Is it weird call mlp characters people?

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

There not human. So calling them people feels weird. But within there own universe their very similar to humans. So is it weird to call them people?

[Lunar Echo 10,335]

Only as weird as you want it to be, others not familiar with the fandom might say something on the lines of it being weird, but why do they need to know every little detail about who you are. If you view the MLP: FIM characters as people then that's fine, they're voiced and given personality by people after all. The only difference is that they're displayed as colourful cartoon horses in a colourful cartoon world. You most likely have a strong imagination when it comes to giving the personalities of the characters in the show a human body.

[Megas 28,114]

Horses are people too!...wait

[They call me Loyalty 1,954]

Yeah, but it gets tiresome to specify all the time.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Only as weird as you want it to be, others not familiar with the fandom might say something on the lines of it being weird, but why do they need to know every little detail about who you are. If you view the MLP: FIM characters as people then that's fine, they're voiced and given personality by people after all. The only difference is that they're displayed as colourful cartoon horses in a colourful cartoon world. You most likely have a strong imagination when it comes to giving the personalities of the characters in the show a human body.

It also comes from the fact that a lot of aci fi universes will still call aliens people. Like in Star Wars and Star Trek. There people because they are self aware intelligent and emotional beings. Though whether you can call aliens people might depend on whether you believe human beings have a soul. Calling mlp characters people is pointless in the sense that there not real. Granted it also isn't offensive because they are fictional. I guess it depends on whether or not you believe there could be sentient life besides human beings.

Horses are people too!...wait

I guess there people in the sense that there voiced by human beings.

[The_Gobo 36,257]

I would only consider it odd if one started *treating* them as actual people.
I.E., setting a spot at the table for them, using dolls/plushies/etc as place holders for the character, and so on.
At that point it borders on failing to see a separation between fantasy and reality, something critical to one's sanity.
So, calling them people, is perfectly fine.
Honestly trying to portray them as real people is a great deal too much.

Or at least that's my opinion on the matter.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Yeah, but it gets tiresome to specify all the time.

It mostly comes from the fact that always calling them ponies feels silly outside of the show.

I would only consider it odd if one started *treating* them as actual people.

I.E., setting a spot at the table for them, using dolls/plushies/etc as place holders for the character, and so on.

At that point it borders on failing to see a separation between fantasy and reality, something critical to one's sanity.

So, calling them people, is perfectly fine.

Honestly trying to portray them as real people is a great deal too much.

 

Or at least that's my opinion on the matter.

People technically doesn't have to be a human exclusive term. If other sentient life forms are ever discovered then calling them people might not be inaccurate.

[The_Gobo 36,257]

It mostly comes from the fact that always calling them ponies feels silly outside of the show.

People technically doesn't have to be a human exclusive term. If other sentient life forms are ever discovered then calling them people might not be inaccurate.

Well, calling them what they are makes sense, they're ponies in one form or another.

Though I think you missed my point,

calling them what they aren't is inappropriate.

It's normal and appropriate to refer to the character as a pony, and the voice actor/actress as a person/people/human/etc.

Again, the primary reason is to show that one doesn't lack the cognitive ability to separate reality from fiction.

If one lacks that, they're often perceived as a foolish child, or also lacking in sanity.

 

In short: Better to enjoy in moderation, than to take too much of a good thing ^^;

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Well, calling them what they are makes sense, they're ponies in one form or another.

Though I think you missed my point,

calling them what they aren't is inappropriate.

It's normal and appropriate to refer to the character as a pony, and the voice actor/actress as a person/people/human/etc.

Again, the primary reason is to show that one doesn't lack the cognitive ability to separate reality from fiction.

If one lacks that, they're often perceived as a foolish child, or also lacking in sanity.

In short: Better to enjoy in moderation, than to take too much of a good thing ^^;

No I understood what you meant. I was just saying that if other sentient life forms were discovered calling them people might not be inaccurate.

[The_Gobo 36,257]

Well, in a tad extreme form, I suppose,
though with the current google definition of the word, it wouldn't be applicable.

But that muddies the topic to word it that way, comparing a real-life scenario which would redefine a lot more than just the word 'people' to the original topic.
Even still, unless there were a way for the characters in the show to become sentient and mobile outside of the show, it would be inaccurate to call/treat them as 'people'.
And with current technology, that just ain't gonna happen

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Well, in a tad extreme form, I suppose,

though with the current google definition of the word, it wouldn't be applicable.

But that muddies the topic to word it that way, comparing a real-life scenario which would redefine a lot more than just the word 'people' to the original topic.

