Hiya! Before I go into this topic and my theory, I’ll define misanthropy for anyone who dosent know. It’s important to note that misanthropy is NOT an alterhuman identity or even close, you can be a misanthrope without being alterhuman and vice versa. I have seen topics of human nature and modern morals been discussed on TG, but not with specific references to misanthropy, hence this post. If I am, however, copy posting by accident please lmk!

Misanthropy (misanthrope, misanthropic etc.) “hatred, dislike or distrust of humankind” usually morally or psychologically. “The systematic condemnation of the moral character of humankind as it has come to be” generally speaking, it’s a hatred of modern humanity or morals, not just towards animals but in general, this debate can sometimes encase politics, but it’s not relevant to this discussion nor is it allowed on the forums so no discussion regarding politics in misanthropy please! Pretty much any other relevant topic or discussion regarding it (misanthropy) goes tho!

So, with that in mind, why do I think that misanthropy may drive therianthropy?

Well, firstly as I have learned from talking to a lot of members of the TG forums, a lot of us (me included) feel like we don’t ’fit In’ or conform to modern human standards, such as the possession of social media, or mainstream ideas. Therians are, as far as I’ve seen from here, a very diverse bunch of critters who oftentimes aren’t considered ‘normal’. A lot of u guys have mentioned not liking humanity, or technology also. And so we return to misanthropy. I consider myself a misanthrope. I have a great distaste for human morals or understanding, and don’t agree with a lot of common human principles. Some examples of this could be my disagreement with human treatments of technology or their assumptions of a lack of conscious in other creatures, and therefore their brutalistic ideas of “if it dosent think it dosent care if we kill it”, I see this a lot with treatment towards wild animals, especially bugs or other ‘pests’. Personally, I disagree with the idea or principle of humans being above any other living creature, and greatly resent human arrogance and naïveté of the natural order. This thoughts could be because of my autism or trauma, However, I do think it aided my therianthropy. And here’s my theory! I am a misanthrope due to trauma and just how I perceive the world, in a similar way to how animalistic tendencies may drive therianthropy to develop. I think that the prevalence of misanthropy in ppl may make therianthropy more likely to develop as a hatred or dislike of humanity usually has to drive them towards some OTHER moral standing. For many, this is that of animals or nature. This could in turn spark behaviours and develop or awaken therianthropy already present in individuals, or present in other identities such as otherhearted, as one draws further from liking humanity usually morals it understand and relate to and kinship with creatures outside of human standards. For me, as a younger kid my lack of understanding of humanity drove me to be closer to animals, heightening previous behaviours and identities within me. That is NOT to say that misanthropy cause’s therianthropy, or that the 2 necessary correlate at all, just that I think that a hatred of humanity makes someone more likely or present animal behaviours or identities through relation. Furthermore, would this be counted as copinglink since the misanthropy stems often from trauma or other issues?

Just to clarify, there are many reasons why I , or anyone else for that matter, am a Therian. My distaste for humans may have helped behaviours develop but it is not the ROOT CAUSE of my therianthropy. Honestly at the end of the day, I’m just curious to see whether others think misanthropy drives to animality and therefore alterhumans in any aspect? Is anyone else here a misanthrope and how has it shaped you? How does this affect spiritual theirans?

TLDR: me hating humans may have helped me to display or discover or develop therianthropy via alienation from human morals. I’m wondering if this is the case for anyone else.

(Should this belong in another forum?)

I do apologise if my wording or word order seems weird or clunky, I struggle to put these things into words. I’ll develop this more in another post if it gathers interest/ if I have time around exams.

Thanks for reading!
Cya,
Rain

This is a wonderful thread! It has great information but also speaks to the level of care for the safety of us.

I think to some extent, it is an aesthetic at the moment. I recently got together with an old friend, whom I have known since elementary school (we're both in our 30's now), and she really surprised me when she said her kid was in to therian stuff. I was like "whoa, you know what therians are!?" I didn't mention anything about being one, or my experiences in the community, but instead asked what animal her daughter was. I was initially thinking and expecting the community to be more like how it was when I first found it. She replied that her daughter was just really into wearing tails and making masks. So maybe her daughter is a therian, maybe she isn't, it doesn't really matter. However, it's mainstream enough now that my friend is aware of the community.

the amount of misinformation on tiktok is honestly putting actually newly awakened therian to shame. I don't think quads or gear are very linked to it, and I honestly think that its less of a problem than some people act like it is, but its still really upsetting.

I used to be obsessed with a youtuber by the name of Wolf Girl. She claims to have spells that allow Shapeshifting. I was utterly dissapointed when I found out, none of them even work.

It is an intriguing theory, though psychology based theories always tend to be hard to prove - if they can even be proved at all.

A primary ingredient of that recipe being dissociation makes sense. But I might even suggest that this includes disassociation. To sum it up briefly: dissociation is involuntary, whereas disassociation is voluntary. But they can in some cases result in similar symptoms. At the core of both concepts though is that disconnection from someone, something, oneself, or the world. Though a child may not necessarily be dissociative because they have not experienced a form of early stress or trauma, they may choose to disassociate depending on the circumstances.

As a rough example: a child who can't seem to find any other classmates who have the same interests as them might then choose to disassociate themselves from their classmates. They may feel disconnected from the concept of friends because of these circumstances, and that disassociation can then potentially lead to a connection with therianthropy. From what I can see, humans don't tend to function very well when completely disconnected. They need to be connected to something, someone, a concept, a goal, a philosophy, anything. And perhaps therianthropy is just one of those things.

In this way then, obviously those who experience dissociation are more likely to identify as alterhuman (and this has been seen on many occasions where those with DID have reported experiencing animal-like identities). But I believe disassociation can play a part too, which is not inherently dependent on neurodivergency, trauma, or personality (though may still be affected by such traits). Anyone has the capacity to disassociate.

And obvious disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, I am just guesstimating.

I see what you mean. As a biological male, I am an outcast in the Therian community. but thats alright!

This is an interesting way of looking at it, Lopori! There certainly is logic behind what you're saying.

Men do want to have plans to do things in group, while women often do introspection, care about emotions, about others. They are more predisposed to talk about them, while men often keep them for themselves. I am not a furry, however. I don't suit at least, do introspection, but am perhaps not as communicative as women tend to be. I care about emotions of others, not just the ones close to me, but taken as a whole.

I know this is not about me in particular. I just wanted to chime in and say that this may explain why there are more women in the community. Loved your take on this as well.

(2025-02-23 14:03)UniqueUsernameTADA Wrote:  One reason that I think that there are more AFAB therians is that young girls are generally more encouraged to be interested in animals than young boys. I believe that therianthropy usually develops when someone is a young child, whereas furries can choose to become one at any point.

Horse-girl+

Therianthropy sometimes develops a little later, I was late teens (still pretty young in the grand scheme). But yeah I get what you mean about girls and animals.

One reason that I think that there are more AFAB therians is that young girls are generally more encouraged to be interested in animals than young boys. I believe that therianthropy usually develops when someone is a young child, whereas furries can choose to become one at any point.