Dark: ''He Is Tall, Dark, And Handsome.'' | WordReference Forums

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You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. Dark: ''He is tall, dark, and handsome.''

• Thread starter Thread starter Xavier da Silva
• Start date Start date Sep 20, 2016

Xavier da Silva

Senior Member

Brazil - In a city in the State of Goiás Brazilian Portuguese Hello everyone, I already know that the adjective "dark" can be used to describe people whose skin isn't light. I also know that when the context makes it clear that you're talking about skin, you can use "dark" on its own. But I was taking a look a Merriam-Webster and there is a sentence and an explanation that made me wonder: ''He is tall, dark, and handsome. [=he is a tall, handsome man with dark hair and eyes].'' My question: In the M-W sentence/explanation above, why do they say that "dark" refers to "hair" and "eyes" and "skin" is left out of their explanation? Is it a convention: when there's "dark" in a sentence, one must interpret it in the following order: 1st (hair color), 2nd (eye color), 3rd (skin color)? Thank you in advance! E

Edinburgher

Senior Member

Scotland German/English bilingual The phrase "tall, dark, and handsome" presumably originated in a society where dark-skinned people did not exist (or would not have been considered handsome ). That is why skin is left out of their explanation. Frankly, I'm surprised eyes are included. I've always understood the "dark" to refer only to hair, or possibly to clothing. The phrase is usually applied to men, by women who find these qualities attractive.

PaulQ

Senior Member

UK English - England Brutally, I suspect the phrase dates back to a time when 99.999% of Britain's population was white, Anglo-Saxon with a few Scots/Irish/Welsh thrown in. In those days nobody would ever consider calling a Black person "handsome" and there were hardly any in the UK in any case. Thus skin colour did not come into the matter.

Xavier da Silva

Senior Member

Brazil - In a city in the State of Goiás Brazilian Portuguese Thank you very much for your answers. M-W is mostly American English, and it is a current online version. They must have made a mistake when providing the definition: ''[=he is a tall, handsome man with dark hair and eyes].'' Or simply have gone crazy.

PaulQ

Senior Member

UK English - England No, I don't think they did... There is a difference between "He is tall, dark, and handsome." and "He is tall, black, and handsome."

Xavier da Silva

Senior Member

Brazil - In a city in the State of Goiás Brazilian Portuguese Yes, "dark" can be "black" and many other shades of black. Whereas "black" is only black. Am I correct? Thank you in advance! F

Forero

Senior Member

Maumelle, Arkansas, USA USA English My understanding is that, in those days, whenever they were, attractive women were "fair" and attractive men were "dark" or "swarthy". The desirable man apparently worked hard outdoors, while the desirable woman worked hard indoors. The terms mainly referred to complexion, but I suppose they could refer to hair and eyes too.

Xavier da Silva

Senior Member

Brazil - In a city in the State of Goiás Brazilian Portuguese Thank you very much. One last question: If I said today, "He is tall, dark, and handsome'', would "skin color" be the first thing that comes to mind in the USA, for example? Thank you in advance! Last edited: Sep 20, 2016 J

Juhasz

Senior Member

English - United States No, because that old phrase is well-known and we know what kind of person it describes. On the other hand, if you said of a person, "He's pretty dark," we would assume you were talking about skin color (maybe - but then again, this would be a sort of unusual thing to say, at least in anti-racist urban America).

GreenWhiteBlue

Banned

The City of New York USA - English

Xavier da Silva said: Yes, "dark" can be "black" and many other shades of black. Whereas "black" is only black. Am I correct? Click to expand...

No. As currently used in the US, "black" also means "having ancestors who come from Africa". Thus, using this terminology, Beyoncé is black, Halle Berry is black, and Alicia Keys is black. Their complexions among black people would be described as "light" rather than "dark". F

Forero

Senior Member

Maumelle, Arkansas, USA USA English

Xavier da Silva said: Thank you very much. One last question: If I said today, "He is tall, dark, and handsome'', would "skin color" be the first thing that comes to mind in the USA, for example? Thank you in advance! Click to expand...

It is pretty much a pat phrase, with "dark" meaning hardly anything more than "striking" or "tough" or who-knows-what (exotic?), having something to do with the overall "look". I don't think "dark" is particularly important to the meaning of the phrase.

Xavier da Silva

Senior Member

Brazil - In a city in the State of Goiás Brazilian Portuguese Thank you all very much. H

Hildy1

Senior Member

English - US and Canada In addition to the colour of hair (and possibly eyes), "dark" may also suggest that there is something mysterious about the man.

Dale Texas

Senior Member

El Paso, TX (raised PA, ex New Yorker) English USA

Hildy1 said: In addition to the colour of hair (and possibly eyes), "dark" may also suggest that there is something mysterious about the man. Click to expand...

Honestly, I wouldn't have thought of the "mysterious" aspect, but I think you're absolutely correct. Y

You little ripper!

Senior Member

Australia Australian English

Edinburgher said: I've always understood the "dark" to refer only to hair, or possibly to clothing. Click to expand...

Clothing?!!! E

Edinburgher

Senior Member

Scotland German/English bilingual Yes, a dark cloak would add to the mystery.

Dale Texas

Senior Member

El Paso, TX (raised PA, ex New Yorker) English USA I don't know about that one. A tall handsome blond man wearing a dark cloak being described as "tall, dark, and handsome"?. I don't think so. (Does anybody have a picture of Cary Grant? ) Y

You little ripper!

Senior Member

Australia Australian English

Edinburgher said: Yes, a dark cloak would add to the mystery. Click to expand...

The context might suggest that, Edinburgher, but I don't read 'mystery' in that expression per se. Maybe in a Victoria Holt or Barbara Cartland novel. Last edited: Sep 20, 2016

ewie

Senior Member

Manchester English English

Forero said: It is pretty much a pat phrase, with "dark" meaning hardly anything more than "striking" or "tough" or who-knows-what (exotic?), having something to do with the overall "look". I don't think "dark" is particularly important to the meaning of the phrase. Click to expand...

It means pretty much whatever you want it to mean. D

Delvo

Senior Member

American English The fact that it came from a white/caucasoid population doesn't mean skin color wasn't part of what it refers to. There's variation in skin color within a single race. Not only are people who spend much time outside darker than those who stay inside more, but men are also a few percent darker than women of the same race. (This was more obvious to the average observer when populations were less mixed.) Thus it became linked with gender in people's minds, so that dark skin was seen as a masculine trait, and being darker meant being more manly.

Dale Texas

Senior Member

El Paso, TX (raised PA, ex New Yorker) English USA Cary Grant You must log in or register to reply here. Share: Bluesky LinkedIn WhatsApp Email Share Link

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