Even still, unless there were a way for the characters in the show to become sentient and mobile outside of the show, it would be inaccurate to call/treat them as 'people'.

And with current technology, that just ain't gonna happen

I never said we should treat them as people. The problem is that ponies within mlp aren't the only sentient race. Dragons, griffons, and basically all other animals are sentient.

Its hard to say considering they are totally fictional like but if they were real then no, since people refers to humans and they are not human

Technically if alien life forms with sentience were discovers it could very well change the definition of the word.

[Regent 77]

Well, calling them what they are makes sense, they're ponies in one form or another.

Though I think you missed my point,

calling them what they aren't is inappropriate.

It's normal and appropriate to refer to the character as a pony, and the voice actor/actress as a person/people/human/etc.

Again, the primary reason is to show that one doesn't lack the cognitive ability to separate reality from fiction.

If one lacks that, they're often perceived as a foolish child, or also lacking in sanity.

 

In short: Better to enjoy in moderation, than to take too much of a good thing ^^;

 

It's a shameful problem in any fandom I'd guess. I once knew a guy in school who was convinced Vulcans were real and that he was one of them.

[sweetolebob18 728]

I suppose it's weird but it's a convention of the genre for Anthropomorphic Cartoons. I remember one of my nieces raising that point about Babs Bunny (Tiny Tunes) (& that was 25 years ago. I remember because I thought it was a pretty surprising  discussion to have with a 3 year old)

Edited December 31, 2016 by sweetolebob18

[PonyMage 228]

No. It's more convenient because that's how we refer to sentient beings in the English language. Saying "ponies" instead can be awkward or weird or even inappropriate depending on the situation/person.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Obviously, but none have been discovered and that is a widely different topic than asking if is weird calling a fictional horse created by hasbro is weird or not. MLP characters do not exist so yes it is weird to put them on the same level as people because it doesnt make sense, its like asking if the rat from ratatoulie is a person xd

I know. But in Steven Universe The gems aren't human. There aliens from another planet. Yet there still people. Granted its more for convenience. It's weird to keep calling them ponies. Especially when ponies aren't the only sentient race within mlp. Keep mind I refer to them as people in the non literal sense. Basically using it as a term of convenience. Not to literally say that they are real.

It's a shameful problem in any fandom I'd guess. I once knew a guy in school who was convinced Vulcans were real and that he was one of them.

Well I know there not real. I only refer to them as people as a term of convenience.

I suppose it's weird but it's a convention of the genre for Anthropomorphic Cartoons. I remember one of my nieces raising that point about Babs Bunny (Tiny Tunes) (& that was 25 years ago. I remember because I thought it was a pretty surprising  discussion to have with a 3 year old)

I agree with that. Being a that have the same or greater level of I intelligence as humans are surely "people". But where not talking about alien life that we discovered. Where talking about cartoon ponies. As you mentioned referring o them as people is a convention of anthropomorphic animals. I merely use it out of convenience.

No. It's more convenient because that's how we refer to sentient beings in the English language. Saying "ponies" instead can be awkward or weird or even inappropriate depending on the situation/person.

This is exactly what I was thinking. Outside of the show it just makes more sense to say people. Saying ponies can be silly.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,202]

They act like what we perceive how people normally should act, so I say it is fair to make that connection. I mean, if they were real, we would most likely treat them like we treat people so...why not?

[GrimGrimoire 4,973]

 

 

I mean, if they were real, we would most likely treat them like we treat people so...why not?

 

 

Good lord I hope not. Have you seen how we treat each other? *Shudders*

 

 

 

Anyway... I think the term is fine and not particularly weird. They are fictional characters a lot of people enjoy talking about and speculating upon and it just sounds odd to always be saying pony this and pony that when discussing them. Of course some do take it too far and go to rather unusual lengths to sometimes humanize them.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

They act like what we perceive how people normally should act, so I say it is fair to make that connection. I mean, if they were real, we would most likely treat them like we treat people so...why not?

I agree with that. But I mostly use it for convenience. Since ponies aren't the only sentient species in mlp.

Good lord I hope not. Have you seen how we treat each other? *Shudders*

 

 

 

Anyway... I think the term is fine and not particularly weird. They are fictional characters a lot of people enjoy talking about and speculating upon and it just sounds odd to always be saying pony this and pony that when discussing them. Of course some do take it too far and go to rather unusual lengths to sometimes humanize them.

Especially when ponies aren't the only sentient species. It works as a good catch all term.

