Women get made fun of a lot when they’re tall (but also when they’re short, so there’s really no winning).
Women get made fun of no matter what because the world is like that. But I think especially when they're tall because of toxic masculinity and whatever.
Umm… Who wouldn’t want to be tall? I wish I was 6,4.
So based on this thread I think we've uncovered two things: That being tall is idealized, and being skinny is idealized, but being tall and skinny = shame on your family.
I make a lot of my POV characters short because they must be shorter than me and I'm like 5'4". That's a requirement I made in my head to make myself feel taller. Otherwise, I do try to do a variety by having the other main characters represent other body types. But not the POV character, never them.
I make a lot of my POV characters short because they must be shorter than me and I'm like 5'4". That's a requirement I made in my head to make myself feel taller. Otherwise, I do try to do a variety by having the other main characters represent other body types. But not the POV character, never them.
Good point, and good job for varying your body types!
Umm… Who wouldn’t want to be tall? I wish I was 6,4.
I know someone who’s 6’4 and wishes they weren’t that tall because they tend to get back problems and movement is a bit harder (doorways and such.)
I’m sort of tall (5,11) and really thin. I actually rejoiced when I got to 150 lb. Because anyone can take me in a fight. It’s sad. Big dudes are imposing.
I make a lot of my POV characters short because they must be shorter than me and I'm like 5'4". That's a requirement I made in my head to make myself feel taller. Otherwise, I do try to do a variety by having the other main characters represent other body types. But not the POV character, never them.
Good point, and good job for varying your body types!
Your profile pic has the same energy as my computer's homescreen
I try to have a variety of body types in my stories, or I at least do my best
I think it's because no author wants their characters to be perfect. They want them to be semi-underdogs.
I'm curious as to why being short/skinny would make you more of an underdog than being tall/fat, because both body types stand out and get bullied, and why being tall/fat would be considered 'perfect' or a more ideal body type than being short/skinny?
I'm not sure, that was just my first thought. In stories I've read before, there's never been an overweight character who didn't have some inner conflict about being fat. It's like, if you want a 'realistic and relatable' character you write a short/skinny person. If you want the story to revolve at least a little bit around a character's body image, you write a fat/absurdly tall character. If you want to write a 'misunderstood popular person' or a really sappy romance, you write an athletic character.
well ultimately its the authors choice and you can't shame them for choosing to make their character a certain way. if you want to see more diversity in writing then you can start with your own and hopefully people will take inspiration in that.
It's not about perfection imo. You can beat the crap out of a shrimp without breaking a sweat. Big dudes wouldn't have to worry about that.
It's not about perfection imo. You can beat the crap out of a shrimp without breaking a sweat. Big dudes wouldn't have to worry about that.
But the little dudes are fast.
My best friend is. He's 6,3 and like two feet around. (Exaggeration. But not really.)
I think the phrasing is better put as “rooting for the little guy” than “rooting for the underdog.”
(But also just notice how often fat people ARE in literature but they’re treated as the bully or something equally as unsavory)
(I really just want someone in a book who looks like me though)
True. And one could make a case for that being offensive.
I think the phrasing is better put as “rooting for the little guy” than “rooting for the underdog.”
(But also just notice how often fat people ARE in literature but they’re treated as the bully or something equally as unsavory)
From what I've read, fat characters, especially fat men, are either portrayed as villains, bullies, slobs, gross, or creepy, and the fact that the character is fat is usually mentioned in an uncomfortably close context to those (looking at you, JKR)
It is pretty offensive though… I feel basically secondhand offense because some of the best guys I know are on the overweight side and would probably be portrayed negatively in literature based on their body type alone, while these individuals I’m talking about are actually hella soft and caring.
(Also off topic a little bit, but let fat people have love interests! Love interests who love their bodies too and don’t say stuff like “it doesn’t matter what you look like”)
It is pretty offensive though… I feel basically secondhand offense because some of the best guys I know are on the overweight side and would probably be portrayed negatively in literature based on their body type alone, while these individuals I’m talking about are actually hella soft and caring.
(Also off topic a little bit, but let fat people have love interests! Love interests who love their bodies too and don’t say stuff like “it doesn’t matter what you look like”)
I agree, I think it's becoming less of a thing now (Six of Crows has Nina, books like Dumplin' and There's Something About Sweetie exist, etc.) but reading old YA books is just cringe.
Also off topic a little bit, but let fat people have love interests! Love interests who love their bodies too and don’t say stuff like “it doesn’t matter what you look like"
Yeah, we need to put more emphasis on the fact that sometimes fat people actually do not give a damn about how they look/care about how other people's opinions on their weight!
From what I've read, fat characters, especially fat men, are either portrayed as villains, bullies, slobs, gross, or creepy, and the fact that the character is fat is usually mentioned in an uncomfortably close context to those.
Another thing I notice is that fat people in books always love to eat? And I don't think people realize that eating is not always the main cause of obesity? And they are always teased about their love of food? I just think that it's really damaging to people, fat or not, who are reading those things and then don't want to eat anything anymore IRL because they are afraid of being bullied.
The exception is, as @MontJyn said, Nina from Six of Crows because she is literally a heavenly beam of light and I would die for her.
So this is an old thread, but it cried out to me.
Brandee is skinny and short, true. CJ is short, but he's solidly built and has an endurance athlete's musculature. Naomi is of average height, but also fairly solidly built and has stayed military fit (and is visibly disabled). Kieron is just straight-up huge—very tall, very large-framed, and self-evidently doesn't skip either gym or dessert. And my antagonist is also a tall, big-framed guy (if significantly shorter and slighter than Kieron), with an aesthetic physique. So I'd like to believe that I have some degree of physical diversity in my cast?
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