Object sexuality or objectophilia is a group of Paraphilia characterized by sexual or romantic attraction focused on particular inanimate objects. Individuals with this attraction may have strong feelings of love and commitment to certain items or structures of their fixation. Some do not desire sexual or close emotional relationships with humans. Object-sexual individuals also often believe in animism, and sense reciprocation based on the belief that objects have souls, intelligence, feelings, and the ability to communicate. Given that inanimate objects are inert and not harmed through object sexuality, most questions of objectophilia's legality or ethical provenance have not arisen. Public sexual consummation of object-sexual desires may be dealt with through public nudity or anti-exhibitionism legislation.
Research
In 2009, Amy Marsh, a clinical sexologist, surveyed the twenty-one English-speaking members of
Erika Eiffel's 40-strong OS Internationale about their experiences.
About half reported
autism spectrum disorders: six had been diagnosed, four were affected but not diagnosed, and three of the remaining nine reported having "some traits."
[ N.B. There are only 20 responses, though the author claims 21 respondents.] According to Marsh, "The emotions and experiences reported by OS people correspond to general definitions of sexual orientation," such as that in an APA article "on sexual orientation and homosexuality ... which refers to sexual orientation as involving 'feelings and self-concept'".
The first empirical behavioural study was conducted in 2019 by neuropsychologist Julia Simner and her colleagues.
Sociolinguistic researcher Heiko Motschenbacher has developed the concept of humanonormativity to describe the marginalization of objectum sexuality. Humanonormativity is "the belief that people normally and naturally engage in sexual practices and romantic relationships with other human beings."
OS awareness and advocacy
In 2009,
Erika Eiffel appeared on
Good Morning America[ and The Tyra Banks Show]
Literature
Marsh sees OS-like behavior in classic literature.[ In Victor Hugo's 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame:
]
Describing his passion for sculptures, Horace Walpole commented in 1791 that "Sir William Hamilton had actually married his Gallery of Statues".
Kate Folk’s 2025 experimental debut novel Sky Daddy follows Linda, a woman convinced she and her soulmate, a commercial jet plane, will marry one day, that is, be united in death via crash.
In popular culture
Real life
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In 1979, a Swedish woman married the Berlin Wall.
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In 2007, Erika Eiffel married the Eiffel Tower.
[
]
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In 2010, Woman's Day magazine listed ten romances between people and things, including the Berlin Wall, a fairground ride, a dakimakura, a Volkswagen Beetle, the World Trade Center, a steam locomotive, an iBook, and a metal processing system.
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A March 2012 segment of TLC's My Strange Addiction featured Nathaniel, a man emotionally and sexually attracted to his car. Nathaniel told Anderson Cooper that he was also attracted to jet skis and airplanes.
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In 2013, an Australian woman, Jodi Rose, married the Le Pont du Diable Bridge in France.
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In 2016, an American man was refused permission to marry his computer.
Music
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Keys N Krates's video for the song "Save Me," featuring Katy B, focuses on this particular sexuality.
Film
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Christine (1983) tells the story of a young man and his obsession with his sentient car.
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Jumbo (2020) tells the story of a cleaner at an amusement park who falls in love with a fairground ride. Zoé Wittock, the director, took her inspiration from the experience of Erika Eiffel.
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Titane (2021) tells the story of a female serial killer who becomes pregnant after a sexual encounter with a car.
Television
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Australian Netflix series Lunatics (2019) features a character named Keith Dick (played by Chris Lilley), a fashion designer who falls for "Karen", a Sharp XE-A203 cash register, as well as an old fashioned vacuum cleaner.
Video games
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Date Everything! (2025) allows the player to form relationships with anthropomorhized versions of inanimate objects in their house.
See also
External links
