#historycomic

Please see #paupersprince7 for future and previous updates~

The printing press was surely the beginning of many revolutions~

History, Part 1/3 - So this came out a bit more melancholy than I really intended 😅 I promise things will cheer up once we hit part 3, there’s just a bit of setup I wanted to give first. And the truth is, anyway, that being part of the aromantic community is a confusing experience, because we just don’t have that point of reference of older aros or really any explicit history to look back on. I tried to capture the way it makes you feel a little lost beyond words here, but I’m not sure if I succeeded 😭 Also, just a note about #asaw2021 or aromantic awareness week - as some of you may know, I’m teaming up with @aromantic-nerd​ to make a series of informative text posts on the ways amatonormativity can be found in media. It’ll be posted over on her account so please do go check her out to make sure you don’t miss it! We put a lot of heart and work into compiling the posts and we hope you’ll like it/find it helpful 💚💚💚 I’ll also be doing my best to make a recommendation for an aro creator every day of ASAW on my stories so be sure to look out for that also haha 🐸✨ I’m really curious to know how all of you feel about being such a “new” identity. Obviously, we’ve existed before official words came along to designate our identities, but somehow I feel that the lack of proper historical acknowledgement outside of just being the “weird old person who never got married” ... makes it hard to see where you fit into the bigger picture, I guess. Do y’all feel the same way?

[Image Description:

Slide 1: “I’ve been thinking about what it means to be Aro”

Celia is shown, standing at the edge of a river on the rocky shoreline. Large fluffy clouds fill the sky, and her hair blows in the wind. 

Slide 2: “Historically, we don’t have much.”

A couple of photographs are drawn, each labelled with a significant aromantic history event. The first says “Use of the word aromantic” on a photograph of the AVEN forums in two thousand and five. The second is a sketch of Dorothy Tennov, the women who coined the term “non-limerent” (one of the first references to aromanticism. The third is a drawing of the Aurea website, and the label reads “twenty nineteen - AUREA founded!”

Slide 3: Celia speaks to the viewer now.

“To be fair, once you broaden the scope to historical alternatives to romance there is more (AUREA has some good posts) - but even so, the concept of being explicitly aromantic is fairly new.”

Slide 4: “Our culture, our stories, and our voices are still forming” A drawing of a blank book next to some other decor. In the corner is a photo of Yasmin Benoit in a picture frame.

Slide 5: “The words I want to use to describe what I’m feeling either don’t exist -” 

Celia in her dorm from when she was on her exchange. She is talking to her roommate, who asks: “-I’m not sure if I follow. Like what do you feel, if it’s not a crush?”

“I don’t know how to describe it … some people I feel strongly about but like, in my gut I KNOW it isn’t romantic?”

Slide 6: 

“- or are unheard of to the vast majority of the population.”

Celia shown drawing to blank person. She says: “So like, I had a bit of a squish on this person I was frenemies with when I was 13,” and the person says, “What’s a squish?”

Slide 7: Celia stands on a frozen lake, where she has skated around. She has her hands in her pockets as she stares pensively up at the reader. 

“It feels like the rest of the world doesn’t understand how we can exist -”

Slide 8: “- so it’s easy to feel that same doubt for ourselves too.”

History, Part 3/3 - And here we are, friends 🐸🐸🥰!!! We've made it, yet again. I'm so glad I'm finally getting to share this part of the comic with you, it was what I wanted to say at the beginning of all of this 💚💚💚. 

To answer my own question from a few weeks ago - what does it mean to be aro?

I think realizing you're aro is an eye opening experience. It forces you to question amatonormative values that are saturated in society, makes you see what life can be without romance. There's no precedent, because we exist in the gaps between the pages where everyone lives *happily ever after* (implied, obviously, in romantic love 🙄). It's hard to tell what life will have in store for us, when our tales aren't the ones that get told. Yet I've always liked to think that those gaps was where the ✨real magic ✨ happens. It's like a blank canvas. Nothing is defined, so it gets to become whatever you want it to be. So being aro, to me, means opportunity, and freedom. The ability to choose what I want and don't want in this life with as much honesty and sincerity as possible. On a grander scheme of things too, I think we, as a community, are going to get to decide how we want to define the meaning of our identities, too. It makes me excited. It makes me hopeful. Above all else, I’m looking forward to how much we have ahead of us 💚 -- A huge thank you to everyone who volunteered to be drawn in this post (slides 2 and 6)!!! 🐸🐸🐸 it was nice to draw real people that aren’t, well, me for once😭😅 for real though, y’all are the best and this was a lot of fun! I hope I can do this again sometime!!! 💚💚 I've tagged everyone in the post, but here's a list of their accounts as well 😄 @_pallavimvutharkar_ @beck.oh @i_am_hope_ @matilderdiogo @aspec_resources_research @river.stickz @astrini.adisoma @an.aroace.kat

[Image Description:

Slide 1: Celia speaks to the viewer with a small smile, “But … despite all of this, I think these are exciting times to be an aro”

Slide 2: “We are the first generation of explicitly aromantic people!” 

Drawn around Celia are a number of other arospec people who have asked to be drawn. From left to right, top to bottom: A black girl with curly long hair, a blond non-binary person holding up a peace sign, a girl with long teal-dyed hair and a septum piercing wearing an aro flag, another person with short purple dyed hair with another aro flag, Celia herself, and a south asian girl with a short bob cut.

