Note, just in case this touches on any themes raised in 4.09, i haven't seen that episode at the time of posting this, so this post is spoiler-free. I know people are a bit giddy what with Sky screwing around with the time-table.
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Meet Kevin Johnson raised some serious issues as to the nature of the beast that is the Island..
We have confirmation that the ONLY way the Losties are going to be truely
'confirmed dead' is if the island
allows them to die. The island's protective blanket is able to sweep
freewill from under our Losties feet, stopping bullets from entering their cranium's and preventing certain-death car crashes from killing them (etc).
So we
know this..we
know that the island has a hold on the likes of Michael, Jack and possibly others..
But how far does this hold go back? When did this hold begin?
Could it be that Locke's ascertion that the island 'brought us here' holds even more credence when viewed with the notion that the island has been plotting their every path and possible pathway, for many years before they even stepped foot on the island?
I used to (and ultimately still do) believe that the island selected (some of) these people because of the
unique and distinctive traits that they had. For example:
Locke, an incredible will, an unshakable sense of purpose and a unique ability to never be broken...even when this happens:
But what if Locke's recovery, and indeed, 'survival' from falling out of a high-rise building wasn't his doing..but the island's forshadowing? What if the island has ALWAYS been there..beside them..within them. Much like how many people carry GOD in their hearts, what if the island was always with our Losties, protecting them until the day it knew they would arrive on it's isolated shores?
Another example of this 'pre-protection' could well be
this:
Did Michael survive this because the island protected him, much like the island later prevented him on THREE occassions from doing this?:
What other pre-island acts of fate, will, strength, miracle etc were actually down to the island pre-protecting it's 'children', and if the island had a hand in keeping them alive before
24.9.04 (date of the 'crash'), then what does this say about it's role in their lives - moving them, shaping them, crafting them....
breaking them...
..and then..
tabula rasa..rebirth..
Why..what does it all mean?
Is this nothing but a universal game of chess, where the island IS fate..a
'form' of God? But if this is the intention of the (Lost) creators, then to what ends? Why does the island need help..can it not help itself, like it seemingly can others..