Pansexuality
Encyclopedia
Pansexuality refers to the potential for sexual attractions, sexual desire, romantic love
, or emotional attraction, towards people of all gender identities
and biological sexes
. Self-identified pansexuals may refer to themselves as gender-blind
—that gender and sex are insignificant or irrelevant in determining whether they will be sexually attracted to others.
The Oxford English Dictionary
writes that pansexuality "encompasses all kinds of sexuality; not limited or inhibited in sexual choice with regards to gender or activity."
The concept of pansexuality deliberately rejects the gender binary
, the "notion of two genders and indeed of specific sexual orientations", as pansexual people are open to relationships with people who do not identify as strictly men or women. Pansexuality can also mean the attraction to a person's personality, rather than their physical appearance or gender.
These are contrast with competing prefixes attached to the -sexual suffix such as hetero/homo meaning opposite/same, or bi- meaning two.
of bisexuality
, due to the prefix bi-, is sexual or romantic attraction to two sex
es (male
s and female
s), or to two gender
s (men
and women
). Pansexuality, however, composed with the prefix pan-, is the sexual attraction to people of all sex
es or gender
s. Using these definitions, pansexuality is different in that it includes people who are intersex
and/or fall outside the gender binary
.
Bisexual-identified people may object to this distinction, arguing that since bisexual is not simply about attraction to two sexes and encompasses gender as well, it can include attraction to more than two genders, as "gender" is a more complex issue; for example, gender identities
that are wholly similar to each other.
"that regards all desire and interest as derived from [the] sex instinct" or, in other words, "that the sex instinct
plays the primary part in all human activity, mental and physical."
Romantic love
Romance is the pleasurable feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love.In the context of romantic love relationships, romance usually implies an expression of one's love, or one's deep emotional desires to connect with another person....
, or emotional attraction, towards people of all gender identities
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
and biological sexes
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
. Self-identified pansexuals may refer to themselves as gender-blind
Gender-blind
Gender-blind is a term describing activities undertaken and services provided without regard to the gender of those who participate.- Choice of words :Unisex is an older term, and a misnomer meaning "one sex"....
—that gender and sex are insignificant or irrelevant in determining whether they will be sexually attracted to others.
The Oxford English Dictionary
Oxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press, is the self-styled premier dictionary of the English language. Two fully bound print editions of the OED have been published under its current name, in 1928 and 1989. The first edition was published in twelve volumes , and...
writes that pansexuality "encompasses all kinds of sexuality; not limited or inhibited in sexual choice with regards to gender or activity."
The concept of pansexuality deliberately rejects the gender binary
Gender binary
The gender binary is the classification of sex and gender into two distinct and disconnected forms of masculine and feminine. It is one general type of a gender system. It can describe a social boundary that discourages people from crossing or mixing gender roles, or from creating other third ...
, the "notion of two genders and indeed of specific sexual orientations", as pansexual people are open to relationships with people who do not identify as strictly men or women. Pansexuality can also mean the attraction to a person's personality, rather than their physical appearance or gender.
Etymology
The prefix "pan" comes from an Ancient Greek term meaning "all" or "every". "Omni" comes from a Latin term meaning "all". "Poly also comes from Ancient Greek and means "many" or "much".These are contrast with competing prefixes attached to the -sexual suffix such as hetero/homo meaning opposite/same, or bi- meaning two.
Compared with bisexuality
A literal dictionary definitionDenotation
This word has distinct meanings in other fields: see denotation . For the opposite of Denotation see Connotation.*In logic, linguistics and semiotics, the denotation of a word or phrase is a part of its meaning; however, the part referred to varies by context:** In grammar and literary theory, the...
of bisexuality
Bisexuality
Bisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
, due to the prefix bi-, is sexual or romantic attraction to two sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
es (male
Male
Male refers to the biological sex of an organism, or part of an organism, which produces small mobile gametes, called spermatozoa. Each spermatozoon can fuse with a larger female gamete or ovum, in the process of fertilization...
s and female
Female
Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male...
s), or to two gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
s (men
Man
The term man is used for an adult human male . However, man is sometimes used to refer to humanity as a whole...
and women
Woman
A woman , pl: women is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent...
). Pansexuality, however, composed with the prefix pan-, is the sexual attraction to people of all sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
es or gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
s. Using these definitions, pansexuality is different in that it includes people who are intersex
Intersex
Intersex, in humans and other animals, is the presence of intermediate or atypical combinations of physical features that usually distinguish female from male...
and/or fall outside the gender binary
Gender binary
The gender binary is the classification of sex and gender into two distinct and disconnected forms of masculine and feminine. It is one general type of a gender system. It can describe a social boundary that discourages people from crossing or mixing gender roles, or from creating other third ...
