People Born One The Island Are Immortal

[buttass]

When ben first came tohe island and ran into the woods when he saw his mom, he ran into that dude from Suddenly Susan (Nestor Carbonell) and he looked exactly the same except with long hair and scruff. And also Mikhail was prolly born on the island too but he just keeps lying to people. The dude has died like 30 times already. More people could be immortal cause when the natives (people living in the island before ben got there) gassed the community killing eveyrone, they all had gas masks on so whos to say ethan or anyone else was under those masks. Oh yeah and also, these immortals are the only ones who can leave the island

[Snape]

That is a very intriguing thought - and I have some corroborating evidence and a query.

1. It would make perfect sense, therefore, why the Others are so interested in pregnant women and infants born on the island. After all, who wouldn't want to command an entire community of immortals? This makes so much sense I just can't convince myself otherwise.

2. Ben lies that he was born on the island...at least to the Others. I wonder if he's also tried to pull this fast one on Richard Alpert (who himself appears to be ageless and therefore [according to this theory] probably born on the island) and Jacob (if Jacob knows all the secrets of the island, he probably could see right though Ben's lie - if Ben has tried to feed him that lie at all)!

3. A quick list of those confirmed to be born on the island: Aaron Littleton, Alex Rousseau. Those are really the only 2 I can think of. Are there others that are confirmed?

4. A list of those implied to be born on the island: Mikhail Bukanin, Richard Alpert (they both appear to be ageless - Richard moreso than Mikhail). We could also add John Locke to this list, as there is perhaps some reason why the Others are interested in him as well as Jacob.

A question though: Do they retain their immortality (assuming that they are) when they leave the island or do they have to stay there?

[Kage]

Why would Richard (Nestor Carbonell) have to wear a gas mask if he was immortal? Maybe for show ,guess I may have answered my own Question.

[Snape]

Immortality doesn't mean you're immune from death. It simply means you can't die of natural causes (someone can kill you - but you cannot "die" from old age).

[missjulie]

There's a creation story that includes this: (forgive me I can't remember which culture its from!)

Mankind used to be immortal. Eventually there started to be too many people in the world, it was filling up too fast. So the gods told mankind that they could either die or women could stop giving birth. Women, not wanting to relinquish the act of giving life, decided that everyone would eventually die.

[missjulie]

Maybe the island makes you immortal... Just being there? There's really no old people there aside from Tom, who is maybe 45-50. Is that why Ben told Jack someday he would wish he could come back to the island?

Maybe the island is the fountian of youth...

[Snape]

Maybe the island makes you immortal... Just being there? There's really no old people there aside from Tom, who is maybe 45-50. Is that why Ben told Jack someday he would wish he could come back to the island?

Maybe the island is the fountian of youth...

I disagree, because then Ben wouldn't have aged since the purge - and he has. Also probably Rousseau.

[missjulie]

But if you don't age on the island how do you explain the babies?

[Snape]

But if you don't age on the island how do you explain the babies?

Good point - if my supposition was true, Alex would still be in infant form.

So while yes, it's possible the island makes you immortal just from being there - I don't think it's nearly as intriguing (not to mention more likely) as the supposition that you have to be born there to be immortal. After all, that explains the Others interest in pregnant women and newborns - as well as "hiring" Juliette to solve their pregnancy problem.

[1hourisntlongenough]

Maybe the island makes you immortal... Just being there? There's really no old people there aside from Tom, who is maybe 45-50. Is that why Ben told Jack someday he would wish he could come back to the island?

Maybe the island is the fountian of youth...

Can't be because people have died there....Shannon, Boone, Charlie, Ecko, the guy who manned the hatch with Desmond(can't remember his name), any pregnant woman who conceived there, Ana Lucia, some of the Others that the Losties killed, and more.......

[missjulie]

Its fuzzy logic when it comes to immortality...

I like the Highlander mythology. You have to die before you can become an immortal. Maybe its like that, there's a catalyst that has to happen before you can become immortal.

[1hourisntlongenough]

But the island definitely has healing power at least.....that is except for Ben and his cancer! He's the only one that disease actually got worse and needed surgery to survive...everyone else got better. (or cheated death 1,000 times *Mikhail*)

[polarsawyer]

Immortality doesn't mean you're immune from death. It simply means you can't die of natural causes (someone can kill you - but you cannot "die" from old age).

Is that accurate. Because Mikhail was shot with a shark spear, gun (i think) and his head almost exploaded from the fence. and I may be forgetting anything else.

My point, he hasn't been killed by anyone yet, so essentially, he is immortal, or immune from death/murder.

[Snape]

Is that accurate. Because Mikhail was shot with a shark spear, gun (i think) and his head almost exploaded from the fence. and I may be forgetting anything else.

My point, he hasn't been killed by anyone yet, so essentially, he is immortal, or immune from death/murder.

That is absolutely a non sequiter. Just because he hasn't been killed yet doesn't in any way mean that he's immortal.

All of those injuries are survivable. Now, if the harpoon hit his heart, or shot him through the dead, I would expect him to die. If he survived something like THAT, then you may have a point, but he hasn't yet.

[polarsawyer]

My apoligies, I forgot to include that I had assumed that the harpoon had fatally wounded him, prior to him jumping back in the water. I know that he obviously is not dead given S3 finale however; a wound like that, true to form is ,quite possibly survivable, isn't one you hear many people walking away from. So to know he walked away from it, led me to believe is not mortal.