The Height Hierarchy

[MightilyOats]

One of the Kettleblacks is described as being 6'6" by Tyrion, unsure which one.

Though all are big men, and over 6 feet.

They're more commonly described as lithe and well-muscled, however, while the Hound is always described as an absolute tank.

And that was washerwoman gossip, no more.

[Luke Stafford]

Plus the Hound is just great. The Kettleblacks are led around by their greed and lust. But I think they're leaner in build than the Hound, or at least that's how I picture them.

[MightilyOats]

They are leaner in build.

They've never been described as overly large (aside from their height).

The Hound is ALWAYS described as muscled like a bull, or something along those broad lines.

The Kettleblacks are lithe, the Hound is brawny.

It's like the different between Robert and Renly, as far as musculature goes.

[MTGAP]

I think a lot of these heights are being overestimated. It just seems highly improbable that there are so many tall people, especially given that this is the medieval ages. The tallest person I know is 6'5; I only know about ten or fifteen people who are over six feet. So what's the probability that ASOIAF would have a half-dozen characters who are over 6'6?

I'd put the Mountain at around 7 feet, and push everyone else down proportionally. The really tall people (Hound, Brienne, Robert) are probably around 6'4.

[Jaak]

I think a lot of these heights are being overestimated. It just seems highly improbable that there are so many tall people, especially given that this is the medieval ages. The tallest person I know is 6'5; I only know about ten or fifteen people who are over six feet. So what's the probability that ASOIAF would have a half-dozen characters who are over 6'6?

It is feudal society. Where physical strength matters, and kings are expected to fight, not administer. True, some families last millennia, and one feeble ruler does not end a dynasty, like Lannisters recovered from Tytos; but physically inept heirs like Tyrion and Samwell are at a real danger. And people like Clegane grandfather get to be knights because of feats - which they rather than their previous peers perform because they are stronger and taller than most.

Duncan the Tall and Lucas Longinch were 6´7´´, and they were noted for tallness - it was not common. Gregor´s closer to 8 than 7 is exceptional even in the community selected for physical strength and size, where 7 foot twins can be found, and serves to identify Gregor unmistakably.

[mormont]

[mod] Cool it, please. No name-calling. [/mod]

[MightilyOats]

Lets even take into consideration, from my initial post, the amount of people who are exceptionally tall/strong.

What percentage are we looking at of named characters that are legit huge?

It's not a very big percentage.

Just like in real life

[Idris_ Darkfall]

Fair enough. Irregardless, Sandor Clegane is a burly manly man who kicks butt! The fight between him and Lord Beric in ASoS is second to none. Well, maybe his fight in the inn at the end of the same book. Now let's move onto the Kettleblack brothers. Didn't Sansa overhear some washerwomen in the castle saying how Ser Osmund is as big as the Hound but younger and stronger?

I don't remember that quote, but it really wouldn't make much sense. The Hound is a young guy. I think he's only 26 or 27 in AGoT, and still under 30 by the end of the fourth book - really at the peak of his ability, I would think.

[Horza]

That's not really young by the standards of his society.

[neutronicus]

I think a lot of these heights are being overestimated. It just seems highly improbable that there are so many tall people, especially given that this is the medieval ages. The tallest person I know is 6'5; I only know about ten or fifteen people who are over six feet. So what's the probability that ASOIAF would have a half-dozen characters who are over 6'6?

I'd put the Mountain at around 7 feet, and push everyone else down proportionally. The really tall people (Hound, Brienne, Robert) are probably around 6'4.

Definitely agree about Gregor. I've watched too much basketball to think he's Yao Ming/Shawn Bradley height (7'6"). Even Andre the Giant (7'4") seems too awkward to be dangerous. So I put him at Shaq (7'1")/ Big Show (7') territory. As long as the "about as tall as the Hound" cluster remains at plausible NFL linebacker height, I'm happy.

"Sansa thinks X is 7 feet tall" is downright weak textual evidence for anything other than "X is taller than most people." Even "Ned thinks Robert is 6'6"" isn't very good evidence for Robert being 6'6". It's not clear how often these people measure things, but Bran, for instance, never has any memories of chalk, a wall, and a tape measure. Similarly, a POV thinking that someone "towers over" someone else, when the POV has probably never seen those two people standing next to each other (Hodor and the Baratheon brothers? Come on. Hodor and Gregor? They've probably never been within a week's ride of each other!), doesn't indicate all that much (especially when the POV is a kid).

[Ran]

Having seen GRRM's discussion with Tom Meier and other artists regarding heights of characters, yes, Gregor really is over 7'6", yes Robert is 6'6", etc., etc.

If you want to mentally edit these things to whatever you feel comfortable with, that's of course fine. But the textual evidence of specific character heights = authorial intention.

[lukahnli]

Don't the say in the book that Hodor was as tall as the Greatjon?

[neutronicus]

Having seen GRRM's discussion with Tom Meier and other artists regarding heights of characters, yes, Gregor really is over 7'6", yes Robert is 6'6", etc., etc.

If you want to mentally edit these things to whatever you feel comfortable with, that's of course fine. But the textual evidence of specific character heights = authorial intention.

Well, I'll be. I stand corrected. I guess people were just larger than life back then.

I bet the HBO version will be more like how I see things, though. ;)

[Ran]

Pretty much.

It's not so much that people were just larger than life, it's that George wants them to be larger than life to some degree. To what degree he has been influenced by things like professional wrestling stars (Shagga's loosely based on an old time wrestler) and big atheletes like football players (there's some massive guys on the gridiron), I don't know, but I suspect that's a part of it. And also just George's tendency to make everything a bit bigger than they were in our history.

[cybroleach]

I dont have my AGOT with me but IIRC in the scene where Ned ranks them all he list the bros Bartheon as large, The hound taller still, Hoder towering over him, and Gregor towering over them all.

Also the Smalljon is mentioned somewhere as taller than his father though not as built.

Dunk was measured and is 6'11"

[MightilyOats]

Don't the say in the book that Hodor was as tall as the Greatjon?

Actually, the Greatjon was described as being as tall as Hodor, though twice the size.

And the most we have to go on with the Smalljon is Catelyn saying he "threatened to overtop his father."

So he'd be roughly the same height, though probably slightly shorter.

Where was Dunk measured? Being one inch shy of 7 feet seems slightly too tall.

If the Laughing Storm is a physical stand-in for Robert (and wow, was he ever) and he was "the only one who could look Dunk in the eye" then Dunk would only be slightly taller than 6'6".

Kind of like how Lem and Greenbeard were described as the only men present who could look the Hound in the eye, and we were told that Greenbeard was taller still than Lem.

There's lots of inference, but it's really not hard to follow if you just pay attention.

[Ran]

"The Sworn Sword":

Egg’s brother Aemon had measured him in Oldtown and found he lacked an inch of seven feet, but that was half a year ago. He might have grown since.

[MightilyOats]

Ahh that makes sense, I have only read the Hedge Knight. I guess Dunk was only 16 or 17 or whatever when he first appeared, so that makes sense.

I just really wanted Dunk and I to be the same height (6'8")

But I guess I'm still as tall as the Hound, so life goes on.

[Alex Tran]

The think the 5 tallest ppl are..

1. Gregor 7'8

2. Greatjon 6'10

2. Hodor 6'10

4. Andrik 6'9

5. Brienne 6'7

[MightilyOats]

Brienne is shorter than the Hound, Victarion, Left and Right, Andrik, Hodor and the Greatjon.

Oh, and Bronze Yohn.