'Lost': Progression and regression for The Others
We're winding down our week-long look at The Others today, and if you're feeling more "Lost" than ever about this group, I can't say I blame you. Every time you approach an answer about this collective, the questions multiply.
Yesterday, I suggested that the original purpose of the society was to establish a small control group of humans possessing inherent psychological characteristics that, if properly seeded, could blossom into a collective capable of pushing humanity as a whole towards the next plateau of its existence. But the Island's isolatory nature, combined with Jacob's "observe, not interfere" approach, led to an eventual degradation of the group's purpose. Instead of gradually incorporating those that found their way to the Island's shores, they decided to treat everything "foreign" as "antagonistic."
Did everyone that came to the Island deserve the red-carpet treatment? Certainly not. But it's one thing to treat outsiders with suspicion and a whole other thing to infiltrate, antagonize, kidnap, and kill as four of your default options. The Island's unique nature tends to inspire a level of fanaticism in certain individuals, fanaticism that can lead to a covetous nature. And much like Buffalo Bill, Charles Widmore covets.
One topic I've barely mentioned all week concerns the turnover and maintenance of a continuous group of people related to the entity known now as The Others. I postulated a few potential start dates for this society earlier in the week, but I really didn't deal with the mechanism by which they could sustain itself over the long haul. The iterations we've seen have not been terribly small, but they haven't exactly been legion, either. Did they once boast numbers that would make the Persian army in "300" wet themselves, only to dwindle to the few dozen in New Otherton? Hard to say. But aside from Richard Alpert, it appears they age. And if they age, they die. And if they die, well, they need new members.
In "The Incident," it's implied that fresh recruits were historically brought to the Island by Jacob whenever the perpetual War of the Island threatened to reduce the population to zero. Let's look at the dialogue between Jacob and The Man in Black for clues.
Jacob: I take it you're here 'cause of the ship.Ostensibly, Oceanic 815 was brought to the Island by the same mechanism as The Black Rock: through Jacob's will. However, what we've seen in terms of the origins of many of the modern-day Others speaks not to Jacob's will but manual, active intervention on behalf of the leader of the Others. People like Juliet and Mikhail were actively recruited to come to the Island, not magically transported there through a combination of Island movement and ill-timed travel.
The Man in Black: I am. How did they find the Island?
Jacob: You'll have to ask 'em when they get here.
The Man in Black: I don't have to ask. You brought them here. Still trying to prove me wrong, aren't you?
Jacob: You are wrong.
The Man in Black: Am I? They come. They fight. They destroy. They corrupt. It always ends the same.
Jacob: It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress.
Post-Purge, people stopped arriving on the Island, save for the odd balloonist, without the direct intervention of The Others. In other words, they had to start actively recruiting people to their cause. They couldn't rely on a steady stream of outsiders to mysteriously find themselves upon their shores. Ensconced in modern comfort, they were no longer living in tents but also no longer living with purpose. Life in The Barracks was tantamount to tourists visiting a distant land but only experiencing it from within the confines of an all-inclusive resort. Yes, you're technically living abroad, but you're cutting yourself off from the experience of the locale.
Next week, I'll start looking at how life in The Barracks marked the beginning of the end for Charles Widmore's time on the Island, and how his interactions with the outside world marked a turning point in the War of the Island. Should have known The Others couldn't be contained by a mere week's worth of entries.
Ryan invites you to join the hundreds already in Zap2It's Guide to Lost Facebook group.
Post a comment
- Most Liked
- Most Commented
I think the big missing piece here is what exactly is the Others' purpose? Jacob said it only ends once, but I guess we'll have to wait for Season 6 to find out what "it" is. So, is it the Others who have been formed as a group over time to collectively bring an end to this loop, or were the Others formed as a sort of Jacob's army to help find the real "others" to bring about a resolution? I'm leaning more towards the Jacob's army idea, and I think Ilana's group is the next wave. It sounds like the people Jacob and MIB are talking about are more big groups (DI, black rock, etc.) and not just a few individuals that make up the Others. Now, Jacob could have made lists of individuals he thinks could help him, but I don't see how this group of peeps just wandering around are really doing much (besides guiding others towards the end game.) Finding out when the first Others were formed and how they've expanded should reveal why they're there in the first place.
"Post-Purge, people stopped arriving on the Island, save for the odd balloonist, without the direct intervention of The Others..."
Excellent point. And it logically leads to the question: Why did Jacob wait so long to bring a jetful of new people to the island? Just to give The Others plenty of rope (time) to hang themselves with (prove that they had become mere philistine/tourists no longer in touch with the special qualities of the island)?
Or did it take that long for him to identify and touch the special people that he would need to make this the final iteration and (finally) see humanity transcend to the next level?
I'm hoping that it is the latter, especially since if it is merely the former then that could be a harbinger of an unfortunate and unsatisfying ARG-like ending to the series (another plane crashing with a fresh set of "players").
Looking forward to the Widmore/ Barracks/ turning point essay!
The Others had been, without knowing it, misled or corrupted by MiB, believing they were actually fulfilling Jacob's will. The Purge, the taking over of the barracks, and leaving the Island to actively recruit more 'Others' probably is the final turning point where they truly ceased to be fulfilling Jacob's vision. But, couldn't it be said that in response, Jacob also changed his approach, and began a more hands on approach, not necessarily with Flight 815, but especially with Ilana's group, who may be the new, or the true 'Others'?
more, I need MORE!!
What I'm curious about, is why in season 3, did Danny Picket say "Sheppard wasn't on Jacob's list" when we saw Jacob give Jack a "push" in season 5? Wouldn't this scene show that Jacob wanted Jack on the island? Could it be that Jacob was manipulating Ben by giving him a spinal tumor, to make Ben think that it was his idea to bring Jack to the others, much the same way that Ben (and Sawyer) manipulate everyone to get what they want?
Eventually, we ARE going to get to the lists, aren't we???? ;-)
"Jacob: It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress."
I like this line. It's not entirely positive or negative, but it gives me hope that there will be an interesting comparison of the island activities to human evolution (in a cultural sense) in general.
Jess,
I don't think it is beyond Ben to write his own list that suit his purposes.
If Jacob is a timeless being 15 or 20 years is not that long.
alas, i suspect the simplest answer about the Lists is "the writers screwed up." the Lists were supposed to be a BoogieMan to spook us but became something else when they brought "Jacob" into the mix.
the simplest RetCon to fix it will be "Ben made the lists, not Jacob." maybe at some point Jacob/MIB's lists served a larger purpose but Ben twisted them for his own reasons.
actually i have a new question: how many things are actually macguffins?