Size Problems in Redwall

[Yves]

Everyone knows that Redwall is the land of foxes, ferrets, mice, hamsters, kites, owls, adders, and so forth. They live together in some sort of pseudo-medieval society, conducting war, building great semi-feudal societies, and so forth.

Now, at times, it would seem that all the creatures are more or less the same size. Sure, a badger might be bigger than a mouse, but otherwise, they seem to have been brought to basically anthropomorphic standards. For instance, foxes, ferrets, rats, and mice all seem to be about the same size in some artwork and fights in the book. For instance, in Triss, the famous squirrel maid is shown on several chapter-arts to be about the same size as Kruga, a ferret, who is, in other pieces, shown to be about the same size as a fox, who is shown to be large enough to reasonably take on a badger.

However, in other pieces, the animals are treated more realistically. Cluny, a rat from Redwall, uses a horse, which is large enough to carry a full wagon of rats, to carry his troops. Similarly, mice and moles are shown riding hares like steeds in Mossflower, with as many as two to a back.

So, how does it work? What are the actual sizes of Redwall's denizens and neighbors in comparison to one another?

[Grath]

No one really knows. Jacques himself said "I like to let my readers figure that out for themselves. The creatures are as big or small as you want." While thats not the exact quote, I'll dig around and try to find it.

Myself, personally, I take them and put them in a human-like setting. Hares and foxes and the like are tall, I usually picture them as 5'7''-6'2''(including things like ears). Otters would probably fall under this category or the next, 4'10''-5'6'', which I generally place shrews and mice and the like in. A short squirrel, even.

Badgers are 6'3''+, but no taller than 7', and maybe not that. Of course, these aren't all inclusive or exclusive. I place them in these categories in my mind to help place them size-wise, but I don't describe them as 'name_here is six feet tall and built in such-and-such-a-way.'

Help any?

[ferretface]

That is a very strange cover for a Redwall book...

I consider mice (and voles) to be about the size of a thirteen-year old human, shrews a bit bigger, and far more belligerent. Rats are about the size of shrews, averaging a bit larger.

Then the 'medium' races. These are squirrels and the Mustelidae. Squirrels are about the size of an average person, in my view at least. Then the weasels, ferrets, stoats and otters are about the same, except that I imagine ferrets a bit taller and thinner, with smaller arms and legs, otters a bit taller, weasels broader or taller but usually not both and stoats a bit broader and shorter. Then hares, who are as tall and broad as your average pro basketballer, foxes who are around that, then badgers who are...well, huge. Too big to have a comparison to any human...perhaps a bipedal, musclebound tiger?

Anyway, that's how I think of it. Even though it's kinda ridiculous to think of my idea of a badger and a mouse fighting together...or a 'thirteen-year old child' effortlessly skewering dozens of 'pro basketballers' (foxes) with a shiny sword...

[Ashstripe]

Funny, in my little fantasy world shrews are just tall enough to slice the knee-caps of most of Redwall's denizens. I imagined them to be a bit more smaller and stockier than the mice.

Again, in my little world that has no logic or reason other than what my mind conjures from the stories is that the hares are about a head shorter than your average Badger. So the particularly tall specimen's ears reach the Badger's face.

Birds of prey tend to be inconsistent IIRC, or birds in general for that matter. Sparra are shown to be even smaller than Mice in Redwall if my memory serves me correctly. With Warbeak being kept in a cage by Methuselah and Matthias. The larger varieties in my mind are roughly the same as a Badger, a bit smaller maybe. The Owl in Redwall is shown to be a giant while Skarlath in Outcast of Redwall can sit comfortably on Sunflash's arm.

As I think it was tSoMtW pointed out in one of our threads, Redwall is the least reliable source for sizes as BJ was still fleshing the world out.

Otters fall into roughly the same height with hares and foxes in my imagination. Squirrels one or two heads shorter, maybe less. Moles are the same as Squirrels, maybe a bit bulkier.

Mice are a tad bit shorter, Voles are roughly the same and Shrews are the little stumps of the group, the equivalent of Dwarves really.

Adders and snakes are simply Giants. Capable of eating the smaller denizens whole.

Again this is all from my imagination and take from reading the stories, no real logic or reasoning behind it.

[Redmask the fox]

Who needs logic in Redwall any way? I normally picture them roughly the same size. But foxes and hares larger. I always make Badgers the largest though...

[redwalldibbun]

I also make them all generaly the same size maybe the mouse abit smaller and so on but i think badgers as giants smashing rats left and right but thats just me