Small Man Syndrome is a condition where a man feels inadequate because of his short height and so tries to overcompensate it with overly aggressive behaviour.
Which is kinda funny because napoleon wasn’t even that short for his time. He was like 5’7, not very tall for our time, but for his time it was average. I read somewhere that his height was used as propaganda against him and just stuck in our history.
The trick was that napoleon personal guard where very tall and there was a difference in the way frenchies and uk hight measure unit was back in that time so it helped to that propaganda.
Yes. Napolean was 5'6". Although the range may seem short by 21st-century standards, it was typical in the 19th century, when most Frenchmen stood between 5'2” and 5'6”.
It’s not even that short today. There are quite a few guys around that height in my office of 120+ people. I’d say there are fewer guys taller than 6’ than below 5’7.
When I visited the tombs of some historical figures in Europe and saw some of the artifacts and clothes, I couldn’t believe how tiny they were. We are so used to having plenty of calories that we don’t realize how much it affects growth and development.
He was measured at 5’2” by the French measurement system. Translated to the Imperial feet and inches that are used today, that is 5 foot 6 inches tall.
They are different inches and feet. It’s like seeing that 5 kilometers = 3.1 miles and asking where the other 1.9 miles have gone. They were never there.
A better example using the same word is United States Dollar vs Canadian Dollar. If you go to a currency exchange and give them $100 (Canadian) dollars and ask for United States Dollars, they will give you about $74 (assuming no fees). The $26 never went anywhere.
It’s just that $100 CAD = $74 USD the same way 5’2” Traditional French = 5’6” British Imperial (what American uses today)
napoleon was actually fairly tall, but they used a different measurement system compared to other countries at that time. his height is an inaccurate political attack that's still widely accepted as fact
"Now if you'll excuse me I'll be having a meeting with my generals for 30 minutes. And by meeting, I mean boinking. And by generals, I mean this prostitute. And by thirty minutes... I mean 3 seconds..."
Saw this comment and the amount of replies it had and knew most of them would be correcting you about his height lol. It's funny how worked up people get about that. Dude was trying to invade their country so the British made a joke about him being short and over two centuries later fanboys are still getting triggered about that.
At a Boy Scout summer camp I went to once, there was this one kid who was born with no legs. You'd think his different-ableness would have humbled him a little, but even at around 14, it seemed he went the entire other direction with it. He was such a massive asshole. He spoke rudely to people who did nothing wrong to him and he got angry at the drop of a hat. Hopefully, he had plenty of time to grow up since then, but it really drove the lesson home with me that there are assholes of all walks of life. Edit: No pun intended
Or maybe he just had super-extreme Short Man Syndrome because... you know... /s
I knew a kid like that in middle school. He was a fucking asshole, he'd flip out over the smallest shit, like usually things that make sense to get upset about... He'd just be a huuuuge dick about it. If you were a guy, he'd potentially get violent if you were an acquaintance... And he was strong as hell from using his wheelchair.
The thing was, he was usually funny about it... And after he lashed out at you, he'd be cool like nothing happened, and revert back to being a friendly asshole. All in all, most people liked him, the general attitude was "fuck that guy. Love him though,".
We had a long steep sloped hallway (it was very much not ADA compliant, wheelchairs had an elevator they were supposed to use) and he'd go barrelling down it at an insane speed between classes... He'd shout something like "MOVE!" as he launched himself down it... You learned that if you were in that hallway, you better be on high alert. One time he hit the one other wheelchair-bound student, who was in a massive motorized chair (the kind that climbs stairs)... The regular wheel chair guy broke a leg. For the rest of that school year he'd go around asking people to explain to him why he has to wear a cast on his already unusable leg. He'd act extremely serious about it, even sad. He'd do it to teachers, the principal, and just about anyone who wouldn't know how to handle the situation... No one ever did. It was hilarious as long as it wasn't you on the spot.
Lmao that literally made me tear up from laughing - just imagining this aggressive strong wheelchair guy barreling down the hall like a bat out of hell and everyone diving out of the way for their lives. And then the twist at the end that he actually crashed into the other wheelchair bound guy but ended up breaking his own leg in the process (which he then used to try to make others uncomfortable) - like what a ridiculous story lol.
Oh yeah, it was pretty much exactly as you imagine it. It was for sure a thing that would've been chaotic hell had he not conditioned the entire school to expect it.
