In this work, we will attempt to educate and inform on the different types of romantic attractions and how they shape people's identities.
We would love everyone to get involved in this discussion, so please vote, comment and share this with friends...
As mentioned in the previous post, romanticism encompasses a wide range of identities, the two ends being alloromanticism - people experiencing romantic attraction and aromanticism - people not experiencing it.
Alloromantics feel frequent attraction, and this can be directed to anyone, regardless of sexuality or gender - hence, allos can be biromantic or homoromantic and so on and so forth.
People who are aro may pinpoint their orientation to somewhere specific on the aromantic spectrum {arospec} - so, to clarify, people may simply identify as aro or a more accurate identity, if they feel capable of doing so, detailing the intensity or frequency of the {lack of} romantic attraction.
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Arospec people usually don't experience romantic attraction, or it is weaker or less frequent or just somehow different than alloromantics.
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Identities on the spectrum include:
~ Grey-romantic*
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~ Frayromantic: when you are romantically attracted to people you don't know, and that attraction fades as you get to know them. It's sometimes considered the opposite to demiromanticism.
...as well as many, many more.
*there are variations of grey-romanticism: grey-aromantic, greyromantic or swapping the 'grey' for 'gray'. The definition of the term varies as well. It may be known as infrequent attraction - individuals who identify as such may only be romantically attracted to a few or even just one person in their lifetime. Another definition is any identity which is in between aro and alloromanticism. It is sometimes used as an umbrella term for all non-aro and non-allo orientations.
However, the aro spectrum is not a universally agreed concept. Some individuals with a supposedly aromantic identity may think themselves as alloromantic - even if they are aware of the spectrum. It's all about personal preference and comfort. Others consider the whole idea of a spectrum to be nonsensical as aromanticism itself is a complete absence of romantic attraction.
Anyone, regardless of their romantic orientation, can be romance-positive/neutral or repulsed. Romance-positive aros may actively seek romantic relationships, but some people consider this as inappropriate use of the aromantic identity.
There is some conflict between the aromantic and LGBTQ+ communities. The majority of aromantic people may also be non-heteronormative, but it is heavily disputed whether cisgender aromantic heterosexual people are part of the LGBTQ+ community. Whether aromanticism is queer on its own, and thus whether cis aro heterosexual people get to call themselves queer, is another controversy.
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I hope I have explained the aromantic spectrum well, I did my best. There are indeed, a wide range of identities {and controversies} to wrap your head around and it can get confusing and/or overwhelming, but don't worry. We're here to help. Leave a comment if you have anything to say/ask, I look forward to hearing from you,
