After our class discussion we started discussing the Momo challenge and how it can be regarded as
reification.
The word reification comes from the verb 'reify' which has the meaning of regarding or treating an abstract thought as if it had a concrete or material existence. Within the definition of reification, there always is a subject and an object - a connection between the thing that we perceive directly the object and what we transform this simple object and how we, as humans, with the aid of storytelling make it and transform it, while blowing it out of proportion.
It has very much to do with our obsession that we as humans have to understand everything and find explanations for everything that seems abstract. We tend to find any kind of explanation - and for everything that is beyond our initial and humanly understanding.
In the case of Momo, there is an object and a subject - the object of the challenge is the sculpture of 'Mother Bird' and the subject was the whole hoax and storytelling behind it.
What initially was only a sculpture was transformed into this abstraction and story behind this monster that is texting children and manipulating them to commit suicide and other horrible acts.
What initially was a picture of a sculpture, has transformed over time into something horrifying, and terrifying.
Initially it was just the sculpture of the Mother Bird, posted on Reddit, where they cropped a picture of the statue, into the head of the Mother Bird sculpture, so that was the only thing on display; and then it went viral.
Later on, after it sparked interest, they then gave it the name Momo, which originated in Japanese folklore, and was based on the tale of Momotare.
They later on made an account of it, where they started portraying it as a monster, which later on started writing to children from unknown Whatsapp numbers, where it then became a challenge because it was writing different children, who responded to the monster|s demands, and doing what was requested of them.
Which is what reification proposes, in order to make something real, from an abstraction they then have to add more and more information to the Momo-challenge, thus putting it into a broader context in order to make it seem more realistic, and make it capable of doing different things. This is accomplished by having it communicate with people in order to create different stories while attempting to prove its existence.
At the present moment, even if there are several websites online which specifically explain that this is a hoax and why - a lot of people still choose to believe it, since its existence cannot be proven nor debunked. There are several screenshots of Momo accounts writing to people and demanding them to do things and claiming to have knowledge about the person its texting as well as what they are doing.
It is somehow changing the idea of Momo on the internet, making parents concerned about the safety of their children. It is making you think that there will always be a risk of people and especially children using the internet, social media, and getting exposed to things like the Momo challenge.
Even if it is not a real thing it is still altering our whole perception of the internet itself, and of internet safety.
