Maybe the difference (or one of them) is that in most yaoi, not only are the characters gorgeous and faithful to their partners (for the most part), but they also don't stray from their orientation. Never will "Shinji" throw away "Yukari", so that he can shag "Miyoko", or even worse, ask "Miyoko" to join in. "Shinji" and "Yukari" are unobtainable to the female reader.
Whereas you take Yuri or ecchi and they're almost NEVER faithful to one partner and certainly the girls are more than willing to shag with any guy (usually, especially, if they're plain looking) who happens to wander into the story even if they're "supposedly" gay. This leads to fantastical sex romps with multiple partners or straight-up harems. (perversion) This probably makes the male reader feel not only that female characters are available to him, but ALL the female characters WANT/SHOULD to be available to him. And that there crosses that line of objectification.
Now i'm not saying that there aren't Yaoi that cross those lines too. There's plenty. But, on average, the typical, dare i say, boring, formulaic yaoi doesn't. I haven't read a yuri or ecchi (light hentai) yet that hasn't.
You raised some very interesting topics and good arguments.
ur thinking to much, just enjoy :]
Yaoi is such a unique genre. It's homosexual, like Yuri, but it's definitely not the same physically or emotionally in the story. Yuri tends to be oblivious to others that could find out about the relationship on the manga. It's very free and careless, whereas to Yaoi, the characters are more conscience. Yaoi approaches with faithful partners, touching and wild. Yuri is homosexual as well but, again, it's mostly careless and the characters show little loyalty. The plots are more in depth, 95 percent of the time. The other 5 percent would just include unhealthy relationships, messy doujinshi, and choppy one shot plots. Yes, you may feel like a pervert when you read yaoi. It's completely different from adult stories or hentai. The characters in the story are unobtainable to the female character because they are interested in their own gender. This just makes the female reader desire the characters and leads her to having her own fantasies. You feel like a pervert because Yaoi has drawn the line to having a female character be with the male character since it is guxguy not guyxgirl. Yaoi has better characters, so the female just has this desire for a female, herself, to be witha man like that. It's just desire, so don't over think it. Most all of us have been there more than once.
Sometimes I think the same., I think, the reason why girls like to read Yaoi are because the character on the manga is exactly what kind of men we want (I also a girl), and looking at two good looking men getting along together make it looks like a heaven rather than a good looking, smart and super awesome man with a clumsy and stupid (most of shojo's girl character looks stupid for me) girl together (It make me upset and feels that my jealousy is totally stupid as well since the girl character is not really worth it). In the other side, jealous on the male character from Yaoi didn't make me feel stupid at all since my rival have more rational logic in his action, the only problem: he is a guy. but, it sure make me feels less stupid. So, I keep reading yaoi.
I tried reading hentai, ecchi, seinen, and else. It makes me more upset since the girl character mostly much dumber than shoujo. Well, if it have to be no Yaoi, i prefer no romance at all or the romance is not the main point, like Shounen, sport or mystery..
The only shoujo i still like until now is Perfect Girl Evolution and Hanazakarino Kimitachi e. I want to put Horimiya, but the genre is shounen.
P.S: Sometimes i do feels gulity
exactly!
I agree with you! Especially where you talked about the female being more thick headed in hentai, ecchi, etc. It's mostly about the sex, 80 percent of the time. Yaoi has emotion and its naughty, but it doesn't focus on the male shooting his load all over the female's face and sucking condoms, -shudders-. Yaoi just gives the female a barrier that makes the female audience and the female mangaka feel guilty and perverted. IF ONLY GUYS IN YAOI WERE REAL AND LIKED WOMEN AT LEAST. BUT. I'm very satisfied with Yaoi, so it's totally fine.
Objectification itself doesn't hurt anyone. What is wrong is making someone feel like an object. That won't happen while you read mangas.
Everyone has their own fantasies. Being a pervert is normal, but perverts who disturb their surroundings, that's abnormal. Basically, feel free to enjoy your yaoi :3
How should enjoying seeing two guys together be more perverted than an heterosexual relationship? Is it that you think you're attracted to girls? Because I sure don't miss girls in my yaoi, here I get double the fun! I must point out that in hentai and porn in general, most of the guys are really ugly, and even if the guy is hot the camera constantly is focused on the girl's body. They don't actually enjoy the sight of other men, you see ;)
Gee, what about a generalisation of guy "otakus" though. I know guys who love ecchi anime, they're the sweetest guys ever. They enjoy more the comedy than anything though.
I don't think all girls in shoujo are like that,there're are many shoujo mangas where the main character is strong just like yaoi there's weak uke and strong uke.
yep. But, lately most of them are like that and it kind of makes me tired. I do read some which have strong female character and like it a lot like from Power!, several I mentioned on my previous comment, but lately it's kind of hard to find strong female character. BTW, it's true that there're some weak uke in yaoi, I do read it sometimes although the one I prefer still the strong character one., But, if the weak uke still being rational during building their relationship, it's good. I hope there're more great shoujo to read (Probably i didn't trying hard enough to find which I don't really mind).
those capslock! I think the same!! oh my.. TT^TT
At times i feel reading yaoi is weird, ya know? A straight-ish girl reading about a fantastical couple of gay men. (cause in no way does the bulk of yaoi represent actual gay relationships) I know it's written by women for women, and i've researched all the psychology behind that, but i'm still like, "Does this make me a pervert? Should i feel dirty after reading something like this? Am i objectifying men the way so many males objectify women? Where's the line between healthy curiosity of the male body and sex, and unhealthy perversion and objectification?"
Then i go and read a smutty "seinen", can't even qualify as a hentai, and i'm like, "Nope... Nopenopenopenope. What i read is tame compared to the lightest of adult fiction on the guy's side. At least my stuff has some semblance of love, even when it is PWP. No wonder so many guy-otaku i've met are screwed up, misogynistic assholes, if they're reading this stuff. :P"