The depiction of Peter Sutcliffe and his victims in the following texts: The Ripper (2020) and Peter: A Portrait of a Serial killer (2011)
Author
Al-Nadawy, Farah Talal Akram
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2022
Submitted on
2022-05-31
Abstract
This thesis examines how British serial killer Peter Sutcliffe and his victims are portrayed in two true crime texts: the documentary series The Ripper (2020) and the film Peter: A Portrait of a Serial Killer (2011). Using a qualitative, close-reading approach, it applies Bill Nichols’s documentary theory to analyze how The Ripper constructs its narrative, including voice, sources, and staging. The study also draws on feminist concepts—femicide, the “missing white girl syndrome,” and Judith Butler’s “grievability”—to discuss how both Sutcliffe and his victims are made mournable within media framings, alongside the concept of “monstrosity” to illuminate Sutcliffe’s depiction. The first part maps narrative and representation in The Ripper, particularly the balance of attention between perpetrator and victims; the second part compares these strategies with Peter: A Portrait of a Serial Killer to assess similarities and differences in narration and portrayal. A literature review situates the project within scholarship on media framing of violence against women and differential attention across gender, race, and class. Overall, the thesis aims to clarify how true crime formats shape public perceptions of the killer’s “monstrosity” and the victims’ grievability; specific results and conclusions are presented in later chapters.
Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan den britiske seriemorder Peter Sutcliffe og hans ofre bliver fremstillet i to true crime-værker: dokumentarserien The Ripper (2020) og filmen Peter: A Portrait of a Serial Killer (2011). Med udgangspunkt i et kvalitativt, tekstnært studie anvendes Bill Nichols’ dokumentarteori til at analysere, hvordan The Ripper konstruerer sin fortælling, herunder brugen af fortællerstemmer, kildetyper og iscenesættelse. Afhandlingen inddrager desuden feministiske begreber som femicid, “missing white girl syndrome” og Judith Butlers “grievability” for at diskutere, hvordan både Sutcliffe og hans ofre gøres sørgbare i mediernes og filmens rammer, samt begrebet “monstrositet” til at belyse Sutchiffes iscenesættelse. Den første del kortlægger narrativ og repræsentation i The Ripper, bl.a. i forhold til ofre- og gerningsmandsfokus, mens anden del sammenligner disse greb med Peter: A Portrait of a Serial Killer for at vurdere ligheder og forskelle i fortælling og portrættering. Litteraturgennemgangen placerer projektet i forskning om mediernes framing af vold mod kvinder og opmærksomhedsforskelle på tværs af køn, race og klasse. Afhandlingen sigter mod at nuancere forståelsen af, hvordan true crime-formater former offentlighedens opfattelse af gerningsmandens “monstrositet” og ofrenes sørgbarhed; konkrete resultater og konklusioner præsenteres i de senere kapitler.
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