#food allegory
What do you call an asexual who likes sex?
AN ASEXUAL
Further explanation: asexuality is characterised by lack of sexual attraction, not lack of desire to have sex. Asexuals who like sex are not “less asexual” than those who don’t desire sexual contact
!!!!!!!!!! This!!!!!!!!!!
I use the hunger allegory to explain this to people who can’t tell the difference. For this allegory, food = a person, hunger = sexual attraction, and eating = sexual action.
Asexual people never get hungry. They don’t feel hunger, they just don’t get hungry. They never look at a plate of food and feel hungry for that food - they might appreciate the way it looks and find it aesthetically pleasing, but they don’t feel a pull or craving to eat it. Some who are on the spectrum will occasionally get hungry for specific food, but only under specific circumstances, such as the food being something they’ve gotten to see prepared and know about really well (For example, demisexual people can only develop attraction once they’ve gotten to know a person over a long period of time and developed an emotional connection with them). These people are all asexual because they never or rarely get hungry.
HOWEVER, some asexual people will still eat sometimes, simply because they like the taste of food (sexual stimulation). The act of eating has no impact on their feelings of hunger or fullness; they simply enjoy the taste, and once the plate is empty, they move on with their lives. These people are still asexual because they still don’t feel hungry (remember, action does not equal attraction). Some asexual people, like me, don’t enjoy the taste of food, and so choose not to eat, but are still comfortable with food-related topics and jokes. Some don’t even like to think or talk about food; they are completely repulsed by it. Some don’t really love the taste of food, but they don’t hate it either, so they’ll eat it if it was prepared by someone they really love, but otherwise they’ll leave it. Regardless, none of these people get hungry or feel hunger. THESE PEOPLE ARE ALL ASEXUAL. Whether or not they like the taste of food, whether or not they eatfood, whether or not they talk about food - none of those things changes the fact that they don’t get hungry or feel hunger. This is the only thing that defines asexuality. Anything else is individual preference and reactions.
