Jack The Ripper – A Love Story ( Excerpt 5 )
Anyway, to get to the point, I decided that I wanted to emulate him and train to become a physician. It was a respectable career, I don’t think even my somewhat puritanical Mother could argue with that. As soon as I were well enough I would approach my Father with the suggestion that I would like to go to Medical School to train to become a Physician.
In the meantime, I pestered James intolerably, trying to find out what skills I would require, so that I might concentrate on them on my return to boarding school.
James was very patient with my never – ending string of questions, and said, with of course my Father’s permission, he would loan me some simple medical tomes to peruse at my leisure.
I was overjoyed with this offer and asked my Father at my first opportunity, thankfully with reservations he agreed. There was a long way to go, but I had my foot on the first rung of the ladder that I had to climb to earn my Doctorate.
With the books that had been loaned to me by James, and a little coaching by him also. I soon had a rudimentary knowledge of the human anatomy, always a good place to start. It was people I wanted to treat after all. Animals had little appeal to me.
The moment I was restored to health and back on my feet, I was ensconced in my Father’s study pestering him endlessly to send me to Medical School. In order that I might fulfil my dream and become a physician.
My Father was fair, If I wanted this, and I appeared to be dead set on this course. He would support me but only on the understanding that I return to school and achieve top marks in all my subjects. Only then would he give me his blessing and support.
We shook hands on it, and I returned to school with an enthusiasm and sense of purpose that I never had before. My tutors were astounded by my change of attitude. It was not that I had been a bad pupil, just not a focused one, as I was now.
(c) Damian Grange 2017
I like this, I relate to this in some degree. On my own passion of medical science.
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My take on Jack, after I might add considerable research, suggests that the knowledge he possessed was more likely to have been the knowledge accrued by a doctor rather than a butcher or slaughterman, if that makes sense at all!
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It does indeed. ☺
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I wonder just how respectable the medical profession actually was, back in those days ? Not that Jack the Ripper would make the profession any more respectable by entering it!
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You will find that in my version the circumstances created the Ripper as a Doctor he was a very caring
and competent individual. The Ripper was created by the way he was mistreated.
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Sounds a fair theory – makes more sense than some of the things written on the subject. 🙂
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Although it is a work of fiction I have done lots of research, and think my own theory is as likely as many of the others, Thank you for your comment.
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The serial killer from his own point of view… an interesting story. By the way, have you read the graphic novel From Hell by Alan Moore? About the same guy, with a very rinteresting conspiracy theory mixed in. Absolutely worth the read.
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Is that the same story as the film? Never read any books about Jack the Ripper.
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I had to look that up, but according to Wikipedia the film is “loosely based on the graphic novel”. The comic seems to be a lot better, though.
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OK. Thanks. So it’s a comic? Like marvel comic book style? I never got into the whole comic book thing, so… my perspective is limited.
The movie was interesting. It wouldn’t even surprise me if there was a Royal conspiracy. Oh, there’s something I’m trying to remember! Some conspiracy theory I read once, that kind of seems to take off around this same time period, involving the Royals and some guy, what is his name?! The theory claims that this guy was channeling from some interdimentional entity. Supposedly, he was given information for the development of technology, and the claim is that this is why the industrial era came about. It ties in with the whole alien shadow elite theory. Just wondered if you guys might have heard of it?
When I’m bored, I read too much weird shite. 😂
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Haha! Haven’t heard that one 😀 Yes, it’s a comic, but a long story in novel formate, that’s where the “graphic novel” term comes from. The author, Alan Moore have other filmatisized works as well, as V for Vendetta and Watchmen. The comics are much better than the movies here as well 😉
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Lol! It’s a pretty wild theory! If I can think of the guy’s name I’ll tell you. He was a famous historical figure during that time, and a Freemason, I believe. I’d know the name if I heard it. Or was it during Queen Elizabeth’s time…? Maybe it was that guy, I forget.
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I’ve seen the film, which I believe is based on the same version, the so called Royal Conspiracy, the last Jack book I read was by a retired Police Inspector who put up quite a convincing argument until the last chapter when he seemed to have lost the plot. He said that Jack was a German seaman but
unfortunately there were three seamen with the same surname, so hardly conclusive, mine is purely fiction but with a lot of factual back up.
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Are you actually trying to solve the mystery with your writing, or just having fun with it?
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What I’m endeavouring to do is write a work of fiction that offers reasons for the killings, and also the motivation for them. I guess what I’m trying to prove is not so much jack’s innocence as much as his motivation. In my version he’s just a decent man who falls for the wrong woman twice with disastrous results. I have made him a Doctor because all the learned research I have done leads me toward that conclusion. Thank you for your comments and interest. Watch as the plot unfolds there are a few surprises left!
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The truth as never been uncovered so you might say i’m offering an alternative truth
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Well, from what little I know on the topic, it seems pretty likely that he was indeed a medical man of some kind. I just wasn’t sure if you had found some puzzle pieces that gave you the impression that maybe there had, indeed, been some motive similar to what you are developing in your writing.
I’m taking a bit of time to catch up, since my brain is a bit burnt out from a week of non stop writing. I haven’t really let myself think of much else but my own story! 😅 It was time for a little break.
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My intention is, if you like give people an optional theory and see Jack as a human with frailties rather than some shadowy figure on a killing spree.I think there is more to Jack than people realise.
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