Hello underachievers!
So, for the past however many years,
the whole pansexual versus bisexual argument
has been driving me nuts.
It's been driving a lot of people nuts.
And I'm not the first to make this video,
I am probably not the last,
but today I would like to talk about
why I am bisexual and not pansexual.
And I'd also like to talk about what the difference is
between bisexuality and pansexuality
because I admit, it is confusing.
It can be confusing and it's important, isn't it--?
No, it's not,
that's the whole preface of the video.
I would also like to say to the people
that keep commenting on my Instagram
and my YouTube comments
and my messages
that I'm not actually bisexual, that I'm actually pansexual
because I would date trans people
and I would date non-binary people...
Stop. Stop.
But anyway, let's get on to it!
So, before we even start talking about sexuality,
I just think we need to establish
that labels are literally just words.
One person may interact with a word
in a completely different way
than another person may interact with the word.
Humans have evolved and changed over thousands of years
and it will be a bit insane if language didn't evolve with us.
There are countless examples of words that we use today
that meant something very different a few hundred years ago,
50 years ago.
Maybe even two years ago.
Words change, words evolve,
it's called "semantic change", keep up.
For example, the word "nice",
literally used to mean "foolish" or "ignorant"
and now it means "kind".
The word "gay" used to mean "joyous"
and now if anybody uses that word in that context,
they will get their book banned from children's libraries.
Maybe a bit soon,
maybe a bit soon for that one...
And don't even get me started on slurs!
The word "queer"
used to mean "strange" or "peculiar" until the 19th Century,
when it was starting to be used as a pejorative for gays.
And then it was just a pejorative for gays!
It was a slur!
And then gays started reclaiming it
and now it means just "gay" or just "not cis"
or just "not straight".
In 2023 we have people reclaiming that word as an identity.
Humans created language,
humans can redefine language,
and honestly,
language changes to reflect the culture that we live.
And I would really just love to say,
before we get into these sexualities,
the words only have as much meaning as we give to them,
so there's really no point in getting hung up about
what words people use to describe themselves.
If you're not willing to accept that,
I don't think you're gonna like this video very much.
So, onto those pesky little sexualities!
Let's define "bisexual" and "pansexual".
So, bisexual...
Let's start off with the bi part.
"Bi" is a root word from Latin that literally just means "two",
so using that understanding, the word "bisexual" means:
"Being sexually or romantically attracted
"to both men and women
"OR to more than one sex or gender".
I've also seen a newer definition of "bisexual",
which defines bisexuality as
an attraction to people of your own gender
and an attraction to people that aren't your own gender.
So, notice how it says
"attracted to both men and women
"or more than one sex or gender".
There are actually two definitions
within that definition that I showed you.
We'll get back to that.
So, let's define "pansexual".
So, "pan" is derived from the Greek word meaning "all",
or "everything",
or "involving all members" of a group,
which means that a pansexual is attracted to all people ever, obviously.
Obviously not,
so the definition of somebody who is pansexual is:
"that they are sexually or romantically attracted
"to people regardless of their sex or gender".
Are they not just the same thing?
Is it not just wokeism going too far?
Are we just trying to find labels for every feeling that we have?
No.
One way to differentiate between bisexuality and pansexuality
is that pansexuals tend to be what is called "gender blind".
You'll notice that the definition of pansexual says that
they're attracted to people "regardless of their sex or their gender",
meaning they are gender blind.
The sex or gender of a person
has absolutely no impact on their attraction to them.
They just don't see gender.
It's kind of like how White people will say
they don't see color, except it's like way less...
Racially insensitive.
Obviously, it doesn't actually mean
that they don't see gender.
It just means that gender isn't a requirement,
nor is it, you know, a determining factor
in somebody's romantic or sexual attraction to a person.
So this could be different for bisexuals!
The sex or gender of a person could be very important
in determining whether or not they're attracted to them.
So, back onto the definition of bisexual,
As we saw,
there are kind of two definitions of bisexual
within the definition.
There's one that describes an attraction to men and women,
so this does not include non-binary people,
and there's one definition that is a more open definition
that includes more than two genders,
so it does include non-binary people.
To be completely honest with you,
I have seen so many people try and argue
that bisexual can only mean "two".
It can only mean "two"
because the word "bi" means "two"
and it can only mean "two" and nothing can change.
