John Q Publius
03-26-2010, 09:21 AM
Hi all,
Long time reader, first time poster.
Based on the last episode, I think the flash sideways and the island reality are going to come together because the flash sideways world will be destroyed/corrupted.
Jacob tells Richard that the island is the cork stopping malevolence and evil (Smokie, for those doubters) into the world. In the flash sideways, there is no island. Smokie is free and he's out there in the world. In order for us (the audience) to truly feel what's at stake and the heroism in one of our Losties becoming Jacob's replacement, we've got to see what happens in a world where there is no "cork" to stop Smokie's evil.
So far the writers have used it as a device to tell the story of who the characters would be without the island - it has furthered character development (as well as what the island really does mean to each character) but it hasn't furthered plot.
The only link I can see is if we see Smokie's corrupting influence in the world, understand that he is actually evil manifested, and just how important Jacob was.
Assumption: Smokie is evil, Jacob is good. I've read the debates. I side with the Jacobeans. Using a judeo-christian lens (which I believe TPTB are), Jacob is a personified God: he is remote, but he cares. He prizes free will.* He speaks through representatives and only a select few see the face of "god." He inherently believes that humans are redeemable (see the discussion with RA on the beach) and hopes for their betterment). He preaches forgiveness (see Ilyana and Ben).
Smokie - the devil - however is in his very nature (smoke) meant to obscure and confuse. He is a liar and a deceiver. He preaches anger (see Claire). We all know that dead is dead and yet he plays off people's desires to offer false promises. Sayid will not see Nadia again. He lied to Claire. He lied to Eko (and when Eko realized that "Yemi" was not Yemi, he was killed). Richard will not see Isabella again until he is dead. Smokie lied to Richard - pretending to be Isabella - to motivate Richard to kill Jacob. He made up seem down and down up. The lie of Isabella was contrasted by the ghost of Isabella - the real Isabella - who wanted Richard to stop Smokie.
But most importantly, I am sure Smokie is evil because he believes all humans are as corrupt and fallen as he is. He does not believe that we are capable of progress, of growth, and becoming "the better angels of our nature." (Again, see Jacob beach speech with RA).
*= The discussions I've seen of free will sometimes make the mistake of assuming that a constrained choice is somehow not a free one. In other words, if someone doesn't allow me to choose "A-Z" but instead only offers me "A or B" it is not a free choice on my part. That is incorrect.
You are still freely choosing between options. In real life, we don't get a choice between A-Z: I can't fly for instance - I am constrained by both biology and physics. Nor can I choose to be the next Lebron James. OR, if someone is applying to college, and half of their schools reject them, their choice between the ones that did accept them is still a free choice (even if their options are constrained by forces they can't control - i.e., admissions committees).
I believe Jacob offers a free choice and he expects the Losties to make it on their own. He has not compelled anyone to be a better person (see Ben Linus and the bit about "hoping he would choose better up until being stabbed", for whom he apparently had higher hopes). That choice is now very constrained: it is a binary one. You can be on Team Jacob (greater good) or you can be on Team Smokie (self-serving, deceitful, "infected").
Long time reader, first time poster.
Based on the last episode, I think the flash sideways and the island reality are going to come together because the flash sideways world will be destroyed/corrupted.
Jacob tells Richard that the island is the cork stopping malevolence and evil (Smokie, for those doubters) into the world. In the flash sideways, there is no island. Smokie is free and he's out there in the world. In order for us (the audience) to truly feel what's at stake and the heroism in one of our Losties becoming Jacob's replacement, we've got to see what happens in a world where there is no "cork" to stop Smokie's evil.
So far the writers have used it as a device to tell the story of who the characters would be without the island - it has furthered character development (as well as what the island really does mean to each character) but it hasn't furthered plot.
The only link I can see is if we see Smokie's corrupting influence in the world, understand that he is actually evil manifested, and just how important Jacob was.
Assumption: Smokie is evil, Jacob is good. I've read the debates. I side with the Jacobeans. Using a judeo-christian lens (which I believe TPTB are), Jacob is a personified God: he is remote, but he cares. He prizes free will.* He speaks through representatives and only a select few see the face of "god." He inherently believes that humans are redeemable (see the discussion with RA on the beach) and hopes for their betterment). He preaches forgiveness (see Ilyana and Ben).
Smokie - the devil - however is in his very nature (smoke) meant to obscure and confuse. He is a liar and a deceiver. He preaches anger (see Claire). We all know that dead is dead and yet he plays off people's desires to offer false promises. Sayid will not see Nadia again. He lied to Claire. He lied to Eko (and when Eko realized that "Yemi" was not Yemi, he was killed). Richard will not see Isabella again until he is dead. Smokie lied to Richard - pretending to be Isabella - to motivate Richard to kill Jacob. He made up seem down and down up. The lie of Isabella was contrasted by the ghost of Isabella - the real Isabella - who wanted Richard to stop Smokie.
But most importantly, I am sure Smokie is evil because he believes all humans are as corrupt and fallen as he is. He does not believe that we are capable of progress, of growth, and becoming "the better angels of our nature." (Again, see Jacob beach speech with RA).
*= The discussions I've seen of free will sometimes make the mistake of assuming that a constrained choice is somehow not a free one. In other words, if someone doesn't allow me to choose "A-Z" but instead only offers me "A or B" it is not a free choice on my part. That is incorrect.
You are still freely choosing between options. In real life, we don't get a choice between A-Z: I can't fly for instance - I am constrained by both biology and physics. Nor can I choose to be the next Lebron James. OR, if someone is applying to college, and half of their schools reject them, their choice between the ones that did accept them is still a free choice (even if their options are constrained by forces they can't control - i.e., admissions committees).
I believe Jacob offers a free choice and he expects the Losties to make it on their own. He has not compelled anyone to be a better person (see Ben Linus and the bit about "hoping he would choose better up until being stabbed", for whom he apparently had higher hopes). That choice is now very constrained: it is a binary one. You can be on Team Jacob (greater good) or you can be on Team Smokie (self-serving, deceitful, "infected").