Sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction.
A Japanese man who tied the knot with a computer-synthesized character is on a mission to educate people about fictosexuals.
Akihiko Kondo married made-up pop singer Hatsune Miku back in 2018 and identifies as fictosexual, an umbrella term for anyone who only experiences sexual attraction to fictional characters.
While most people may have harbored a crush on a book or movie character, fictosexuals differ in the fact that they have no interest in romantically pursuing a real-life human.
Instead, they are exclusively attracted to — and aroused by — imaginary creations, with many even going as far as marrying their made-up mates.
Agnès Giard, a researcher at the University of Paris Nanterre, has extensively studied sexuality and says fictosexuals are often misunderstood.
“To the general public, it seems indeed foolish to spend money, time and energy on someone who is not even alive,” Dr. Giard told the New York Times, which noted there are thousands of fictosexual marriages in Japan. “But for character lovers, this practice is seen as essential. It makes them feel alive, happy, useful and part of a movement with higher goals in life.”
According to a paper published on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) website, fictosexuals are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, with some saying they also identify as asexual because they would never pursue sex with a real person.
“Fictosexual and I’m proud of it. No reason to be ashamed of it.”
Twitter user @Destroyer19_19
One woman quoted in the NIH paper said she realized she was strictly fictosexual when she began having more feelings for made-up characters than she did for her own real-life boyfriend.
“The bottom line is, I think I am actually more attracted to any of my fictional objects of affection than my very real, very nice boyfriend,” she said. “This, I feel, is a problem. I get butterflies when looking at or reading about my fictional crushes, but kissing my boyfriend does nothing for me.”
Meanwhile, many fictosexuals identify under one of several subcategories, according to Sexuality Wiki.
Cartosexuals, for instance, are only attracted to cartoon or comic book characters, while gamosexuals are besotted by video game characters.
On the other hand, inreasexuals get can only get hot for live-action TV show or movie characters.
Elsewhere, magisexuals crush on creations that have never been visualized — such as book and podcast characters — preferring to create ideas in their head of what their fictional lover looks like.
Fictosexuals have been mocked and derided online, with some saying the sexuality is “not valid.” Numerous people on Twitter have described fictosexuals as “mentally ill.”
However, according to the NIH paper, fictosexuality “is not recognized or proposed as a specific diagnostic condition by … American Psychiatric Association (DSM-5).” The paper states that there is no need to “change the current state of affairs.”
Not only is fictosexuality legitimate, Kondo says it’s even advantageous.
He told the New York Times that his marriage to the fictional Miku doesn’t carry the baggage of other relationships.
He says his wife will “always there for him, never betray him, and he’ll never have to see her get ill or die.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Giard says that women who pursue fictosexual marriages find them empowering because they are “a way to challenge gender, matrimonial and social norms.”
Additionally, fictosexuals have their own flag so that they can proudly assert their sexuality and identify one another.
According to the Sexuality Wiki, the black and grey stripes “represent the lack of attraction towards non-fictional individuals,” while the purple stripe “represents sexual attraction and the asexual spectrum.” Meanwhile, a pale pink circle in the center of the flag is supposed to symbolize attraction to fictional characters.
One person shared the flag on Twitter, writing: “Fictosexual and I’m proud of it. No reason to be ashamed of it.”
