement and interaction as much as the mentality of an animal-identified person. So on and so forth.
On both therian and general otherkin forums topics abound on things like dealing with wanting to make sounds of the species, eating habits being effected by kintype or not, thoughts on body modification or just wearing apparel to look more like one’s kintype, and so on which are all interesting topics but might not be applicable to a plant-identified person. At least not in a straightforward sense of the question sometimes. Plus if a plant-identified person make threads over stiff and unmoving phantom limbs and/or alien feelings with moving around sometimes which might be experiences others can not relate too in turn, for two examples. However, there are plenty more topics then that which come up in any forums which a plant-identified person could add their experiences and/or thoughts or lack of other experiences to the conversation.
With therians and plantkin, they both share the experience of their species being real life organisms. Both kinds can go out and obsessive their species either in real life or on video, find pictures to compare their experiences and body image with, and other experiences with having a physically real (or once real) kintype. Plus with a number of otherkin overall there are experiences dealing with body dysphoria, phantom limbs, and so much more. These experiences, among others, are much more universal across various kinds of otherkin.
The awkward position plant-identified people can be in is made worse label-wise by those who distinguish between otherkin being mythical and fictional creatures while therians are Earth animals only. As this leaves plantkin completely out of the equation. This dichotomy doesn’t work when considering them. Plants are not animals. They are of two completely different classifications of biological kingdoms. Plants are of the Kingdom Plantae, while animals are of the Kingdom Animalia. The ‘therian’ in therianthropy means ‘animal’ (while the ‘anthrop’ means ’human’) and hence therianthropes are people who identify with animals. Plants can not be in that equation at all. So, they can’t be “plant therians.” And for those who label otherkin as anything non-physically real, well plants are certainly very real. So with people who define otherkin that way, plant-identified people can’t be otherkin. But not all people define otherkin that way and rather define it as an umbrella term for all sorts groups, and under that definition plant-identified people can fit along with all the others in a massive group of anyone who identifies as nonhuman in a human body.
In the end, being someone who identifies as a plant can end up having a fair bit of confusion and even lack of inclusion in the overall otherkin community, in my opinion. From there being so few of us to add plantkin specific impute for others to sometimes a lack of consideration when people state things within the community to people being surprised or skeptical at the idea of their being plantkin. Plantkin do belong in the otherkin community, even if sometimes it takes a bit find or create inclusion. Though rare, plantkin are still people who do not identify as human, despite what the physical body might say, which is what the otherkin community is all about though some experiences vary greatly from some people to others.
- Darahagh
The therian community is a community for those who identify as nonhuman animals on an integral and personal level. Since the community has been come about there has been a fair bit of back and forth on whether the “therian” label holds to only real-life Earth animals or can include any nonhuman animal real or not. Never the less though, there is no debate that therians specifically focus on what is a nonhuman animal. The otherkin community is a community for those who identify as nonhuman creatures or entities on an integral and personal level. Over the years of the community, and depending on who you ask, the term otherkin can mean any kind of nonhuman identified person or specifically mean only creatures and entities whom never have physically existed on Earth (that are mythical, folkloric, fictional, etc). These are the two largest and active communities online for nonhuman-identified people. There are also some other communities focused around certain groups other then just the therian community such as the draconic/dragonkin community, fictionkin community, and some parts of the mermaid community through they much smaller. So where does this leave phytanthropes, plantkin, greenkin, or however a person who identifies as (non-physically) one or more plants on an integral and personal level cares to label themselves?
In the ‘kin communities there is a significant lack of plant-identified people. Going on to any forum that is some years old, it can be seen that on occasion someone who identified as a plant might have joined at some time; however few, if any, stay for any real period of time. Plus forums might very well have only a few mentions of plant-identified people existing though they are spread years a part from one another. In the communities some people might have heard of a plant-identified person or two over their years, but when you look around their actual participation is often almost non-existent. So rare are plant-identified people, a fair lot of otherkin might even be surprised to hear plant-identified people exist at all having never seen or heard of them before.
Sadly, I can see why as well. In my experience the communities do not seem to know what to do with plant-identified people, or think to include them at times. The experiences of a plantkin mirrors those of therians from what I have seen as far as kinds of experiences, just with a plant in place of an animal. Yet therein lies a lot of differences at times on both sides. Both can experience phantom limbs, have to live with mentalities, reactions, and/or views that are attributed to a nonhuman being, etc. However plants have different physiologies than animals thus any phantom sensation may be very different than any animal-based phantom sensation. Plus the mentality of a plant-identified person might be more geared less toward movement and interaction as much as the mentality of an animal-identified person. So on and so forth.
On both therian and general otherkin forums topics abound on things like dealing with wanting to make sounds of the species, eating habits being effected by kintype or not, thoughts on body modification or just wearing apparel to look more like one’s kintype, and so on which are all interesting topics but might not be applicable to a plant-identified person. At least not in a straightforward sense of the question sometimes. Plus if a plant-identified person make threads over stiff and unmoving phantom limbs and/or alien feelings with moving around sometimes which might be experiences others can not relate too in turn, for two examples. However, there are plenty more topics then that which come up in any forums which a plant-identified person could add their experiences and/or thoughts or lack of other experiences to the conversation.
With therians and plantkin, they both share the experience of their species being real life organisms. Both kinds can go out and obsessive their species either in real life or on video, find pictures to compare their experiences and body image with, and other experiences with having a physically real (or once real) kintype. Plus with a number of otherkin overall there are experiences dealing with body dysphoria, phantom limbs, and so much more. These experiences, among others, are much more universal across various kinds of otherkin.
The awkward position plant-identified people can be in is made worse label-wise by those who distinguish between otherkin being mythical and fictional creatures while therians are Earth animals only. As this leaves plantkin completely out of the equation. This dichotomy doesn’t work when considering them. Plants are not animals. They are of two completely different classifications of biological kingdoms. Plants are of the Kingdom Plantae, while animals are of the Kingdom Animalia. The ‘therian’ in therianthropy means ‘animal’ (while the ‘anthrop’ means ’human’) and hence therianthropes are people who identify with animals. Plants can not be in that equation at all. So, they can’t be “plant therians.” And for those who label otherkin as anything non-physically real, well plants are certainly very real. So with people who define otherkin that way, plant-identified people can’t be otherkin. But not all people define otherkin that way and rather define it as an umbrella term for all sorts groups, and under that definition plant-identified people can fit along with all the others in a massive group of anyone who identifies as nonhuman in a human body.
In the end, being someone who identifies as a plant can end up having a fair bit of confusion and even lack of inclusion in the overall otherkin community, in my opinion. From there being so few of us to add plantkin specific impute for others to sometimes a lack of consideration when people state things within the community to people being surprised or skeptical at the idea of their being plantkin. Plantkin do belong in the otherkin community, even if sometimes it takes a bit find or create inclusion. Though rare, plantkin are still people who do not identify as human, despite what the physical body might say, which is what the otherkin community is all about though some experiences vary greatly from some people to others.
- Darahagh