Wiscon panel: From Sherlock to Sheldon: Asexuality and Asexual Characters in SF/F

[firecat]

From Sherlock to Sheldon: Asexuality and Asexual Characters in SF/F

Comments

[kate_nepveu]

Thanks.

I wonder if anyone has done a recs list for _Sherlock_ asexuality stories.

[firecat]

This might be a good place to start looking
http://asexual-fandom.dreamwidth.org/

And there is a list of Sherlock communities here:
http://studyinsherlock.livejournal.com/profile

[cakmpls]

Very interesting. Thanks for the write-up!

I'm not at all certain that Sheldon is asexual. He is obviously quite touch-phobic, and he appears oblivious (in at least two episodes) to come-ons from women interested in one-night stands. But neither of those is the same as being asexual, is it? He finds the idea of himself "engaging in coitus" laughable, but if he could do so entirely without touching another human ... ?

[firecat]

I haven't seen BBT myself but there was some discussion of the nuances of Sheldon's sexuality or lack thereof at the panel that I didn't record.

[oracne]

Thanks for the writeup! Sounds like a really intriguing panel.

[apostle_of_eris]

Glad someone mentioned Asimov. His stories are notoriously sexless. I don't recall asexual characters in particular, but his plotting was rigorously asexual.

[firecat]

Most of it. What wasn't, IMO, was pretty bad.

[bookblather]

I'm here from asexual_fandom on DW, and I wanted to agree with this comment. I'm an activist in other areas of life as well (mostly against sexism and ableism), but I never quite connected the "patriarchy/sanity privileging hurts men/neurotypical people too" to "asexual erasure hurts sexual people too." This idea that if asexual people get more exposure as the variety of people that we are, people who are sexual and are generally perceived as asexual have more freedom-- I think I need to think about it more, but I like it on first glance.

[firecat]

Thanks for letting me know it's linked there. I should have linked it there myself, since I watch that community, but I forgot.

I think that the more real diversity/variety is shown, the more people benefit in general.