Creepypasta is a horror story in the format of a photograph, video or story. Placed on the Internet. Differs in surprise, may have a prehistory, always leads to an adrenaline rush.
Creepypasta is a word resulting from a combination of two English concepts: creepy (creepy) and copypasta (copy-paste). The origin of the term took place on one of the English-language forums, where users actively posted various posts with scary stories.
History of appearance
The creepypasta is narrated to the user as he sits alone with a computer screen in a gloomy room. In such a situation, when reading it, horror begins to seize. This is the main feature of modern Internet horror stories. The sensations and adrenaline rush in the process are so vivid that there is a desire to experience them again.
In most cases, the heroes are the inhabitants of real life or the future. Among them you can find monsters, ghosts. There are also horror stories for fans of bloody scenes. Creepy content first gained popularity overseas when 4chan took advantage of the hype to attract new users to its site.
Psychedelic videos and audio recordings quickly leaked into the Russian-speaking part of the Internet. A "Russian dvach" appeared, which put similar videos, photos, posts for its visitors. Such creepy tracks are distinguished by unexpected sounds, for example, the slam of a door, the clang of knives.
Focusing on urban legends and the history of the yellow press, the authors of the first creepypastas understood perfectly how to excite the reader. Back in the late 90s of the last century, anonymous creators began to use real deaths and suicides to create legends. Dead people's accounts were easily hacked to send out sinister content. At first, the "damn videos" were popular, which are a cut of various elements of mass culture. The video was often accompanied by a legend. Example: After watching a video, people went crazy.
Genres
Several genres are popular today:
- Classic creepypastas. These include typical scary stories. They are similar to those who talk while sitting around a fire or at home surrounded by friends. Characters are more often ghosts, brownies and other representatives of the other world.
- City's legends. Mostly these are modern horror stories that appeared not so long ago. They belong to modern folklore, formed on the basis of rumors, conjectures, newspaper ducks.
- SCP-creepypasta. This is a pseudo-secret fund that collects and categorizes anomalous phenomena. The project is created on the basis of strange photographs, sometimes classic views are used.
- Rituals. This genre includes the ability to challenge someone. Includes one or more actions that must be performed for the appearance of the otherworldly guest.
- Lost episode. This is a story about only one episode from a cartoon, a film, where terrible actions take place with the characters. This genre is not yet widespread in Russia, therefore it is more common on foreign sites.
Views
Photos of creepypasta can be very intimidating, although the image remains static. One gets the impression that the character's gaze is penetrating, pulling into his eerie world. This is how horror stories work.
Another variety is screamers. In this case, the fright comes from the unexpected character in front of the viewer. Repeatedly such videos have been the cause of heart attacks, equipment breakdowns. The appearance of an unexpected character takes place against a neutral emotional background, for example, there may be a video:
- about nature;
- animals;
- birds;
- cars.
Is there a danger?
Staging, musical accompaniment, shadows - all of this is chosen in such a way as to create the most terrible image. The main element of horror stories is the effect of surprise. You can, for example, look at an incomprehensible creature, hear his breathing, expect that now he will do something unexpected. Expectations of fear, thoughtful plot twists are the main points that make creepypasta really intimidating.
Some videos can seriously affect the psyche, especially when viewed by a person with an unbalanced psyche. Therefore, there was a period when copy-paste belongs to the prohibited categories. They are especially contraindicated for viewing in childhood and adolescence, since they cause sleep disturbances, the appearance of aggression or suicidal tendencies.
Many users with a labile nervous system are addicted to horror stories. There is a desire to constantly receive an adrenaline rush into the blood.
Popular characters
In the vastness of the Internet, some characters have become not only recognizable, but also very popular. These include:
- Slenderman. This is a tall man with unhealthy thinness, numerous tentacle arms. He has no face, and his skull is simply covered with leather. Has the ability to teleport, read minds. Sometimes he attacks people, but what he does with them is unknown.
- Jeffrey Woods is a teenager who was doused with acid during a fight. When he saw himself in the mirror, he "lost his mind." To always smile, Jeffy cut open his mouth so as not to see his image - cut out his eyes. Tends to kill other people out of revenge, leaning around the world. Comes only to those whose eyes are blindfolded with a red rag.
- Ben the Drowned is a computer virus that appears as an elf wearing a green T-shirt and cap. Blood flows from his completely black eyes. According to one story, Ben is a boy who was obsessed with a famous computer game. In it, he could achieve significant success, but in real life he was a failure. The courtyard boys mocked him for a long time, and then threw him off the bridge. After his death, Ben got into computer games.
Thus, creepypasta is a new direction, movement in the global web. Not only stories are created, but also mechanisms for calling various characters. Many scientists, psychotherapists sound the alarm - the created images and videos have a detrimental effect on the nervous system. Sometimes the creation of such files is attributed to the military who produced psychotropic weapons. Today, you can often read that rumors about creepypasta come true. Usually such posts belong to adolescents, but no one can be sure that at such moments there are no changes in the child's brain. Psychologists do not recommend getting involved in this area. If the desire to get to know him is great, it is best to do this in a large company.