#an unkindness of alterhuman terms

[mogai-corvidae]

archetrope: An identity under the alterhuman umbrella in which one heavily identifies with or otherwise experiences an archetype, trope, or otherwise preestablished character model in a way that is central to their identity. It may not necessarily be inherently nonhuman, but has a significant enough impact on one’s identity to be experienced in similar ways as other alterhuman labels. Archetropy may specifically or especially inform one’s identity in deeply influential ways in regards to aspects such as personality, occupation/profession/field of study, gender expression or identity, philosophy, spiritual beliefs, or political alignment. It is a nuanced and complex identity which can fall anywhere on the voluntary-involuntary and “identify with”-“identify as” spectrums. This identity can also have spiritual, psychological, or other origins. It could present as an intrinsic identity one is born with, an identity one takes on for the purpose or self-expression and enjoyment, a coping mechanism, or in a myriad of other ways. It is a flexible term that describes a broad range of experiences of identity and alterhumanity. (Examples of archetropal identities include pirate, clown, ranger, royalty, etc.)

"person who is" noun form: archetrope (For example, "Jane is an archetrope.") "state of being" noun form: archetropy (For example, "John's archetropy affects their identity.") adjective form: archetropal (For example, "Jane's archetropal identity makes them happy.")

To refer to specific archetrope "types" (as one would specific kintypes or kithtypes) use the prefix "arche-" followed by the identity itself. (For example, "I am an archepirate," "They are archeroyal," etc.) The term can also be hyphenated if the identity label starts with a letter that would make the term difficult to read such as in "arche-explorer," if the term is multiple words long such as "arche-raised by wolves" or "arche-mountain man," or if one simply prefers to use that syntax.

It is very important to note that those who created this term do not believe in anyone being forced to identify with any particular term or label themselves any specific way! This term exists to describe a community and identity that is commonly experienced but doesn’t have any specific preexisting terminology, but no one should be forced to identify with it if they prefer to describe their identity in some other way. The way you define yourself is up to you, this is just another option!

This term was coined (and both its flag and symbol were designed) collaboratively in this thread on the Nonhuman National Park forum. Additional credit goes to @monsterqueers and @thelightfluxtastic for their contributions.

For more information on flag and symbol meanings, see the information below!

As mentioned, this term, its symbol, and its flag were all collaboratively designed on a forum thread! For information on the history of the term and its development over time, you can check the linked thread! As you can see, it went through quite a bit of change over time, but we’re all glad with how everything turned out! The two accounts mentioned (The Dragonheart Collective and Vyt) contributed the majority of content, but there were a few other forum users who helped us or gave valuable input. Flick, from our system, is the one responsible for a majority of our contribution, including all art (symbol/flag designs) we created. (He is a rogue archetrope, in case you were curious.)

A lot of thought was put into the meaning of both the symbol and the flag! The symbol has a few general meanings or ideas which it represents:

The teardrop shape in the symbol represents both a seed, which represents the capacity to grow and develop in infinitely many ways, and fire, which represents the torch of storytelling and the many character models carried on over time across so many mediums and in so many ways.

The seed’s shadow, which is an outline of the seed itself, represents archetropes themselves, which are “cast from the original mold” of a trope, archetype, etc. so to speak. It represents the way that archetropes are just as diverse and complex as anyone else, yet fall into or follow a certain character model in some capacity, and how that identity coexists with the great nuance and diversity of their identity as a whole. The shadow is its own distinct shape with an entirely different center, but it follows the outline and general shape of a preexisting model, as do archetropes with their archetropal identities.

The roots shooting down from the seed represent both the growth and disseminating of archetropes and their community as well as the development of character models themselves. The many roots also represent the many different aspects of archetropal identity and the many ways it may manifest in an archetrope’s life. All of these many individual aspects of identity, from morals to aesthetic tastes, come together to create a greater picture of a character model of some kind.

Though not pictured, the symbol can also be drawn without a circle surrounding it, simply as the shadowed teardrop shape with roots branching off from beneath it. Both the simplified and more detailed versions can be used in this way.

As for the flag, there is a meaning represented by each stripe/color:

cyan: tropes, archetypes, and other established character models that are consistent or pervasive enough throughout media as a whole over time to be considered a distinct identity one could have

blue: the significant relationship between archetropy and other parts of identity, and the impact of archetropy on many aspects of identity, from moral philosophy to personality to clothing style and much more

magenta: the depth of and intensity with which archetropes express their sense of self, the inherent desire for self expression and autonomy associated with being an archetrope

red: archetropy as its own unique experience which is distinct but still falls under the alterhuman umbrella, the potential relationship archetropy has with other alterhuman experiences

yellow: the creativity and diversity archetropes have in their expressions of identity and how they interpret their experiences, the many different perspectives and experiences of archetropes and how diverse and varying they are (psychologically, spiritually, regarding identifying "as" or "with" or somewhere in between, and in every other way)

green: the development and transformation of tropes and archetypes over time, the vast diversity and variation in interpretations of tropes, archetypes, and other established character models

black: the shadow/imprint of an archetype, trope, or other established character model, which is what an archetrope is in essence

Once again, thank you so much to everyone who participated in this project! We hope to see other archetropes finding much use and value in this term and the art associated with it.