Contrast with Foreplay

and place where Phone Sex falls between them, if it indeed does fall into these categories.

This is a very important question and necessary to developing the field of Marxian study. very-smart

  • EnsignRedshirt [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    24 days ago

    Flirting is showing or reciprocating sexual or romantic interest in a way that is intentionally ambiguous. It’s a way for people to gauge interest with one another without obligating either party to make any sort of direct commitment or statement of interest. Any party can choose to not reciprocate or disengage without needing to make it overt, and thus avoid embarrassment or misunderstanding.

    Eventually someone has to make some sort of overture to either establish mutual interest or rejection of interest, but flirting is sort of the quantum superposition between interest and non-interest (look up ‘Schrödinger’s Date’ for the most extreme example of this).

    Foreplay is the build up to actually engaging in sexual intimacy of some sort. Unlike flirting, mutual interest has already been established. More importantly, foreplay happens after, or in the process of, some form of mutual consent. Without consent it’s just assault/harassment, obviously. Depending on your relationship dynamic, flirting might be part of foreplay.

    Phone sex is purely contextual. It’s either flirting or foreplay depending on whether or not it leads to sex, whatever your definition of “sex” is.

    • ChaosMaterialist [he/him]@hexbear.net
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      24 days ago

      flirting is sort of the quantum superposition between interest and non-interest

      geordi-no Checking for Chemistry with somebody

      geordi-yes Checking for Entanglement with somebody

      bad QM pickup lines

      You must have quantum effects because you got my heart all entangled.

      Are we entangled because you leave me spinning whenever I observe you.

  • FlakesBongler [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    24 days ago

    Flirting is playful banter with an amorous bent

    Foreplay is active contact as a prelude to sexual contact

    Phone sex is somewhere between the two I reckon

  • Awoo [she/her]@hexbear.net
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    24 days ago

    Flirting is signalling and maneuvering to test and tell interest while being socially deniable enough for everyone involved to ignore without social consequences if the it doesn’t lead to anything.

    Foreplay on the other hand is often physical and distinctly sexual. An act of foreplay without consent would earn you social consequences, an act of flirting will not, unless you’ve been asked not to do so or there are other factors that make the flirting inappropriate.

    The difference in how far one goes before becoming the other is entirely based on the social consequences line.

    • Dolores [love/loves]@hexbear.netOP
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      24 days ago

      The difference in how far one goes before becoming the other is entirely based on the social consequences line

      this is actually gets to the core of what i’ve been thinking about, watching some older TV, that included what I would consider unacceptable ‘flirting’.

  • stigsbandit34z [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    24 days ago

    Aw man. I’ve never had an autism diagnosis, but the fact that some of these comments read like a foreign language confirms the fact that you don’t always need a professional diagnosis

    It is reassuring to know that there are others who share the same struggle though (please show yourself in real life)

  • Gorb [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    23 days ago

    According to a bunch of really annoying colleagues throughout my life its when you talk to someone of the opposite gender in any capacity.

    Or if you’re a kid then really annoying parents will profess its when a kid of the opposite gender bullies you.

    From what i understand its when you say nice things to someone you’re interested in and see of they say it back but it can also be misconstrued as just being friendly. I wouldn’t know i don’t know what flirting is i have the autism