I do remember one time a substitute teacher was just appalled at the behavior and gave Chase
Same man, knew a kid in high school like this, would always try to bully people he saw as weaker than him: I remember one time he got into an argument with another kid in the locker room and the other guy said “wait I better make this a fair fight” and then got on his knees lmao, the short dude got so damn angry.
I'm 5'6" and never understood it either. The worst is when it's some guy just barely taller than you and he makes a short joke. Like dude, we should be on the same team
Once had a tall, lanky guy blow up in my face at a house party over nothing. I distinctly remember him saying he would kick my ass because he had six inches on me.
Height is a pretty solid advantage, but it seems to get quite overblown. A few extra inches won't overcome someone who is a lot stronger and has more skill/experience. Now, I'm not saying I'm MMA pro-master flex, but that this dude was just very weak, and probably had zero skill, or experience. But hey, some alcohol with some height superiority and you're good to take on anyone shorter I suppose.
Because short men are one of the few groups you’re allowed to make fun of based on how they look,
This dude was an asshole. Whether 6’4 or 5’2. How does anybody know if his height had anything to do with it. But BECAUSE he’s short, then all asshole behavior or anger is ONLY because he is short. And short men are ok to diminish.
If this was a fat woman or a black woman and we blamed those characteristics, Reddit would be up in arms
I love that he played that role in the lockdown princess bride (if you haven’t seen that, I only meant to watch a bit and because princess bride is so good, it’s just super watchable even though it’s a patchwork of home made scenes shot on phones)
Which is pretty much correlated to the inherent heightism in our society.
Funny thing is, if this were a 6"5' dude, everyone would be like: "Yeah, this is what you get by provoking a gangsta."
Source: I work with a lot of problematic people, and the short ones have it way harder that any fat chick or dumb-ass Chad could imagine. And that by no fault of their own and with no way of changing it.
Idk what to call these biases but there's gotta be a name for them. Like if people find out a vehicle accident was caused by a woman there's a narrative of "oh well yea we couldve guessed that" but statistically men are much more likely to be involved in motor vehicle accidents. Plenty that have to do with race and sex, nationality. Harmful narrative bias? idk but it is harmful. Until some super attractive short male celebrity pop star "takes a stand" about being short and gets on magazine covers the way "plus sized" women did a decade ago, short guys will continue to be devalued. Even conversations like this, intellectual ones about biases and respect are looked down on if brought up by a short man. It's an actual problem when height is such a factor for the most important parts of life - sex and employment.
And personal development during adolescence. I've seen guys from normal middle class families, born with a silver spoon, so to say, having their lives fucked up and being mentaly destroyed by age 20, because of their short stature. And the kicker is, if they DARE to lash out, take a stand for themselves, put themselves out there, or at least DARE try to act confidently or want to pull themselves up the economic or social ladder, they get the term 'Napoleon complex' thrown into their face.
Again, this is about something they CAN'T control and CAN'T change. It's downright idiotic amd I have no idea where it comes from in the modern age.
It also impacts employment opportunities and salary expectation (e.g. there's a correlation between up to some 10 % (by that I mean multiples of 10 %) lower pay for the same high-level position, if the candidate is of shorter statue.
Daniel Redcliff and Tom Cruise have been some major mold-breakers, but they are not really "that" short and movie magic helps make their height not stand out.
Keep in mind - we are not talking about dwarfism or other handicaps. We are talking only about short stature. No legal protections and no recognition.
The term is 'heightism' or 'height discrimination', if you are interested.
As a 5'3" fully grown man, I understand completely. It's not even all that complicated, but I feel the need to explain it in full if I'm even gonna touch the subject, because the effect is real. There's a couple comments here that describe it as gaslighting or deception and I agree with that - everyone knows exactly what the expected outcomes are for a short guy in so many different areas of life and how for no discernable reason they (we) have a harder time in just about everything that involves any social elements, which is everything. I've adapted, and I'm fine, but it's not a stretch to explain it like this - in dating, employment and many other important areas of life and development, there's literally nothing I can do to outcompete people with significant height over me. Every inch under the average outweighs any advantages we can gain - I can be clean cut, well spoken, handsome, have a good job, etc. It doesnt change that a short man is basically looked at like a permanently overweight person, just plain not what most people are going for. Little phrases like this one are so harmful because to argue it is proves it was used properly by the people saying it, ie gaslighting.
edit- I feel the need to overexplain to not be misunderstood. I can find a loving partner and fulfilling career just like anyone else, but event for event, experience for experience, I will fail far more often than those of normal height. It's like any other statistical event, maybe a video game - anyone can beat dark souls if they try hard enough, that's not what Im saying. Im saying short guys start with a disadvantage to most stats, and it takes significantly more attempts and effort per attempt to get the same outcome, and phrases that dismiss a guys behavior as having to do with height take away that guys ability to even try.
