Jack the Ripper: analyzing the psychology of the famous criminal

What was the mind of the serial killer Jack the Ripper like? In this article we tell you.

During 1888, the inhabitants of the district of Whitechapel (London), were terrified by a crime wave that ravaged this working class neighborhood at the end of the 19th century..

Five prostitutes murdered between August, September and November, and a trail of clues led to the search for a tireless and elusive killer who outwitted the police and investigators of the time, who, even today, has yet to be positively and definitively identified.

Jack the Ripper's victims

Although the names of five "official" victims of Jack the Ripper have been known over the years, it should be mentioned that a total of thirteen have been attributed to him. All of them were prostitutes who sold their bodies to sailors arriving in the East End. East End (as it was known to the area where Whitechapel was located), in exchange for a few pennies that could provide them with a roof to sleep in a boarding house, and if possible, a loaf of stale bread to put in their mouths, to avoid spending the nights sleeping outside or wandering the streets, as many had already happened to them.

Let's take a look at the names and dates of the deaths of the so-called "canonical victims":

• Mary Ann Nichols (better known as "Polly" Nichols): murdered on August 31, approximately between 2:00 and 3:40 a.m.

• Annie ChapmanAnnie Chapman: September 8, at about 4:20 a.m.

• Elizabeth StrideElizabeth Stride: September 30, between 00:45 a.m. and 1:07 a.m.

• Catherine Eddowesalso on September 30, between 1:30 am and 1:45 am.

• Mary Jane KellyNovember 9, between 2:00 and 3:00 in the morning.

Four of the bodies were found sprawled in the street, except for Mary Jane Kelly (the last of the five, who was in a small rented room overlooking the street). Their throats had been slit from left to right with a violent cut that in some cases reached up to the spine and had been made with some kind of very sharp scalpel or machete.

Incisions had been made in the abdominal cavity of all of them, except for Elizabeth Stride (the fourth murdered, who was scathingly nicknamed "Lucky Liz").Lucky Liz"), even spilling out the intestines, liver and even the uterus.

The possible identities of the killer

Mary Jane Kelly suffered amputations all over her body: in addition to having her nose, ears and breasts removed, Jack left behind a tattered mess of flesh that bore no resemblance to what was said to be the beautiful and candid young woman.

Because of the shelter provided by the place where his body was found against possible onlookers passing through the area, experts suggest that Jack may have indulged his more extreme impulses, experts suggest that Jack was able to give free rein to his most sadistic and cruel impulses within those four walls, since the state in which the body sadistic and cruel impulses within those four walls, since the state in which the body was left had not been seen in any of the other prostitutes.

Some Jack the Ripper suspects

Some of the suspects who have opted for the title of "Jack the Ripper" are:

Walter Kosminski

In favor: Several findings made in September 2014 attribute to this Polish Jew the authorship of the facts. He was known to be a sex maniac who roamed the area. As published by researcher Russell Edwards, a bloody shawl belonging to Catherine Edowes contained Kosminski's mitochondrial DNA.

AgainstThe reasons why it could be ruled out as a suspect is that it is a shawl that does not seem to be typical of a prostitute with an almost impoverished life, in addition to the fact that the evidence that this type of DNA can provide does not point to a single culprit.

Prince Albert Victor Edward

The Duke of Clarence or Eddy, grandson of Queen Victoria and future heir to the Crown.

In favorIn 1970, a certain Doctor Stowell told a writer of the time that forty years ago he contacted Caroline Acland, daughter of the personal physician of the Royal Household, Sir William Gull (who is also considered one of the most plausible suspects). According to her statements, her father had found a series of parchments and manuscripts in which it was stated that the Prince had died in 1892 of venereal disease, specifically syphilis, not of a flu epidemic as was made official. As it was said, his lust and sexual depravity led him to want to explore the terrain of the macabre..

AgainstUnfortunately for those who thought they had unmasked the murderer, it is known that the morning after one of the crimes, the heir was on a trip to Scotland.

Sir William Gull and Freemasonry

It is about the personal physician of the British Royal Family.

In favorThe Royal Conspiracy theory claims that Prince Edward was having an affair with a young prostitute named Annie Crook.

It was Walter Sickert (another suspect) who introduced them, without revealing Eddy's identity to her. The two would end up marrying and having a daughter in secret. In an attempt to cover up this scandal that would turn the Crown upside down and leave its heir in question, Queen Victoria had Annie locked up in a psychiatric hospital for a lobotomy so that she could not divulge anything of what had happened. It was Gull himself who carried it out. The child was left in the care of Mary Jane Kelly, a personal friend of the mother, who attempted a crude blackmail operation against the Crown with her four friends. As a result, Queen Victoria commissioned Mr. Gull (who was an active member of Freemasonry) to eliminate them. Years before, he suffered a stroke that left him with hallucinations.

