Slender Man
Fictional supernatural entity created in 2009 by Eric Knudsen for a Photoshop contest on Something Awful forums, depicted as a tall, faceless figure that became an internet urban legend and was linked to real-world violence.
Slender Man was created on June 10, 2009, by Eric Knudsen (username "Victor Surge") for a paranormal image contest on the Something Awful internet forums. Knudsen digitally inserted a tall, dark, faceless figure into vintage photographs of children, adding accompanying text describing mysterious disappearances associated with the entity.
The character was depicted as an unnaturally tall, thin figure wearing a black suit, with a blank white face and tentacle-like appendages extending from its back. According to the fictional mythology Knudsen created, Slender Man stalked children and caused unexplained disappearances, often photographed in the background before victims vanished.
The Slender Man concept rapidly spread across internet communities, inspiring user-generated content including videos, stories, artwork, and video games. The "Marble Hornets" YouTube series, beginning in 2009, popularized the character through found-footage horror videos that portrayed Slender Man as an active supernatural threat.
The fictional entity gained widespread recognition through various media adaptations, including video games like "Slender: The Eight Pages" and eventually commercial films. The character became a prominent example of collaborative internet folklore, with thousands of users contributing to its expanding mythology.
Slender Man gained notoriety following the 2014 Waukesha stabbing incident, when two 12-year-old girls stabbed a classmate 19 times, claiming they were trying to appease Slender Man and prevent him from harming their families. The victim survived, and both perpetrators were convicted and sentenced to decades in mental health institutions.
The case raised questions about the influence of internet folklore on impressionable individuals and the potential psychological effects of creepypasta culture. Experts noted that while the Slender Man story was explicitly fictional, its presentation in realistic formats could blur the line between fantasy and reality for vulnerable individuals.
Additional incidents have been linked to Slender Man, including a 2014 arson case in Ohio and various reports of concerning behavior among young people obsessed with the character, demonstrating how fictional internet content can have real-world consequences.
A related topic is Creepypasta.
Bibliography:
- Chess, Shira. Ready Player Two
- Peck, Andrew. The Slender Man Phenomenon
- Court documents from Waukesha case