Everything gets a name. There is no "right" to choose it; the group which wins will be those who choose well to begin with and who work hardest to popularize their choice. However, as a reference writer, I'd much rather furry be a term for all works involving anthropomorphic animals than it be restricted to works created by or for furry fans, which is far harder to define.
It makes things very simple: Does Watership Down involve animals with human characteristics? Check. OK, it's furry. No argument about affiliation or motivation.
Does this suck for people who failed to popularize their own brand? Well, too bad. They should have started a funny animal convention (see also scientific romance). I understand there are legitimate concerns in the animation industry, but if everyone stopped avoiding the term and applied it to their own work, it would lose its sting. Use of the term is inevitable now; might as well get it over with.
At least we had the chance to choose our name. The impressionists were named in a piece of satire, though they quickly adopted the term as their own.
Everything gets a name. There is no "right" to choose it; the group which wins will be those who choose well to begin with and who work hardest to popularize their choice. However, as a reference writer, I'd much rather furry be a term for all works involving anthropomorphic animals than it be restricted to works created by or for furry fans, which is far harder to define.
It makes things very simple: Does Watership Down involve animals with human characteristics? Check. OK, it's furry. No argument about affiliation or motivation.
Does this suck for people who failed to popularize their own brand? Well, too bad. They should have started a funny animal convention (see also scientific romance). I understand there are legitimate concerns in the animation industry, but if everyone stopped avoiding the term and applied it to their own work, it would lose its sting. Use of the term is inevitable now; might as well get it over with.
At least we had the chance to choose our name. The impressionists were named in a piece of satire, though they quickly adopted the term as their own.