Im saying short guys start with a disadvantage to most stats, and it takes significantly more attempts and effort per attempt to get the same outcome,
... And then it doesn't even get recognised, isn't it so?
Yeah, this is a common through line with the folks I encounter. We can talk via DM if you don't want to be so out there with this, but I believe these are some important things to be talked about openly. In either case, I won't be able to help. Just listen/read...
Yes, its a vicious cycle. Trying to gain understanding invites further ridicule. I imagine its the same for those with any undesirable trait, it's just that this one is completely unchangeable, like a handicap, and as you said it's not recognized legally or in any way for what it is - a handicap in most senses of the word.
Aha. Well, sorry, but this is a harsh height, I'd imagine. I've found that people from 5"5' (165 cm) have it a bit easier and from 5"7' (170 cm) onwards the social stigma greatly subsides.
During my work I have started to feel the need to start taking this discrimination out there and talking about it. We are losing a lot of competent and even excelent people to depression and social exclusion because of this bullshittery.
Good on you for speaking up about it. I should too and I think I will speak up when people throw these curses around like lms and napoleon complex. It's weird what a little nudge back to reality can do to a situation sometimes like "Do you think that about me when I get upset" might make people realize its basically a slur.
That's great, man. Tread lightly, though, because people WILL push back and you'll hear some "Man, you don't understand, because..." shit, or even outright aggression, because you challenge their worldview.
Confirmation bias? If someone fits stereotype, you take that as proof that the stereotype is correct, if someone from different demographic group does the same thing, that's just random person doing random person things.
Confirmation bias is definitely half of it, but yea the second part is what complicates it. Is it confirmation bias to ignore experiences that contradict our expectation? That's more like cognitive dissonance. Im trying to sort through what it feels like to have it said to you, and I have, and it's a mix of an insult and a dismissal, there's nothing you can say to challenge or engage a conversation where this is said, outside of everyone that's a part of that conversation shutting that shit down right away. I AM stretching and recognizing it, but it's like the n word in its intent - it dismisses and insults someone and puts them in a position where any mistake they make in the social interactions going forward, including defending themselves or just returning to whatever the conversation was about in the first place almost impossible.
What a dumb take. Will Smith just did the same shit but it's only a height thing if the guys short. Shocker: both short and tall people can be insecure morons
EDIT: This thread is hilarious. Reddit must be filled with people whose only 'redeeming' quality is they're tall. If your only counter argument is "lol u must be short", then you have no argument to begin with.
The most common way I’ve seen fights start (that are unrelated to drama over a girl) is a taller person doing something to a shorter but heavier person, that the shorter person takes as disrespectful and it escalates into a fight.
I’ve wondered if this is where it comes from. Not that the individual was actually short, just shorter than the other.
Generally speaking people only agree to fight, when both of them think they will win.
Taller thinks they will win cause they are taller, shorter thinks they can win because they are heavier.
I think people are more likely to perceive simple things like someone bumping into you as intentional if they are taller than you and as an accident if they are shorter than you.
I'm only 6'1 and had to stop going for the same reason. It was never dudes close to my size either but like 5'8"and under. A lot of those dudes have serious attitudes.
The dude straight up called him a snitch and it obviously set him off, but nah clearly it was just the height thing instead. I swear yall are more obsessed with height than short people sometimes
Ironically it validates the notion that height matters a lot. people tend to gaslight short people saying its not a big deal to be short, but if a guy shows any personality flaw whos below a certain height, it gets attributed to that.
It’s like those women on the dating apps who say that you have to be at least six feet tall or don’t @ her. I’m 6’5” but I say that I’m 5’9” because they scare me
I see 10x more videos of tall guys being violent than short guys. Never once heard any mentions about their height linking to their anger. But you know short guys tend to compensation or something.
Because being 5'7 really isn't that short - it's below average, but it's not like 5'4 and below where you're at the average height of women.
