Regardless of what genre we're reading, one thing is universal – every major character gets introduced with their height.
And not tall or short, but exact numbers. In my current book it's "can't be taller than five-three, maybe five-four"
Surely, none of us think like this right? I look at a person and I cannot tell how tall they are, can you? Noticing someone is taller than me is fairly easy, (having to look up and all) but the difference has to be large before I actually take note of it.
It has always bothered me. If this only happened in books written in an third perspective I could forgive it, but even when it's first person the numbers pop up in the characters head
So, is anyone born with a measuring band in their head?
by Gems-of-the-sun
12 Comments
I only do when it’s obvious. Like a super tall woman or a really short man.
I don’t find it hard to judge how tall people are because I know how tall I am and know roughly how long an inch is. So my brain can easily look at someone and be like “They’re roughly 5’7″”
Huh? Can you tell what colour someone’s eyes are? Can you tell how many fingers they have? These are kind of extreme examples, but yes, I can also tell how tall someone is, in feet and inches + or – an inch or so.
I definitely do not think this unless someone is at an extreme. I also agree it’s kinda weird when books fixate on height. I prefer they let our imagination work and just give broad descriptions, like “diminutive” or “head and shoulders above the crowd.”
I always notice when someone is taller than me, or extremely short. Otherwise no, if I was asked to estimate someone’s height I would probably just say “idk, between 5 and 6 feet or so?”
As an uncommonly tall woman for my country (~7″ above the average woman, ~3″ above the average man), yes, absolutely. I notice when men are taller than me as it’s not very common here in my home country, and I *really* notice when I’m eye-to-eye or looking up at another woman, as it almost never happens. Others notice my height, too. It’s commented on by both men and women; of those who’ll comment on it to my face, women tend to find it striking, men tend to find it either sexy or terrifying.
sometimes i look around and notice how short everyone around me is
but that’s only if everyone in the room/area is, and because im 5’8 so it’s a lil odd when everyone else is shorter than that
but i also have a good gauge of how tall the people around me are because i just compare their height to mine
As someone who reads as much to learn how to write better as to enjoy it, I do think such a specific description should be kept mainly to third person narratives, unless the first person narrator is supposed to be like extremely detail oriented or something.  If a first person narrator is describing height like that it should sound strange because genuinely most people don’t think in such specific terms.
I can generally tell someone’s height in person. One side of my family is short and my other side are generally on the taller side so I have alot of references
Only if someone is unusually short or tall.
I read a book once that described the shape of every character’s nose. I found it similarly jarring.
I always hear that the point of contention for being noticeably/weirdly tall is usually at 6’4”, though for women it is more noticeable all the way down to 5’10”.
If asked, I can estimate fairly close but day to day, I only notice the outliers. Wow that person is really tall/short, has weird proportions, or other distinguishing features.