Jack the Ripper

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Michael Adesite                      History Coursework

                                         

Jack the Ripper Coursework

Question 1: What can you learn from source A about the murder of Polly Nicholls?

Source A is an article in the East End Observer describing the murders of Martha Tabram and Polly Nicholls.

The purpose for source A is to that inform you about the latest murders that have happened in London. It is meant to show the reader how gruesome the murders were. The news paper is trying to make money, so it sensationalizes the murders therefore more people will be attracted to the newspaper.

The article puts together a linkage of the murders of Martha Tabram and Polly Nicholls giving you an idea that the murders were committed by the same person. “The excess of effort that has been apparent in each murder suggests the idea that both crimes are the work of a demented being.” The article uses key relationship words such as “both”, “each”. This suggests that the observer has an incline that the two murders were committed by the same person. However they were not linked by either the police or today.

The article also focuses on how unique the murders of Martha Tabram and Polly Nicholls  because they were victims who were “The poorest of the poor”. This quote pictures an image in your mind of the victims having nothing to live for. This makes it scary too as there is no motive involved. The source also makes the reader picture how these prostitutes were an easy target for the murderer. Going back to the quote the victims were “The poorest of the poor” the police might have been less motivated to catch the murderer, because poor people back in 1888 were looked down upon as people who had no say in how society was ran.

The source finally is trying to inflict a picture in your mind about the murderer been very violent and obviously not having any remorse while mutilating the bodies.

Question 2: Does the evidence of Source C support the evidence of Sources A and B about the ripper murders? Explain your answer.

Source A is an article in the East End Observer describing the murders of Martha Tabram and Polly Nicholls. It was written to inform and sensationalize. Source B is part of a coroner’s report of the death of Polly Nicholls. It is telling the reader the skill that the murderer had. Source C is a report of Dr. Fredrick Blackwell on the body of Elizabeth Stride. It is telling the reader the exact body position of Elizabeth Stride when she was found dead.

Source A is a source that is meant to get the audience to try and think of the viciousness that the murders involve. Sources B and C are sources based on the investigations of Polly Nicholls and Elizabeth Stride deaths.

Source A is trying to make an assumption that the murders of Martha Tabram and Polly Nicholls are linked. The newspaper does this by quoting, “The victims have been the poorest of the poor and no adequate motive in the shape of plunder can be traced.” Another quote from source A linking the two murders says, “The excess effort that has been apparent in each murder suggests the idea that both crimes are the work of a demented being.” The newspaper shows that it is linking the murders because it never refers to the victims as singular it never describes the murders individually. These quotes suggest that the newspaper is trying to convey an image of the murderer as a very violent man. This gives an impression to the reader that the murderer had no motive he was just out to kill for fun.

Source B has little similarities to source A. Source B says that the murderer had “skill and knowledge” and knew where to cut. This suggests that the murderer may have had medical knowledge in dissecting humans, because as suggested in the source all of the cuts were “precise”. Straight away source B contradicts source A because source A says that the murderer was a “demented being”, would a demented being know how to make precise cuts? A demented being would show very random cuts. Source B make a judgment about who the murderer is because it quotes, “No mere slaughter of animals could have carried out these operations.”, but this statement is bias because the coroner is suggesting that the murderer must have some medical knowledge to kill in this precise way.

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Source C gives information about the body of Elizabeth Stride after she was murdered the source also gives information about how Elizabeth Strides murder was only one of two murders committed in the same night. Elizabeth Stride murder was thought to have been interrupted. Source C describes the body of Elizabeth Stride when she was found “As the neck and chest were quite warm”, her murder was also claimed to be unfinished, and this suggests that the murder did not occur long before the report was written, but Polly Nicholls body was described as “not been dissected”, but the cuts ...

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