Poll: Can girls be otaku?
- Thread starter Parasitic_Chick
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Yeah, sure but why would you want to?
Also why would it matter anyway.
See as I figure it Nerd is the default term for the area otaku covers (AS IT IS NOT A RECENT LOAN WORD). Otaku itself is far more specific and far less accessible to those outside and so often the nerd scape would make divisions along that line.
To date I've only seen people identify as an otaku, perhaps it's my internet alignment but the proper term for most people like this is just, nerd or "fucking weeaboo".
It really is unnecessary to use the loan word itself
More over the term seems like an odd thing to apply to culture, language,etc.
Culture itself is something that tries to proliferate, spread and pass itself on, that sort of thing.
Orginally I believe the term entered the nerd idiolect when a bunch of Weeaboos took some Japanese and for whatever reason saw nothing wrong with calling themselves obsessive.
Then again a lot of weeaboos would actually fit the term "otaku" when you think about it. I'm running of urban dictionary and it sounds a lot like neckbeard, which replaced nerd, geek,etc in general meaning.
From that point onwards it likely spread out into moderate anime nerds, likely transmitted by young teens that spent way to long on anime forums and imageboards.
On a side note otaku is by no means as strong as bad as hikikomori is it?
Perhaps in common use there is a great deal of overlap between the two.
Also why would it matter anyway.
See as I figure it Nerd is the default term for the area otaku covers (AS IT IS NOT A RECENT LOAN WORD). Otaku itself is far more specific and far less accessible to those outside and so often the nerd scape would make divisions along that line.
To date I've only seen people identify as an otaku, perhaps it's my internet alignment but the proper term for most people like this is just, nerd or "fucking weeaboo".
It really is unnecessary to use the loan word itself
I disagree, loanword seems best fitting for this instance.Shanicus said:
More over the term seems like an odd thing to apply to culture, language,etc.
Culture itself is something that tries to proliferate, spread and pass itself on, that sort of thing.
Orginally I believe the term entered the nerd idiolect when a bunch of Weeaboos took some Japanese and for whatever reason saw nothing wrong with calling themselves obsessive.
Then again a lot of weeaboos would actually fit the term "otaku" when you think about it. I'm running of urban dictionary and it sounds a lot like neckbeard, which replaced nerd, geek,etc in general meaning.
From that point onwards it likely spread out into moderate anime nerds, likely transmitted by young teens that spent way to long on anime forums and imageboards.
On a side note otaku is by no means as strong as bad as hikikomori is it?
Perhaps in common use there is a great deal of overlap between the two.
My avatar is from Princess Jellyfish. The anime is pretty much an inversion of the "awkward teenage boy meets a dashing woman" trope that's all too common in anime and manga. Except for one character introduced later in the series, pretty much every female is an otaku.
It's a good series, I highly recommend it. Especially if you're looking for something that doesn't take place in a f***ing school for once.
It's a good series, I highly recommend it. Especially if you're looking for something that doesn't take place in a f***ing school for once.
Yes, they can, to the extent that the biggest Anime Weaboo fanatic I know is a girl, and we're talking about complete obsession levels here. She even refers to herself as an Otaku and I see no reason to dispute that. The second biggest anime fan and japanophile I know (who is far less fanatical) is also a girl. So yeah, girls can be Otaku.
OP: Of course, sure no problem, I've always seen it used as a gender neutral term.
Response to where the thread seems to be going:
Wow words are fascinating. As stated before, Otaku has a negative connotation in Japan.
Hayao Miyazaki complained the anime industry was full of Otaku [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/131872-Hayao-Miyazaki-Anime-Suffers-Because-the-Industry-is-Full-of-Otaku] and that is why the quality of anime is suffering.
Anyway, this is how I understand some of these words (English usage, I can't speak at all for the Japanese usage).
Anime: Animation specifically from Japan[footnote]though there's debate of whether animation made elsewhere but copies the style of anime (such as Avatar) is still considered anime[/footnote]
Otaku: A big fan of anime, may branch to Japanese video games and other Japanese things in general.
Fujoshi: A big (female) fan of yaoi
Weeaboo: (negative) someone so obsessed with Japan that they literally want to be Japanese.
Geek: (umbrella term) A big fan of something.
Nerd: A very smart person who traditionally wore glasses and knew how to use a computer well, definition is changing, now means basically the same as geek but may still be used toward somebody who knows a lot about tech.
Neckbeard: (Negative) (Male) replaced geek because geeks are cool now, carries other negative connotations, but I can't say specifically what they are.
Basement Dweller (negative) Gender neutral replacement for geek.
Response to where the thread seems to be going:
Wow words are fascinating. As stated before, Otaku has a negative connotation in Japan.
Hayao Miyazaki complained the anime industry was full of Otaku [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/131872-Hayao-Miyazaki-Anime-Suffers-Because-the-Industry-is-Full-of-Otaku] and that is why the quality of anime is suffering.
So I read this as he's basically saying these "otaku" are so afraid/disgusted by real humans that they check out from reality and prefer to live completely in their own fantasy worlds. That's pretty damn insulting.
Anyway, this is how I understand some of these words (English usage, I can't speak at all for the Japanese usage).
Anime: Animation specifically from Japan[footnote]though there's debate of whether animation made elsewhere but copies the style of anime (such as Avatar) is still considered anime[/footnote]
Otaku: A big fan of anime, may branch to Japanese video games and other Japanese things in general.
Fujoshi: A big (female) fan of yaoi
Weeaboo: (negative) someone so obsessed with Japan that they literally want to be Japanese.
Geek: (umbrella term) A big fan of something.
Nerd: A very smart person who traditionally wore glasses and knew how to use a computer well, definition is changing, now means basically the same as geek but may still be used toward somebody who knows a lot about tech.
Neckbeard: (Negative) (Male) replaced geek because geeks are cool now, carries other negative connotations, but I can't say specifically what they are.
Basement Dweller (negative) Gender neutral replacement for geek.