According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a monument is "a statue, building, or other structure erected to commemorate a famous or notable person or event." But have you ever thought about other qualifiers for a monument? Let me expand that definition for you. Take a look.

We can start to think beyond the normal bounds of a monument, as in beyond the physicals aspects. What if we considered monuments that are intangible and more unconventional, like social media pages that memorialize tragic events?

And once we realize that there are more mediums of monuments than just physical, famous ones, we can delve into the idea of what makes any of these monuments successful or what makes one medium more successful than another.

Now we're thinking not only about monuments in a different form/medium, but also about what makes a successful monument. SO MANY THINGS TO THINK ABOUT!!!!

Okay, okay. Before we go too far down the rabbit hole, let me define what I believe makes a truly successful monument. Here's a hint for you: it's not any of those surface level characteristics, like how much it costs to make or how famous it is.

When we seek to define what “successful” means, our trusty New Oxford American Dictionary definition tells us that in order for something to be successful, “it must accomplish some kind of aim or purpose." With this, we ask ourselves what the aim or purpose of a monument even is.

In my opinion, there are four main aims a monument must reach in order to be successful:
1. The ability to evoke an emotional response/foster a sense of intimacy
2. The ability to reach a plethora of people
3. Must possess long-lasting qualities
4. Must have aspects of privacy

Just to give a bit more background, I'll explain each point a little more and why social media monuments achieve these aims as opposed to physical monuments.

1. This "sense of intimacy" can be as little as feeling a personal connection to the monument, the people memorialized in it, or the event it memorializes. With physical monuments, it's more difficult to foster this sense of intimacy, which is something I will explain later on.

2. Social media monuments can be more widely accessed around the world regardless of location; physical monuments, however, tend to be stationary, meaning you can only see the monument if you live nearby or have the means of visiting it.

3. Successful monuments must also have long-lasting qualities. This point can be tricky because it seems physical monuments may also possess this ability due to their meticulous infrastructure. Even with such thought out infrastructure, they can easily decay and become damaged...

3...overtime, meaning they require a great deal of upkeep. Social media monuments, on the other hand, require little to no “upkeep” & can be easily amended if necessary. Even though they can technically be deleted, social media pages, or copies of said pages, stay online forever.

4. The final quality of a successful monument is the aspect of privacy. When the monument is used to reflect on a tragic event, it is important for the monument to offer the viewer the opportunity to mourn in private. This, sense of privacy again, may seem like a counterintuitive

4...point. How can a social media page accessible to all be private? In reference to “private aspects,” what I specifically mean is that people looking at the page can mourn in private. For physical monuments, especially popular ones, it is difficult to mourn there in private...

4...while so many people are around. With a social media monument, viewers have the ability to grieve in the privacy of their own homes.

If you'd like to read more about specific monuments I believe qualify as "successful," go check out this thread: https://twitter.com/monumentluvr/status/1382069216744861699