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‘uke/seme/seke’ vs ‘bottom/top/switch’
I’ve got a question for us today..... what is everyone’s opinions on using the terms ‘uke’ and ‘seme’ when talking exclusively **about** BL? As we should all (hopefully) know, using those terms outside of BL (aka when talking about real people) is a huge no no. Anyone who calls another real life person ‘seme’ or ‘uke’ is.... well either uneducated, a fetishizer, or both.
But..... I’ve been seeing a lot of people using ‘bottom/top/switch’ instead of ‘uke/seme/seke’ when talking about characters in BL on this website. It feels like to me people are using ‘bottom/top/switch’ to be more respectful to the LGBT+ community, or because they’re worried about sounding like a fetishizing fujoshi if they use ‘uke/seme/seke’ but..... in my PERSONAL OPINION (which can be changed), I kinda want to stick to ‘uke/seme/seke’ when addressing characters
Idk, I feel like by using ‘uke/seme/seke’ for BL characters, it helps draw a wall between real life and BL. A reminder that these words and BL aren’t in any way accurate to how things work in real life. They shouldn’t be applied to real life. By calling the characters ‘bottom/top/switch’, it feels like the line is getting more blurred. PLUS, if someone called another real life person ‘a seme’, I would know to immediately avoid them. But if someone called another person ‘a top’..... well that’s just normal terminology. You get what I’m trying to say???
So what are y’all’s opinions on this??? Do you prefer we stick to calling BL characters ‘uke/seme/seke’ or do you wanna throw those titles in the trash and use actual LGBT+ terminology?? I really wanna hear what other people think, and my own opinion can easily be swayed
((ALSO FUN FACT: the term ‘switch’ on here is actually being used incorrectly. It should be ‘bottom/top/vers’. A switch is a bdsm term (sub/dom/switch) and has nothing to do with penetration. VERS is the word you’re looking for))
Tbh at this point idfc anymore. You wanna call by the characters names? Okay. Uke/seme? Sure. Bottom/top? Alright. Neko/Taichi? Why not? Shou/Gong? Whatever gurl. My only advice is don’t and I mean DONT call REAL people using their sex position.
Like, I don’t really care on whatever the fuck u call ‘em but don’t use it in rl. Characters a...... 1 reply
There is no "wall" to speak of when many people's first introduction to mlm people is through yaoi/bl, including the majority of the people who read it. Half of y'all only ever even see mlm people in fictional media, and most of the rest of you have probably met only a few mlm people and are close with even less. Y'all can't "separate fiction and r...... 1 reply
I don't think it's necessarily wrong cause that's what they use for BL in Japan (I attended a comiket once, it's not just from internet) and tachi (top), neko (bottom) for rl LGBTQ+ relationships. Personally, I don't really care as long as it's all in fiction, please DONT call REAL life people with their sex positions. I normally use MC/ML or some ...... reply
This was very respectful, easy to read, and civilized so I applaud you for that. Sometimes I do call BL characters by those terms but I try to stick to traits or names even though I'm very bad remember names and faces. I feel like the best way to address them would be by a trait or a name. reply
I have already gave my two cents on it many times so I'll keep it short and clarify that it's my own opinion, ok? First off, uke, seme and seke are Japanese exclusive terms so it's weird to use them when referring to manhwa/manhua characters.
Second point, if you're actually reading a story, knowing the characters' names should be a no-brainer. Ye...... 1 reply
I use both “bottom/top/switch“ and “seme/uke/seke” depending of the conversation, when it comes to fictional characters. But to be honest, I think ”bottom/top/switch” can be confusing because for example you can call a “uke” a “top” if he is the most dominant in bed. And personally it’s a dynamic I really like but I can’t po...... reply
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Alright....... i just wanted to thank everyone for all their opinions, it’s surprisingly diverse and the amount of interaction and discussion this post generated was so nice.
I feel like people tend to fall in these categories in regards to this topic:
1. Don’t care, use whatever titles you want, just don’t reduce real life peo...... 2 reply
This is coming from a bisexual woman- me. I really hate those terms. Just refer to them as MC (main character) or ML (male lead-main romantic interest). You can refer to them by their features (like brunette, short guy, tanned guy) or their profession.
I can't speak for men but i hate it when LGBTQ+ characters are reduced to their sexual position....... 1 reply