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,202]

Good lord I hope not. Have you seen how we treat each other? *Shudders*

That is a good point. XD Okay, I hope we would treat them positively as we would treat others positively. Even if that isn't entirely likely since the human race can be rather finicky.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

That is a good point. XD Okay, I hope we would treat them positively as we would treat others positively. Even if that isn't entirely likely since the human race can be rather finicky.

I don't think we'd be ready for sentient talking ponies.

[Unikitty 1,212]

There are multiple elements to take into account when asking this question.

 

Currently, the word 'person' specifically defines human beings. Using it to define human-like sentient beings(aliens, androids, what-have-you) is only a recent event.

However, to really find an answer, you have to ask what it really means to be defined as a person. In many sets of fiction, the words 'person' and 'people' have become words to define anything like a human(sentient, socially similar beings). So to this regard, it might be reasonable to consider ponies also people.

But we should also take into account the world of FiM. In FiM, there are no human people, and as far as I can recall, ponies specifically refer to each other as ponies and not people.

 

If that's the case, it seems more fitting to refer to them as they refer to themselves. But really, all 'person' and 'people' are, are simple words used to refer to something that is like a human. So in the end, it doesn't really matter. 

 

Personally though, I'd continue to call them ponies. This is because when I hear the words 'person' and 'people', I mentally associate them with humanoids. It seems much more straightforwards to refer to them as ponies, as it makes it more clear what you're referring to in particular.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

There are multiple elements to take into account when asking this question.

 

Currently, the word 'person' specifically defines human beings. Using it to define human-like sentient beings(aliens, androids, what-have-you) is only a recent event.

However, to really find an answer, you have to ask what it really means to be defined as a person. In many sets of fiction, the words 'person' and 'people' have become words to define anything like a human(sentient, socially similar beings). So to this regard, it might be reasonable to consider ponies also people.

But we should also take into account the world of FiM. In FiM, there are no human people, and as far as I can recall, ponies specifically refer to each other as ponies and not people.

 

If that's the case, it seems more fitting to refer to them as they refer to themselves. But really, all 'person' and 'people' are, are simple words used to refer to something that is like a human. So in the end, it doesn't really matter. 

 

Personally though, I'd continue to call them ponies. This is because when I hear the words 'person' and 'people', I mentally associate them with humanoids. It seems much more straightforwards to refer to them as ponies, as it makes it more clear what you're referring to in particular.

That makes sense. The problem is ponies aren't the only sentient race in mlp. So it gets confusing when talking about races besides ponies.

[Thrond 3,271]

Nah. I mean, maybe I'm completely wrong here, but I'm fairly certain that most sci-fi and fantasy settings use "people" to refer to all sentient beings, be they human or nonhuman. Ponies don't often use that terminology to refer to themselves, but I don't see why it wouldn't apply to them, and when you consider that not all sentient beings in the MLP world are ponies, the term "people" seems like an appropriate catch-all for ponies, dragons, griffons, and all the others. 

[Music Chart Fan 819]

Nah. I mean, maybe I'm completely wrong here, but I'm fairly certain that most sci-fi and fantasy settings use "people" to refer to all sentient beings, be they human or nonhuman. Ponies don't often use that terminology to refer to themselves, but I don't see why it wouldn't apply to them, and when you consider that not all sentient beings in the MLP world are ponies, the term "people" seems like an appropriate catch-all for ponies, dragons, griffons, and all the others. 

 

I agree, and that reminds me of another pet peeve of mine that I've never understood: why characters in-universe, and the show's writers, use terms like "everypony" and "anypony" when the already-existing terms "everyone", "anyone", "everybody", "anybody", etc. are not only perfectly acceptable, but would be more inclusive of those non-pony sentient beings that you mention.

[Tilgoreth 1,915]

Nah. I mean, maybe I'm completely wrong here, but I'm fairly certain that most sci-fi and fantasy settings use "people" to refer to all sentient beings, be they human or nonhuman. Ponies don't often use that terminology to refer to themselves, but I don't see why it wouldn't apply to them, and when you consider that not all sentient beings in the MLP world are ponies, the term "people" seems like an appropriate catch-all for ponies, dragons, griffons, and all the others.

 

I know it's used in Star Wars. Maybe Star Trek also but I'm not sure.

I agree, and that reminds me of another pet peeve of mine that I've never understood: why characters in-universe, and the show's writers, use terms like "everypony" and "anypony" when the already-existing terms "everyone", "anyone", "everybody", "anybody", etc. are not only perfectly acceptable, but would be more inclusive of those non-pony sentient beings that you mention.

Especially when previous generations just said everybody. Though the everypony thing is just to be cute.