Slide 3: “It will be our actions -” A man waving an aromantic flag grins.

Slide 4: “- our thoughts -”

Celia talking to two other arospec people. They discuss the nuances of what is considered flirting and how weird it is. 

Slides 5: 

“- our words -”

Celia stands in a side view, and from her spill forward objects like papers from a book, a petition, which spills into a drawing of her sketching out comics and another random person filling out an aromantic survey.

“- our feelings and fears and journeys of self-discovery -”

The drawing leads to a group of aro people who are standing as though at a parade. A non-binary blond person holds a big aro flag, while a guy with short brown hair stands next to them throwing a casual peace sign. Finally, a taller southeast asian girl stands next to them both, holding a sign that says “aro pride”.

“ - our activism”

Slide 6: [Text slide] “- that will build the foundations of our community.”

Slide 7: “Future aros will look back to us.”

An older chinese woman talks to a group of youth dressed in futuristic looking clothing. They are looking at a book together. She comments that the events feel just like yesterday as one of the kids asks her about the events described in the book. 

Slide 8: “And … I think, at least, that it’s a blessing.”

The scene returns to the riverside where Celia was standing at the beginning of the comic. It shows Celia from the front, up close, and she’s smiling wistfully as the wind blows in her hair.

Slide 9: A zoomed out shot of the same scene from the very beginning of the comic. 

History, Part 2/3 - I swear, things will be more positive in part 3!!!!! 😭😭😭 also I had to shorten this description more than a few times so sorry for the later post 😅 I expanded on the points I made last week about the ways amatonormativity makes it harder to understand your feelings or perceive elements of your identity. Even now, after I’ve realized that it’s okay to be without romantic love, I still feel insecure about finding a committed partner in my future. This isn’t to say an Aro you can’t find a partner, romantic or otherwise! But there are fewer people interested pursuing a non-romantic relationship. And it’s because of this, coupled with the fact that many life “”milestones””” traditionally involve marriage, that makes me unable to picture my future. I want to start a family. I want to have kids. I want to feel that I can count on someone to work with me to our shared goals. But I can’t figure out how I’m going to get any of this, without the help of a partner. So I’ve been thinking about this subject a lot. From when I started writing this comic (which was a few months ago), I think some of my feelings are starting to change, or get more complex at least. I still, of course, resonate with everything I’ve uploaded here. But I wanted to end this description with the full picture of what I’m feeling, which is this: I accept that my life might be different than most of my peers. It might be more challenging in some ways, but less so in others. But either way, it doesn’t mean I can’t pursue my goals or try to build a life I know I want and will hopefully bring me peace and happiness. The best thing I, or anyone really, can ever do is just go for it, and hope for the best. And I’m looking forward to getting a chance to try no matter what happens 💚💚💚 Happy ASAW everyone 💚

[Image Description: 

Slide 1: Celia sits on a chair, looking skeptically at a book. “Part of that doubt is from the deep levels of amatonormativity in society - it affects how we see the world.”

Slide 2: So many people can’t even imagine that it’s possible to not feel romantic attraction to other people. 

Celia shown arguing with an angry blank person. 

“How can you not really feel romantic attraction?”

“Like, I just don’t see people that way ... ?”

“There must be someone-”

Slide 3: “(I know that I was one of them, when I was young)”

A younger celia with long hair is sitting on her bed, drawing in her sketchbook. She mutters to herself: “Or, I could pair him with Chiara but they’re not in the same country. Hm … Maybe I should make a new character … Last time I made Miles and Raymond together and their dynamic has really helped develop their personalities …”

Slide 4: Pure text slide. “There are no norms, no cultural guidelines, or even knowledge on what it means to form deep bonds or navigate life without the expectation of romance.” 

Slide 5: Celia lying in a field with her former childhood friend. He’s talking about something, and she is smiling as she glances over. 

“I don’t know how to describe what I felt, only that I didn’t have a crush.”

Slide 6: Celia as a teenager, seeing her former frenemy with his girlfriend. He looks angry as he glares at her. 

“I didn’t feel like I would ever have a chance to be his “best friend” - so I decided to let him hate me, instead.”

Slide 7: “I didn’t see how I could live a life without romance -” Celia as a university student, watching some of her classmates talk. 

“You know that girl I was telling you about?” “The one from your japanese class? Oh my god, did you two finally - tell me everything!!”

“Well, I finally asked her out, and she was so cute. I brought her flowers after class …”

Slide 8: “- so I kept blaming myself each time I saw my peers falling for someone else.”

A close up of Celia at her desk. Tears are welling up at the corners of her eyes, and she says to herself “... fuck. What am I doing wrong? Why can I never like anyone enough?”

Slide 9: “And in many ways, I still can’t see -” 

Celia is drawn on the right half on the screen, and a stereotypical straight couple on the left. A “path” forms in front of both of them, the couple having a house, marriage, the woman holding a business briefcase with doodles of money and “CASH DOLLARS” scrawled around her, and a baby. On Celia’s side she has a lease, a smaller house, questionmarks drawn arounda child, and other legal forms which are labeled insurance.