Why Did The White Chapel Murders Attract So Much Attention In 1888?

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Jack the Ripper Coursework

The Ripper Murders

Why Did The WhiteChapel Murders Attract So Much Attention In 1888?

On 31st August 1888 the first of five terrifying and horrific murders took place, the last on 9th November 1888. The five victims, all prostitutes were Polly Nicholls, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes and Mary Kelly.

Mary Ann Nichols

August 31, 1888

Annie Chapman

September 8, 1888

Elizabeth Stride

September 30, 1888

Catherine Eddowes

September 30, 1888

Mary Jane Kelly

November 9, 1888

These five murders were the first ever publicized serial killings and in the period before 1888 there had never been any such killing on this level. These five victims of the commonly known 'Jack the Ripper' received a lot of media attention. Some of the possible reasons for such attention could have been that each victim was reported to have been in the company of a man described a foreign looking before they were killed. The nature of the murders was something that had never been seen before; the way that the bodies were mutilated was a shock to