The Slender Man
The Slender Man is an alleged paranormal figure purported to have been in existence for centuries, covering a large geographic area. Believers in the Slender Man tie his appearances in with many other legends around the world, including; Fear Dubh (or, The Dark Man) in Scotland, the Dutch Takkenmann (Branch Man), and the German legend of Der Großmann or Der Grosse Mann (the Tall Man).
Creepy is definitely the right word to describe him.
Anyone reading the news this weekend are likely asking themselves, “Who is Slender Man?” and “What on Earth is Creepypasta?!”… and they have good reason to be both curious and concerned.
Headlines today proclaimed that 16-year-old Anissa Weier of Milwaukee, WI, was sentenced to 25-years in a mental institution for the attempted second-degree homicide she was a party to in 2014, when she and friend Morgan Geyser, 15, lured another girl, Payton Leutner, into local woods, to “play hide-and-seek.” Instead of taking part in an innocent game, however, Geyser viciously stabbed Leutner “everywhere” a total of 19 times, after which Weier suggested that she “lie down so she wouldn’t lose blood so quickly,” Geyser told her to stay quiet, and the two left her for dead.
What is the Slender Man?
An entry into the competition from ‘Victor Surge’, real name Eric Knudsen, consisted of two black and white images of groups of children. He had added a tall, thin figure wearing a black suit. He gave the character the name The Slender Man. Due to the addition of text, the photographs became a work of fiction and others expanded on the character and his story. Knudsen’s intention was to “formulate something whose motivations can barely be comprehended, and [which caused] unease and terror in a general population”. His creation soon went viral as fanart and online fiction followed on.
But what is ‘The Slender Man’?
A fictional Internet character, The Slender Man is known for his ghastly appearance, unnaturally long arms and torso, and always wears a dark suit. According to the myth, he hypnotises his victims, mostly children, and his followers must show their dedication by killing.
When and how did it originate?
The Slender Man first appeared on Something Awful Forums in 2009 as part of a contest in which users altered seemingly normal images, adding horror elements using photoshop. A user known as ‘Victor Surge’ posted two black and white photographs of children haunted by a paranormal creature described as The Slender Man.
Appearance
The Slender Man is a being (male in appearance) who looks like a man with extremely long, slender arms and legs. He also appears to have 4 to 8 long, black tentacles that protrude from his back, though different photographs and enthusiasts disagree on this fact, and therefore it is theorized he can ‘contract’ these tentacles at will. He is described as wearing a black suit strikingly similar to the visage of the notorious Men In Black, and as the name suggests, appears very thin and able to stretch his limbs and torso to inhuman lengths in order to induce fear and ensnare his prey. Once his arms are outstretched, his victims are put into something of a hypnotized state, where they are utterly helpless to stop themselves from walking into them. He is also able to create tendrils from his fingers and back that he uses to walk on in a similar fashion to Doctor Octopus. The superhuman stretching ability could also be seen as a similarity between himself and Mr Fantastic. Whether he absorbs, kills, or merely takes his victims to an undisclosed location or dimension is also unknown as there are never any bodies or evidence left behind in his wake to deduce a definite conclusion. His face is pale and slightly ghostly, and almost appears to have been wrapped in a type of gauze or cloth. his facial features are also an object of debate, and many people believe that his face looks different to each person, if it is seen at all. He sometimes is portrayed wears a hat, which is sometimes a bowler, a fedora, or sometimes a tophat. He may also be seen wearing a long flowing necktie or scarf, which is either red or grey. He often keeps his long, pale hands crossed politely behind his back or hanging loosely at his sides. His suit is black, sometimes portrayed as pinstripe in artwork, a common misconception thanks to the very similar Jack Skellington from Nightmare Before Christmas. He has long coattails which he lets flow proudly. He wears long dress shoes, which are always shined a perfect, gleaming black.
What is the Slender Man case?
The reach of the Slender Man had become so far that in 2014 the character was heavily linked to the stabbing of a 12-year-old girl, Payton Leutner. She had been lured to the woods near her home in Wisconsin, US, stabbed 19 times and left for dead. The reason for the attack by Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser, both now 15, was to prove the existence of the Slender Man. They told police they wanted to prove their loyalty to him and become his followers. The two girls believed he was real and said they stabbed their classmate to protect their families from harm. They said they believed the only way to become a follower of the character was to murder someone – after this, they claimed they thought they would be his servants and live in his mansion. Payton survived the attack and managed to crawl out of the woods where she was found by a cyclist with stab wounds to her chest, abdomen and arms. Weier and Gyser were caught walking into the woods after the attack, in the hope of meeting The Slender Man. In December 2017, Weier was sentenced to be committed to a psychiatric hospital for 25 years. In February 2018, Geyser was sentenced to spend 40 years in a mental health unit.
Comments
Post a Comment