Yesterday, during a conversation with my brother, I started thinking about how bad I feel for short guys. Random, I know, but the conversation went like this:
Me: “You know, I feel bad for the little guys. I mean really, do you think *Buddy the Elf* gets as many
girls as *Ron Burgundy*?” (I changed the names to protect the feelings of those involved.)
Brother: “No, definitely not.”
Me: “But why not? *Buddy* is arguably more attractive and a much better athlete.”
Brother: “I don’t know that’s just the way it is. Girls just like tall guys.”
I took it upon myself to stand up for the little guys and took a poll to see what women (mostly college aged, a few high school girls, and my mother) really thought about height. Out of 20 women, nine said they would date someone who was 5’8” or shorter. 10 girls said they would only date guys 5’10” or taller. One girl said height didn’t matter to her as long as he could make her laugh (so cute.) I was actually surprised by those results, I figured more women would set their limit around 5’10”. But let’s remember two things – 1) Only five of the girls I polled were above 5’6” and 2) This is the absolute shortest they would ever date.
Surprisingly, it seemed that shorter the girls were, the taller they wanted their men to be. One girl who is only 5’3” said she wouldn’t date someone less than 6 feet because she liked to wear heels too much. Oh, so you’re wearing 9 inch heels to class every day? I don’t think so. Other common responses included “tall = manly,” “you need someone who can actually be the BIG spoon,” “it’s just awkward,” and “I like to feel small.” One participant said that she “would rather pour acid on [her] eyes than date someone shorter than her.” YIKES! How would you feel if a guy told you it was “just awkward” to date you because your thighs are bigger than his? (You know it’s true) It wouldn’t feel too great.
The tall girls (who actually have the right to be picky about height) were way more flexible. Only four girls said they would date someone who was their height or shorter (you go, Mom.) One participant, who is 5’10”, said she would be willing to date someone 5’8” because she understands how hard it is to find someone that is a lot taller than her. The other particularly tall girls only expected a man to be an inch or two taller than them.
I don’t know why this bothers me so much. Maybe it’s because the average height for a man in the US is 5’9” and women normally think of that as on the short side. Maybe it’s because I’ve known great guys who have a harder time getting girls, even though they are much better looking and nicer than their taller counterparts. I’m not excluding myself out of this group either, I also prefer tall guys. But if I met a perfect guy who was my height or maybe even shorter I wouldn’t think twice about dating him.
Like I said, I guess I just feel bad for short guys. Height is something completely out of their control. College girls don’t seem to have a problem dating guys with beer bellies, guys that update their status with Lil Wayne lyrics, or guys that use the word “bro” at the end of every sentence. Give the short guys a break. Suck it up and stop being so picky. Yeah, I’m talking to you, short girls.
Photo Credit: www.parade.com