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Ok, a somewhat philosophical topic: What is "long" hair? Some people come to the "Men's Long Hair Hyperboard" talking about Tom Cruise in MI:2. I don't really consider his hair in that movie to be "long" (maybe it's just me though). But then, where does the distinction lie between "long-ish" hair, and those like Victor, Doomlord, Absalom, and Hair Religion?
I don't personally consider my hair to be "long" (dang, it's shorter than Tom Cruise's), but somebody refered to me the other day as "the juggler with the long hair". Go figure.
Just wondering what your opinions were.
As Always,
That "Ball" Guy
Long hair is what you say it is. I have heard from people with extremely long hair that they consider waist length short :)
IMO:
It's all relative.
I don't care about terms. My hair was always long since it covered the ears, and I liked it's growing. I think I can not get enough, limited only by genetics and by social interactions. From the top of the head to the ends it's length now is 70cm, and I think it is long in any consideration.
wolfgang
The word "long" is a word of relativeness, but no one quibbles over hair lengths at the extremes. The question seriously only crops up at intermediate lengths.
Two factors cause men to avoid certain lengths in the intermediate range. One is the awkward stage and the other is that a lot of women consider the "barely longer than awkward" point as being the shortest length that feels feminine. Thus, most men grow through the awkward stage and the bob stage (because it's frequently seen on girls) as quickly as they can. This length at which you see less men becomes a natural dividing point in the public's eye in its creation of two groups of men. Those on the long side are, of course, the ones that members of the public will label as "longhairs". About the time your hair will lay upon your shoulders, about the time you can get it all easily into a decent tail, you have "arrived".
Once you're at the "longhair" length, a lot of the "you look like a girl" and other slurs drop off. You are not a question mark anymore. You are a longhaired man.
Hair shorter than that length, and longer than what will just stay neat due to its short length, is in a sort of no-man's-land for men. A few men decide to leave their hair at that length, but most don't opt for "medium", so the public strives to classify them "long" or "short". A gal with a bob is said to have a short hair style, but few would call that short hair on a man. Not comfortable with the word "medium" for men, the public tends to opt for "longish" instead.
The word "longish" works good. It points in our direction, which is probably where the man is headed. (After all, how many men going from long to short do YOU know who take a year to slowly trim themselves back through the bob and awkward stages!) Yet the word longish also points out that he is not at the long length that is generally seen as a stable end result for men.
I see some guys on here aiming for longish styles that they've seen on movie stars. Such men often don't get to grow their hair out very long due to changing roles, so they'll opt for a style that is still in the longish range, knowing they'll achieve being read as longer than the norm. The problem with such lengths for you and me, of course, is that we don't have the makeup van nearby to keep straightening it all day. Yeah, that's why movie stars don't seem to have the awkward stage, well, unless having things mussed up is part of the scene. :-)
Personally, I apply "longish" over a wide range. Any growth beyond "did you miss a haircut?" to "just touching your shoulders" qualifies. However, if anyone else wants to call a man with hair in that range as "long", my attitude is, "that's his choice". "Long" is a relative word, and his life may relate to different experiences.
What is long hair? Any hair that's longer than mine. :-)
>Ok, a somewhat philosophical topic: What is "long" hair?
When is your hair long? When people tell you that it is
time to get a haircut It's all relative. For me long hair
is waist length. If all the people you work with have
buzz cuts then collar length would be considered long.
IMHO hair would be considered long when the length is beyond the
norm. (Where you work the norm may be a buzz cut.)
Nick, I agree with you. Waist length is long hair. Mid-back length isn't really long hair, IMO...
-J
What is long hair...
Well, for a start long hair is hair that looks long.
You generally won't find guys with extreme growth calling others with somewhat shorter hair "short". They have all been there at every stage already and have been longhairs for years, at various stages.
It's a different state of mind than a shorthair (someone who keeps cutting their hair short) as well as sometimes a "challenge" to different social "norms". But just because you have 3-4 inch hair after chucking the buzzcut that you used to prefer, it doesn't mean that you now have long hair. At certain points it is obivous just as short hair is quite obivous, but since there is no one length of hair and the rate of hair growth is somewhat slow, other ideas along with length need to be considered in response to the question.
I think that one factor is the length of hair in porportion to different body parts (ears, shoulders, blades, waist, etc.) as markers. Different bodies are different sizes so you see how this can make a difference as opposed to some kind of standard length. The little girl that has hair down to her waist stands next to me and my hair at my waist is twice as long. There the measurement of length doesn't matter but porportions do. Or take the example of the small woman with the big boobs. They look big on her but next to a larger women with with big boobs her's now look smaller. Again, the size in regards to the body frame is what determines the definition.
It takes time to grow long hair and the proof is in the pudding. Do you have the patience and mindset to get it to where you can say, "this is long hair and it's going to keep getting longer"?
Some guys starting out get too worried that they are getting left out of the group of those considered to have long hair, but that's missing the point as growing long hair is a long term choice and if you don't have it now then eventually you will. It's not a race or a passing fancy, it's the development of a lifestyle and becomes the extention of your personality as opposed to an imitation of a short term trend by some famous celebrity.
Those words of yours, Hair Religion, bring to mind a milestone in my growth. I was walking in Golden Gate Park and some strangers who wanted to chat with me called out, "Hey longhair!"
"Damn, they called me a longhair!" ricocheted through my mind. I was ecstatic for the rest of the day.
Getting labeled by other people is a very important milestone. It speaks with the greatest of force that you've arrived.
You are correct, if it looks long (usually to others) then it can be considered long even though you can imagine longer.
Thanks for adding that.
Actually, I think that would be kind of funny. 'Hey, shorthair!'
(even though the guy may have long hair, but shorter than yours). :-)
Its certainly a matter of perspective.
To my friends with really short hair I have "Long Hair" but its only 7 inches on top and collar length at the back. The same applies with people who haven't seen me for a few months or even a year. They are more familiar with me having short hair so now my hair is much longer and they consider me to have long hair now too.
However, to someone who has already grown out and has very long hair, my hair is going to seem short.
Bill makes a good point with the fact that there is normally a clear divide between mens short hair styles and long hair styles as Generally Men don't wear mid-length styles. Which is probably a shame as there are many good mid-length styles, eg: Tom Cruise MI:2. And there's no reason not to try them out whilst your growing out.
But is that long? It depends on where you are looking at it from.
Generally though if you want to objective about it and place some boundaries on it I suppose long hair is easily defined as shoulder length or longer. Short hair is under 4" inches on top with close back and sides, whilst mid-length is anything inbetween.
I consider hair to be long if it is shoulder length or longer even though mine is well past my waistline. Absalom