Jack is a feminist issue!

[KatBradshaw]

I am researching for a piece of work on the feminist issues surrounding the Jack the Ripper crimes. Its really for my own pleasure but I would hope if it comes out well that other people would read it.
I have quite a few books including the Walkowitz one, anyone have any recommendations for reading?
I am using part of my dissertation which was on the impact the murders had on charrities as well.
Any advice greatfully received.

[Slimsid2000]

Just my opinion but I wouild say JTR was not a Feminist.

[Archaic]

Hi Kat.

Your project sounds very interesting; I'd love a chance to read it when you're done.

Walkowitz is a superb source.
Have you read 'Walking the Victorian Streets: Women, Representation and the City' by Deborah Nord?

I'll rack my brains and see if I can come up with a few more titles for you.
Good luck on your paper, I look forward to reading it some day!

Best regards,
Archaic

[The Grave Maurice]

Walkowitz is my favourite on this topic too. Another source, which you are probably already aware of, is Jane Caputi's 1987 book The Age of Sex Crime.

[Archaic]

Hi Kat, have you read William Sanger's book 'The History of Prostitution: Its Extent Causes and Effects Throughout The World'?
It was written in 1897, less than 10 years after the Whitechapel Murders, and describes the details of slum life in London in harrowing detail. Available free online at The Internet Archive if you're interested.

'History of Prostitution', W. Sanger: http://www.archive.org/details/histo...stit00sanguoft

Best regards,
Archaic

[Ally]

I am fairly sure that at one of the American conferences, there was a female professor/author who had written about this issue. My brain is swiss cheese when it comes to remembering names and I unfortunately missed her talk as I was occupied with busy work, but maybe this will prompt someone with a better memory than I. If I remember right there was quite a dustup on the boards as she voiced some unpopular opinions.

[The Grave Maurice]

Are you thinking of Dr Karen Kurt Teal at the '06 Baltimore conference, Ally? Her talk was entitled something like "The Toxic Effect of the Whitechapel Murders" and it raised quite a kerfuffle on the boards, but I forget why exactly.

[The Grave Maurice]

Actually, there's a summary of Dr Teal's talk here:

http://www.casebook.org/dissertations/toxic-repetition.html

[Ally]

Hi yes that must be what I was remembering. I kept thinking her name was Karen something but wasn't sure. Thanks for the find. As I said, I didn't get to hear her talk so I am not aware of what it contained, I just knew it was skewed in some way to the female treatment of the Jack the Ripper case and there was a bit of a brouhaha regarding it.

[Magpie]

There was an article in some journal of women's studies called "Jack The Ripper and the myth of male violence."

Time magazine also had an article about feminists protesting about the "Jack The Ripper" pub, back in the eighties.

[The Grave Maurice]

There was an article in some journal of women's studies called "Jack The Ripper and the myth of male violence".

That's Walkowitz again, Magpie. You can find the article in Feminist Studies, 8:3 (Fall 1982).

[KatBradshaw]

Thanks so much for your replies! I will check out those articles.
My focus was going to split in a few ways. One on the idea of the blamless murderer. It has always interested me that there is often a lesser sense of outrage when prostitiutes are killed. Even if you watch the current news story or the ones about that Ipswich Strangler they always refer to the women as prostitutes, a fact that is important yes but in my opinion doesn't need to be constantly commented on!

[Magpie]

That's Walkowitz again, Magpie. You can find the article in Feminist Studies, 8:3 (Fall 1982).

That's the one!

The university library here has a copy, but I never got to read it because it was always on reserve for some class or other.

[Fleetwood Mac]

Thanks so much for your replies! I will check out those articles.
My focus was going to split in a few ways. One on the idea of the blamless murderer. It has always interested me that there is often a lesser sense of outrage when prostitiutes are killed. Even if you watch the current news story or the ones about that Ipswich Strangler they always refer to the women as prostitutes, a fact that is important yes but in my opinion doesn't need to be constantly commented on!

I think that's because England remains a socially conservative country.....and yes there is a stigma attached to prostitution.

On the Feminism angle....well there are various strands of Feminism as you'd expect....probably the most famous feminist....Simone de Beauvior (spelling?).....believed women were conditioned to behave in a subservient manner....drawing on Hegel's master and slave dynamic.....but de Beauvior believed it was a choice....women choose that role and ultimately don't help themselves. So what did she go and do? She played an utterly subservient role to her lover Sartre....and chose and delivered women in order to please him. All a bit strange. I don't think modern feminists would much agree with de Beauvoir's actions.

And what did Feminism mean in the 19th century? Certainly not what it means today as ideas were boxed in by the thinking of the day.

Could JTR have been a feminist? Are we saying there was an element of these killings that was a response to the degradation of prostitutes? Is death and mutilation helping these women? Or are you supposing that this was a feminist gone mad? Someone who spent a fair amount of time in the community trying to help these women and then totally lost it? That wouldn't make him a feminist....more an empath....who somewhere along the line lost the plot. I find it very hard to believe a feminist would see the solution in killing the people they're trying to help......no matter the long term impact. And are we to assume that the killer understood the long term impact the killings would have?

Can you put some meat on the bones of this feminist angle? Could make for an interesting discussion!

[Ally]

. One on the idea of the blamless murderer. It has always interested me that there is often a lesser sense of outrage when prostitiutes are killed. Even if you watch the current news story or the ones about that Ipswich Strangler they always refer to the women as prostitutes, a fact that is important yes but in my opinion doesn't need to be constantly commented on!

I think that commenting that they are prostitutes is for a singular reason. That prostitutes are known to be at risk, by virtue of it being illegal, their transactions are risky, and they are required to go off in the dark with men who are perfect strangers. So by saying they are prostitutes, it has an effect of calming the general population, i.e, I don't have to be worried about being snatched while going to the market or on my way back from work..he's targeting a specific category, not all random women are in jeopardy. There was a case a while back where blondes were being targeted in abduction rapes and they made mention of that category too, so I don't necessarily think it's meant as a slight to prostitutes but as a warning ..here's what he's targeting, go dye your hair brown, kind of thing.