As the defenders of this conjecture tell it, Gull moved inside a horse-drawn wagon driven by a coachman who had to trick the unfortunate victims into getting in. Once inside the wagon, Gull did the rest. The coachman's second task was the immediate escape from the scene. Two other Masons (Inspectors Warren and Macnaghten) had the mission of covering up the doctor's identity so that he could finish his mission and to eliminate any evidence he might leave behind.

AgainstDespite the tantalizing evidence (some see signs of Masonic rituals in the murders, such as the fact that the slit throats were cut from left to right), it seems that Sir William must be ruled out as the man behind "Jack the Ripper", since there was a great deal of manipulation of evidence and dates, not to mention the inclusion and exclusion of characters in the events.

Walter Sickert

Famous Polish painter of the time of Jewish origin.

In favorAccording to Patricia Cornwell's book "Portrait of a Murderer.Portrait of a Murderer : Jack the Ripper. Case Closed*case closed",*** we conclude that that this man is the only and undisputed murderer of Whitechapel.. A difficult childhood due to the almost total amputation of his manhood due to a malformation that made sexual intercourse impossible, DNA samples found in the defiant missives received by the newspapers and Scotland Yard, along with clues about the crime scenes found in his paintings and known only to investigators, are some of the arguments of those in favor of his guilt.

AgainstThose who question him allude to the low specificity of mitochondrial DNA as irrefutable proof, besides doubting the criteria of those who see evidence of the murders in Sickert's paintings.

Towards a sketch of Jack the Ripper's psychology

Famed former FBI agent and criminologist Robert K. Ressler Robert K. Resslertalks in his book "Serial Killers" (2005) of the disorganized type of killers:

“A disorganized crime scene reflects the confusion that reigns in the killer's mind and presents features of spontaneity and some symbolic elements that reflect his delusions. If the body is found (...), it will probably have terrible wounds. (...) The crime scene is also the scene of death, because the offender does not have the mental clarity to move or hide the body.". (p.127-128)

This corresponds almost completely to the Jack's profileThis corresponds almost completely to Jack's profile, whoever he was, since none of the scenes he left behind suggest a pattern of organization (beyond the victimology or the instruments used).

Social background

In his other book, "Inside the monster: an attempt to understand serial killers."(2010), mentions that the fear caused by this killer at the time was due to the fact that he was among the first to choose unknown victims, with whom he apparently had no emotional or familial ties. At the time, "(...) the emotional components of violence within the family were understandable, and he suggested that the investigations of this case led to erroneous conclusions because of this inability to understand violence against strangers.

After an in-person visit to the scene, he ruled that the police were wrong to look for 'high class individuals." According to his inquiries, it was someone from the same social class as the prostitutes, due to the places frequented by the prostitutes.The police were looking for someone of the same social class as the prostitutes, due to the places frequented by them and the circumstances surrounding the crimes. If it had been someone of high class, his presence in the area would not have gone unnoticed by the neighbors.

He was a "disorganized killer".

In the same way as in his previous publication, he argues that "Jack the Ripper" was a disorganized killer, due to the crescendo in the violence with which he committed his murders. If he reached the zenith of his mental disturbance, he would certainly have been unable to continue committing such acts, so that "he would have ended up committing suicide or locked up in an insane asylum". In either case, he would have disappeared from society.

Finally, he adds the sexual component in the murders, despite the non-existence of sexual intercourse. pre o postmortem. As he wrote, "(...) the thrusting of the knife into the body substituted for the thrusting of the penis'. The same author coined the term "regressive necrophilia" to refer to this "practice of resorting to such penile substitutes".

He continues: "In most serial murders, the weapon of choice has been the knife, followed by the strangulation method and, thirdly, asphyxiation. Serial killers do not usually use guns, as these kill at a distance and they seek the personal satisfaction of killing with their bare hands." (p. 79).

Another piece of evidence in favor of a sexual component is the extirpation of the uterus found in some of the corpses. Mary Jane Kelly also had both breasts removed, on one of which she placed her ears and nose, as a grotesque decoration.

Jack the Ripper in popular culture

After 127 years, the case of "Jack the Ripper" continues to generate press.. This infamous murderer has become an icon of popular culture and his crimes have given rise to multiple novels and films in which various hypotheses are considered.

For better or for worse, this character is still talking about today, and we are sure that in the future new evidence will emerge that will reinforce the hypotheses described here or that will reveal other possible culprits of these killings.