.
Bisexual-identified people may object to this distinction, arguing that since bisexual is not simply about attraction to two sexes and encompasses gender as well, it can include attraction to more than two genders, as "gender" is a more complex issue; for example, gender identities
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
that are wholly similar to each other.
As a hypothesis
Pansexualism is a hypothesis in psychologyPsychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
"that regards all desire and interest as derived from [the] sex instinct" or, in other words, "that the sex instinct
Libido
Libido refers to a person's sex drive or desire for sexual activity. The desire for sex is an aspect of a person's sexuality, but varies enormously from one person to another, and it also varies depending on circumstances at a particular time. A person who has extremely frequent or a suddenly...
plays the primary part in all human activity, mental and physical."
In the media
- Writer Russell T Davies introduced Captain Jack HarknessJack HarknessCaptain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. He first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and reappeared in the remaining episodes of the 2005 series as a companion of the ninth incarnation of the...
, of British series' Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
and TorchwoodTorchwoodTorchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
, with the intention of properly introducing bisexuality to the British public. However, the term "omnisexual" is also frequently used by cast and crew to describe the character; its use is intended to highlight that Jack does not discriminate between humans and aliens. Actor John BarrowmanJohn BarrowmanJohn Scot Barrowman is a Scottish-American singer, actor, dancer, musical theatre performer and media personality. Born in Glasgow yet growing up in Illinois after his family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, Barrowman was encouraged to further his love for music and...
explains that in Torchwoods usage, it is an "in-universe" term; Jack represents in real-world terms the representative portrayal of a bisexual man in a lead role on television. "[He]’s bisexual, but in the realm of the show, we call him omnisexual, because on the show, [the characters] also have sex with aliens who take human form, and sex with male-male, women-women, all sorts of combinations."
- Roger, the grey alien in Seth McFarlane's American Dad!American Dad!American Dad! is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane and owned by Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions. It is produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television...
, describes himself as a "...fey, pansexual, alcoholic, non-human".
- Franky FitzgeraldFranky Fitzgerald (Skins)Francesca "Franky" Fitzgerald is a fictional character in the television series Skins, played by Dakota Blue Richards.-Characterisation:Franky has been described as "androgynous and super-intelligent" girl who acts "strange"....
, played by Dakota Blue RichardsDakota Blue RichardsDakota Blue Richards is an English actress. Her debut was in the film The Golden Compass, as the lead character Lyra Belacqua....
, is a pansexual and androgynous girl from the UK show Skins (TV series)Skins (TV series)Skins is a BAFTA award-winning British teen drama that follows a group of teenagers in Bristol, South West England, through the two years of college. The controversial plot line explores issues such as dysfunctional families, mental illness , adolescent sexuality, substance abuse and death...
season 5, and stated that she was "into people" when asked about her sexuality. Richards has denied rumours that her character is homosexual, and has said that Franky is an 'outsider', and that she doesn't want to be seen as male, female, gay or straight. Episode 7 of the series reveals her to be pansexual.
- Lisbeth SalanderLisbeth SalanderLisbeth Salander is a fictional character created by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson. She is the heroine of Larsson's award-winning "Millennium series", first appearing in the novel The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo...
, heroine of the popular The Girl with the Dragon TattooThe Girl with the Dragon TattooThe Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is an award-winning crime novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson. It is the first book in the trilogy known as the "Millennium series"....
trilogy, is identified as simply liking sex and not minding much with whom she is enjoying it with.
- Captain Leslie Hero in drawn togetherDrawn TogetherDrawn Together is an American animated television series, which ran on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004 to November 14, 2007. The series was created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein, and uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting...
.
- Dreya WeberDreya WeberDreya Weber is an American actress, producer and aerialist.She was born in Bloomington, Indiana, and attended Hunter College in New York.She performed aerial silks at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City....
, actress, producer and aerialistAerialistAn aerialist is an acrobat who performs in the air, on a suspended apparatus such as a trapeze, rope, cloud swing, aerial cradle, aerial silk or aerial hoop....
, describes herself as omnisexual.
- A support character by the name of Zevran in the popular fantasy video game Dragon Age: OriginsDragon Age: OriginsDragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
could be considered pansexual. He is an elf who displays sexual attraction to many others along no distinctive lines of gender, age, or racial boundaries. When questioned about his sexuality, his reply is: "My only rule with sex is that it's done right."