Furry
Further Confusion is among the largest international conventions celebrating anthropomorphism in all of its guises. With the attendance of over 3,000 and growing, it is one of the premiere events of its kind. Further Confusion includes charitable benefits, educational conferences, art displays, panels and overall social activities. This was the first event sponsored by Anthropomorphic Arts and Education Inc. and continues to be its largest.
"Furry" is a colloquial term used to describe a particular category of literary animal. A Furry creature is anthropomorphic, where human and animal characteristics are equally present. It may be physical, mental or both. They can be funny or serious. Usage of the term furry is limited almost exclusively to members of Furry Fandom or other cultural groups aware of furry fandom. The term Furry is also sometimes used to refer to lovers of their arts arts. Such artwork range widely and include animators, illustrators, filmmakers, costume designers and performers, actors, voice talent, literary authors and songwriters.
Within the accepted use of"furry", Roger Rabbit, Bugs Bunny, and Mickey Mouse are"funny creatures:" they are anthropomorphic, mostly act like humans, and can be considered the animation equivalent of character actors. On the flip side, Usagi Yojimbo, Omaha the Cat Dancer, along with the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are furries (even though turtles do not have fur). They're generally more"realistic" in appearance than the humorous animals and behave more like crosses between humans and animals. They're sapient and equally as much"individuals" as any fictional character, but they aren't presented as critters for laughs.
By way of example, the bunny FC2019 characters in Richard Adams' novel Watership Down are sentient and speak to each other, but their behavior and psychology is very closely derived from that detected in real-life rabbits. Additional furries aren't so closely tied to their animal sides, but there is always some amount of serious consideration given for this. Andre Norton's Breed to Come, Brian Jacques' Redwall series, also Steven Boyett's The Architect of Sleep are other examples of novels featuring furries, as is Paul Kidd's Fangs of K'aath, which has been cited as a source of inspiration for many individuals to create furry functions.