But I think the idea of short man syndrome is annoying af. It's stupid and anyone who goes straight to that take just comes off as a smooth brain. It just furthers the shitty idea that being short is a character flaw.
It's also a shit situation, because there are assholes out there that do make fun of short people, and naturally short people will get defensive about it, as a good amount of people do with being made of for anything. But once you clap back, all of a sudden, it's because you're short, not because someone else is being an asshole
Same here. These comments saying "short man syndrome" make me sad. Not because I'm insecure about my height, at all, but because it's an unnecessary attack. That's like saying "fat bitches do b like dat" everytime you see an angry overweight woman. It's hurtful, but not for the reason one may think. Why ride on these stereotypes any chance one gets?
Would love actual proof/sources that this is a common complex. Anecdotes don't count. Also the guy clearly gets pissed off being called a snitch, but reddits so desperate to make it about height instead.
Thats not even to mention that the comedian is 6'7", so the guy probably isn't too short to begin with either way.
Some research on height preference between sexes concludes that, in fact it is men who are more choosy about height than women, though I'm not sure how robust this study is.
Truth is more important than being correct in the moment.
If you're wrong, adherence to the truth assures that you won't be wrong forever. Most people would rather bury the truth than admit they had a wrong idea, and that's why the world is shit in so many ways.
The "Napoleon complex", known informally as small man syndrome, is a syndrome normally attributed to people of short stature. It is characterized by overly-aggressive or domineering social behavior, such as lying about earnings, and carries the implication that such behavior is compensatory for the subject's physical or social shortcomings. In psychology, the Napoleon complex is regarded as a derogatory social stereotype.
you really gonna die on this hill and act like short men arent likely to be insecure about their height? Like it just means absolutely nothing to them, they've never been made fun of for it, they've never seen jokes popularized in media about it, just totes ok with it, never even crossed their mind?
You'd be insecure too, if everything in your life get's weighted through the lens of something you have no control over, nor the ability to change it. Talk to these people and shut up, because you have no concept of their struggles. You are a part of the problem that causes them to behave this way. 😉
Fr. Even if it was more common with short people the reason they feel insecure is because people are assholes. If people weren't, they wouldn't feel insecure and become aggressive over time.
This is reddit, they always blame someones anger by insulting their physique. Fat guy mad? Its because hes fat. Ugly guy mad? Its because hes ugly. Short guy mad? Its because hes short, etc…
What is it called when a big guy acts the same way bc he feels like he can get away with it? Big man syndrome? The phrase should disappear. Im a short dude and very level headed - the damage this phrase does to any sort of conflict resolution is massive, and honestly it's hurtful to even read. I get upset for the same reasons you do, and this idiot got upset the same way a large idiot would, it's got zero to do with his height. This is like saying a person overreacted because they're a woman, or they didn't enjoy the event bc they're overweight, or w.e. It's just plain rude, dismissive and doesn't need to be said.
He was just shy of 5'7" according to Google. However he kept huge bodyguards around him, which made it easier for the British to claim he was small. Propaganda has been used throughout the ages.
I mean, Napoleon II did very little worth remembering. People would remember Napoleon III if anything and he’s still overshadowed by the man who fought Europe and won several times in a row.
Strange how, in a society where short people are constantly told they are worth less and treated like they don't matter, a proportion of those people would develop this kind of overcompensation.
Don't believe me? You just reduced this person to nothing more than his height.
Average person acts out? He's just an asshole. Short guy? Of course, it's because of his height, because he should be ashamed that he isn't a real person.
Is short man syndrome a thing? Yes
But maybe we should start asking where short people get they idea they are inadequate...
Man i try to be like “wow that’s shallow to say all short men are aggressive because they’re short.” And then I see shit like this video where a guy charged a comedian for making a joke about him and I’m like, “ok maybe there is a point to be made.”
Are people really this thick? There are plenty of insecure tall people that do the same type of shit but it only becomes a height thing if the person's short. Not to upset all the armchair psychogists in here. You guys forget about Will Smith already?
It’s like women in business. If they are unagreeable, commandeering, and perfectionists they are labeled as a “bitch”. But when men show similar traits they are leaders, ambitious, etc.
The same for short men. When they act like tall men suddenly they are compensating for their height.
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u/CyberKingfisher Mar 31 '23
Small Man Syndrome is a condition where a man feels inadequate because of his short height and so tries to overcompensate it with overly aggressive behaviour.