Ripperology - a sometimes obsessive interest in studying the crimes ofJack the Ripper - is a subject of timeless interest that has suffered fromconfusion, exaggeration, and hyperbole for over a century. Jack theRipper was probably the first serial killer to appear in a large metropolisat a time when the general populace was literate and the press was aforce for social change. The press was also partly responsible forcreating many myths surrounding the Ripper.