(Photo courtesy of google.com).

 

Few names in the history of serial killers are as easily recognized as Jack the Ripper.  The name evokes images of Victorian London’s dark alleys, foggy cobblestone streets and the shrill cries of newsboys screaming, “Mutilation!  Whitechapel! Another woman ‘orribly murdered!”

 

For over one hundred years, the Jack the Ripper murders have perplexed us. Stories about the killer have been published in numerous languages—from Russian to Spanish, French to Italian, German to Mandarin and it seems to have piqued many a person’s interest in each of these countries.  To this day, the legend is being told in a multitude of countries.

 

But what it is about the case that brings about such perennial fascination?  What is it that attracts most people to a gruesome murder mystery?  In my opinion, it’s rather gruesome to want to investigate the killing of their counterparts.  But for many others, it’s an escape—a means of exploring an alien world via their imaginations.

 

First, we must realize that Jack the Ripper was not the first murderer to ever work in the East End of London.  He is by no means the last.  Perhaps the reason for our interest is because we are still trying to answer the question of the killer’s identity.  The murders ended just as abruptly as they began.  After a spree of murders, it seems as though the killer vanished into thin air, leaving behind few clues to aid us in our search for the killer’s identity.  In short, we are left with the classic case of “whodunit.”  Additionally, this particular case has all the necessary elements to make it even more interesting:  the classic murderer, whose secrecy makes him all the more interesting; the dark alleys, which have a mystery all their own; and the five murdered women who are at the center of this all.

 

Jack the Ripper was a mysterious murderer that terrorized Whitechapel, London. But who was he?  How was he never caught?  We many never know, but it makes for some interesting reading! 

 

Please click on the following links for more information about the case.

 

Victims

Victorian London

Suspects

Modus Operandi

Witnesses

Evidence

Ripper Letters

About the Author

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