What is Seme and What is Uke?
Previously in QooPedia, we looked at the difference between Yaoi, Bara, and BL. This time, we’ll be looking Seme and Uke.
Seme and Uke are terms that describe the hierarchy of a BL couple. Seme is derived from Semeru (攻める), which means to attack and Uke is derived from Ukeru (受ける), which means to receive.
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As the original meaning suggests, the Seme is the more aggressive one in the relationship, the alpha. The seme is often also referred to as the “top”. In most cases, the seme plays the traditional male role and is in control of the relationship most of the time. Sexually speaking, the seme plays the role of the penetrator in penetrative sex.
On the over hand, the Uke is the more submissive one in the relationship and is often referred to as the bottom. As the more submissive one in the relationship, in many BL plots, the Uke is usually at the receiving end of power moves. Sexually speaking, the uke will be on the receiving end.
Although the definition of the two is completely different, in regards to which character is the seme and which character is the uke ultimately depends on the creator. There are not distinctive guides to how to tell if a character is a seme or a uke. Whilst in some cases it could be very obvious, there are also times where it is hard to distinguish which of the two in a CP is the seme. Most of the time a Fujoshi will rely on their instinct when deciding which characters are seme and which characters are uke. Sometimes opinions will clash for example NaruSasu (Seme Naruto, Uke Sasuke) vs. SasuNaru (Seme Sasuke, Uke Naruto). It is important to remember that at the end of the day a CP is something that you like personally, so just go with your preference.
Share with us some of your favorite CPs and why you like them in the comments below!
Anything else you want us to explain? let us know in the comments!