The second definition,
the one including more than two genders,
is the more recent definition that I've seen.
It's the one that I've seen use the most in queer spaces
and I think that, through time,
that will be generally accepted as the definition of bisexual,
whether people who think it's only two genders like it or not.
Hey, look at that, words changing in our lifetime!
Isn't that really cool?
Did anyone get hurt? No.
It's okay.
Change is okay.
Don't be too upset about it.
Although as we stand now, and as I said in the beginning,
I think the word "bisexual"
can mean different things to different people.
And I do think that's where a lot of the confusion comes from.
So, if you're bi
and you just have to sit through me telling you
that bisexuals cannot be gender blind,
only pansexuals can be gender blind
and also that, if you're bi,
you can't be attracted to non-binary people,
you might have thought:
"Oh, God, I guess I'm pansexual.
"I guess I will have to redefine myself.
"I guess I gotta tell everybody around me,
"my entire family, my friends, my doctor,
"the census, that, actually, I was wrong.
"I'm not bi, I'm pan".
Although it's probably more likely that
you just sat through me saying that and thought:
"No, that's dumb.
"I am very much into non-binary people.
"I actually think they're sexy".
That's probably what you thought.
And I think that what we're getting at here
is that it's kind of difficult for a label
to truly define the intricacies of your personal identity,
as well as broadly encompassing millions of other people's identities.
Language definitely has its limits,
and as much as we want to define ourselves,
as much as we want to define other people,
as mad as we get when things change.
Like, one person can read the definition of bisexual and think:
"Oh, God, yeah, that's me".
But another person,
with the exact same experiences as them,
could read the definition of bisexual and be like:
"Oh, it's not me, I'm pan".
There are also multiple situations where these definitions don't even work.
For example, you could be bi and gender blind.
I mean, I know plenty of people
that just don't give a [ ]
about the gender of the people that they're attracted to,
and they still identify as bi,
they don't identify as pansexual.
You could also be pan and not gender blind.
I mean, I know plenty of pan people that aren't gender blind,
that they have slight gender preferences,
and you're going to tell them they're not pan?
You're going to do that?
You're gonna sit and do that?
You're gonna tell them that?
You, silly goose?
You could also be bi and into all genders,
not just men and women.
And that would mean that you don't fit the first definition of bisexual.
And I also think...
You could identify as bi and also pansexual.
They're just words!
And if you did encounter these examples in the wild,
what would you tell them?
Would you try and tell them they're wrong?
I just need to say this before somebody else comments it:
No, being into trans people does not make you pan.
If you're bi and, suddenly, you're into trans people,
that doesn't change your sexuality.
If you're bi and you're into a trans guy
that's the guy part of bi.
That's the man part.
There's nothing else to say about that.
I also think it's worth mentioning that,
probably, a lot of people don't even know what pansexual is.
I think your nan is way more likely to be familiar
with the word "bisexual" than she is with the word "pansexual".
If language is for communication
and we're using these terms to help other people understand us,
I don't think there's anything wrong
if you consider yourself a pansexual
but just tell people that you're bisexual out of ease.
It gets the general point across.
So, to make this wishy-washy video even wishy-washier,
and you know, to conclude on the differences
between bisexuality and pansexuality,
I don't think there's any reason to give a [ ]
about the differences, to be completely honest.
I'm not saying that pansexual is a hyper-specific label.
If being succinct and claiming specific labels to, you know,
really delve into the differences between
different genders and sexualities is your thing,
absolutely go ahead!
But I think the way that we move forward is, I think,
we should care way less about what other people call themselves.
So, to finish on my identity,
I identify as bisexual.
And I have for a good few years now.
Am I attracted to two genders?
Yes.
Am I attracted to more than two genders?
Yes!
Do I care what gender somebody is?
No, most of the time, no.
Would I [ ] somebody regardless of their sex or gender?
Yeah, if they're hot!
I've had plenty of people tell me that I'm not bisexual
and that I'm pansexual.
My definition of bisexuality is the attraction to two or more genders,
so to me, that's what I am.
And I guess that's the end of the video.
Let me know in the comments what your sexuality is.
How do you feel about your sexuality.
Could you technically define yourself as pansexual
even though you identify as bi?
Is it the other way around for you?
How do you feel about labels?
Let me know in the comments.
That's the end of the video!
Have a good day or don't.
See you later losers.
Goodbye!