Anta C, Pau A i Carlota L 1r BATX A
JACK THE RIPPER
Background:
From August 7 to September 10 in 1888, Jack the Ripper terrorized the Whitechapel
district in London’s East End. He killed at least five prostitutes and mutilated their
bodies in an unusual manner, indicating that the killer had knowledge of human
anatomy. Jack the Ripper was never captured, and remains one of England’s and the
world’s, most infamous criminals
Victims:
Beforethe five famous murders, Jack the Ripper had been a suspect for two other
deaths that happened in Whitechapel. Their name were Martha Tabram and Emma
Elizabeth Smith but they didn’t include them on the file of the main five victims,
because Elisabeth Smith before dying explained that she had been attacked by two or
three men.
These were five women that were murdered: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman,
Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly. They were all killed by
Jack the ripper because he had killed them in the same way, by cutting their throats
and stabbing them on the abdomen. Elisabeth and Catherine were killed the same
morning because he was interrupted during the first attack, so he was unsatisfied and
killed another woman.
Nicknames: Jack the Ripper did have other names – one popular moniker was 'The
Whitechapel Murderer'. To some people, he was also known as Leather Apron.
Where Did the Name Come From?
In September 1888, a letter was received by the Central News Agency. It was written
in red ink and boasted about the Ripper’s crimes, ending with a signature from ‘Jack
the Ripper’.
October saw a second delivery to the Central News Agency, only this time it was a
postcard. Again this message was signed by the Ripper, but it wasn’t until this arrived
that the authorities took any notice.
Why Did the Name Stick?
After the letters were sent to the Central News Agency, the police thought it was a
hoax until they realized that in the second letter, the writer referred to the first. As
they noticed similarities, they became convinced that the sinister mail may have
actually been sent by the killer himself. As a result, they released the letters to the
public in an attempt to gather more information. Because both the letter and the
postcard were signed by Jack the Ripper, the name was adopted by the media and the
culprit then became known under that name.
Was This a Good Idea?
Due to the police having very little information on the killer, they hoped that by
releasing the letters someone would be able to offer them some further details. Of
course, this would have been a gamble as there weren’t any solid clues about the
killer’s identity or who it was from. Similarly, the chances of the general public
having any valuable information were very small. In actual fact, it later became
obvious that perhaps this wasn’t the best decision. For months and years after the
letters were released into the public domain, the police received hundreds of letters
Anta C, Pau A i Carlota L 1r BATX A
and postcards addressed from ‘the Ripper’ - something which clearly did not help
their investigation.
Jack the Ripper has fascinated the public for years and the tale of his murders is
known around the world. Because the killer has been referred to by this name for so
long, many people simply don’t question where this nickname first came from - but
now you know!
Investigations and possible authors:
The investigation was very slow and there was no clear suspect, at first it was
believed that the murder had knowledge of anatomy, then some sources denied it.
The only thing that the police had from the murderer was two letters, the first one is
believed to be made by the press, was the one signed by a Jack the Ripper, the second
one is believed to be from the real murderer since it was accompanied by a kidney
from the victims. Today many people continue to investigate what happened. Of the
different suspects, three stand out:
William Withey Gull: Queen's Victorian doctor. Because he has a knowledge of
anatomy.
Aaron Kominski: He was a barber for Whitechapel,. He hated women and had
“homicidal tendencies”.
Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale: He stayed with one prostitute
from whitechapel, after he had syphilis. He blamed the prostitute for this.
Montague John Druitt: a man from a “fairly'' good family, although some believed that
he was “sexually insane”. He resided next to Whitechapel and he was suicide seven
weeks after killed Mary Jane Kelly.
Carl Feigenbaum: Was known to be a psychopath who confessed to mutilating
women, he worked next to Whithechapel.
Nowadays the case is open and different people have different theories.
Films:
There are several films about the whitechapel murders and jack the ripper but the
ripper, and from hell are more recent movies. Whitechapel is a series in which some
detectives from London dealt with murders that were trying to copy Jack the Ripper.
The documentary of Jack the Ripper talks about the suspects, locations and they even
recreate some of the crime scenes.
Methodology:
Did Jack the ripper hate women?
This could be produced by multiple causes, since his mother hit him as a child, until
he had a sister who felt contempt for him. All this, moreover, was favored by the type
of society in which he lived.
Why did he murder prostitutes?
That he chose to murder women may be associated with misogyny, but that they were
prostitutes may be related merely to the ease of committing the crimes. Jack wanted
to look for easy prey, women who would approach him on the promise of money and
who could be led into dark streets without suspicion. A normal person will not escort
a hooded man into a secluded alley, but a prostitute will.
