An Identity thats beyond the state of normative, traditional or mainstream ideas of self or identity for *any* species, entity or culture.“*
*Not as a subset or subcatergory of alterhuman, but as another version.
A few individuals like the idea of a general term encompassing plural, neurodivergent and nonhuman or nonnormative human experiences, but find the ambiguous -human suffix of alterhuman to trigger dysphoria, limit the focus of just comparing experiences to normative humanity or other dissonance to self identification.
a less dysphoria inducing version of alterhuman, and regarded the more considerate to those who have dysphoric reactions to -human suffix. ‘alternatively being’ an ’alternate or nonconforming idea of identity’. This term was coined in a gradual, collective way, appearing on unrelated instagram posts.The term opens up more conversation about normative ideas of identity and expression itself at the base of discussion without comparing it to a normative tradition of one specific species, or away from one specific species (ie human). This way it is less likely to connotate to something specificly human or nonhuman, but includes human and nonhuman connotation equally.
Anonymous quote: "Theres so much more to alternative identity than refrencing it to normative humanity at default all the time. you can still do that with alterbeing, its just a synonym to alterhuman thats less dysphoric.
But i do want to hear about others speaking about their unconventional species experience, the atypical dog experience, a pastlife about an alien that is one species, but their body is another different nonhuman species – these narratives are not suggested and thus not explored when normative humanity is at center of comparison, as well as cause confusion that it only means alternative to one species of refrence . Its not to say alterhuman is a bad term, but it overlooks an aspect of species identity that is crucial to thinking progressively about species identity, to think about normative ideas of other species, and to explore alternative experiences of those species. I would like to see this concept explored more often in alterbeing spaces.”
Individuals that reflect on and want to express stories of past lives that don’t feel alternative to human but feel alternative to other species (as a nonhuman species in another nonhuman species’ body.) may feel this term includes them better and opens discussion for non-normative experiences of other species while still including humans. “Some like to focus on an alternative non-human experience ("I am not a typical dog”) rather than an alternative with or to humanity as a refrence point, therefore providing greater scope of the spectrum of species identity.“
This term was anonymously refined with association to other symbols like the alternating arrows symbol, similar to the one used in chemistry. the alterbeing symbol represents the spectrum of the nature of identity itself, and its subjective presentation at an angle can be a descreet way of expression association with this identity. The symbol, definition and associated flags are anonymously coined and donated.
