Look down, you god,
And on this couple drop a blessed crown!
For it is you that have chalk'd forth the way
Which brought us hither.
The Tempest. Act v. Sc. 1
My friend and I have been throwing theories back and forth
and with the seperation of the castways this past episode, he brought
up an interesting idea. What if the two seperate groups represent Good
and Evil and the writers have been playing on our preconceptions to make
us believe people are the opposite of what they actually are?
I, for one, think this is a strong theory. If you've read my Sawyer thread
in the character boards, you know I think the writers have deliberately
tried to make us think he's evil when in reality he's good. I think the
same can be said for Sayid (they did make him a member of Sadaam's personal
guard afterall) and Kate (who we are lead to believe is harboring a dark
secret). To a lesser extent, Michael's backstory is also shrouded and
we wonder why Walt's mother took his son.
Inward on the island we have Jack (who we are led to believe is the hero
a little too much), Locke (who appears kind hearted but has had hints
of a bad side since the pilot), Charlie (who appears completely kind hearted),
Hurley (who we know nothing about but are lead to assume is merry and
jolley), and Sun (who appears to be the victim in the marriage).
The one notable exception to this theory is Jin. He went inland, and persumably
led his wife there, but everyone is throwing around hitman and mafia theories.
The writers clearly wanted us to think his activities were criminal.
Regardless of the validity of this theory, questioning the character's
motivations reminds us of one thing. Question everything. (Surprisingly,
I never watched the X-Files. )
Sarahs Monkey
Re: Good vs. Evil
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I don't think anything can easily be put into either good or Evil. I think
it's all just a bunch of misconception and well just have to watch to
find out which direction each carachter will take us. I don't think Sawyer
is a bad person either, just a little on the defensive side.
AndThePickles Re: Good vs. Evil
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It's just a theory. And just because we can't put them into categories
yet doesn't mean we won't be able to put them into categories in the future.
Sarahs Monkey
Re: Good vs. Evil
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do we HAVE to put hem into categories? Nothing wrong with individuality,
LOL Re: Good vs. Evil
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well...the dualism is hard to miss: bright beach/dark jungle.
And what was with the white and black (backgammon?) pieces Jack found
on one of the dead bodies?
I'm sticking with the Lord of the Flies theory, myself (which, admittedly,
received precisely no comment on this board, but what the hay....)
c ya
ccmerlot
Re: Good vs. Evil
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Quote:
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What if the two seperate groups represent Good and Evil and the writers
have been playing on our preconceptions to make us believe people are
the opposite of what they actually are?
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Pure speculation again, and I'm probably projecting my own values here,
but I don't see the writers going in that direction. I see them more as
saying that everyone has his/her own story, everyone has good and bad
in them, and there's a good chance that we'll find that all the characters
have done things they regret. But I don't think anyone will prove to be
"good" or "evil"--just human and flawed like all of
us. If there's a good and evil battle (more light and dark rather than
good and evil), then I think it will be within each character, not between
some characters who are good and others who are evil.
But I think you have a good point about the writers "playing on our
preconceptions to make us believe people are the opposite of what they
actually are." If Lost has a message, so far I'd say it's about the
danger of making assumptions and preconceptions.
SayidsGirl
Unless we run into some major new influence and completely change the
show, exactly which group of people would become evil? Evil is a very
distinct and powerful label to place on something.
Baron X
The conflict between Good vs Evil is always an integral part of a plot.
There have been numerous references to good vs evil (or light and dark,
as it were) in the show already, starting with the backgammon stones in
the beginning of the series. Now we have the group splitting into two
(a la "Lord of the Flies") and the black and white stones Jack
found on the dead bodies. The viewers are drawing their own conclusions
as to what "side" the characters are falling on. And of course
first impressions are lasting impressions. As the show progresses, the
character development will continue. The only person I've really drawn
a conclusion about is Jin so far. He is really the only "evil"
character so far, as far as I'm concerned. I just don't like him.
My hubby and I had a discussion yesterday about this. We think the "cave
group" will be the "good or light side" and the "beach
group" will be the "evil or dark side." But time will tell.
BJLK
And who is to say that the current groups will be the ones that remain.
Many of the characters do not fit into stereotypical "good"
or "evil" persons yet (might not ever), so it's more than likely
that individuals might migrate from one group to the other? What if someone
on the beach needs a doctor?
Frozen Norwegian
Quote:
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The conflict between Good vs Evil is always an integral part of a plot.
There have been numerous references to good vs evil (or light and dark,
as it were) in the show already, starting with the backgammon stones in
the beginning of the series.
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You assume the light and dark references mean good vs. evil.
I have seen no reference to anything evil in the show. I have played backgammon
and I never assumed when playing as one color or the other that they were
meant to represent anything other than a way to tell whose piece was whose.
Baron X
I personally don't like absolutes - if everything is either white or black,
good or evil, I'm definitely dead in the water. To me each and every character
in LOST is a person, with strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, I choose
to believe that while there will be plenty of conflict between the characters
- caused by individual decisions and opinions and whatnot - and while
we will be regaled by the writers with tons of symbolism related to the
ying/yang, good/evil, light/dark view of the world, the show itself will
*not* be about that.
I agree with SayidsGirl: "If Lost has a message, so far I'd say it's
about the danger of making assumptions and preconceptions."
azteclady