I agree with Liz who wrote #20, with additions. I have been noting for some time that characters are manifesting things- desires, fears, etc. out of their own minds. The first example of this is the polar bear. Remember Dostoyevsky's anecdote about he and his brother having a childhood club, and the admission test was for a person to sit and NOT think of a white bear? The polar bear was our first clue that these are things drawn from the character's minds. Sayid being tortured military style is a powerful example of something being drawn from the character's own life experience/obsession/haunting conflict. And Shannon being asked to help use her mind to solve an incredibly important problem (the French translation.) The drug addict being forced to face recovery and temptation. The conflicted Dad being forced to confront the challenge of parenting a child who has become a virtual stranger to him. The doctor being forced to try and save people in dire need, without the aid of technology. Kate the criminal having to face total freedom and total accountability. Every character has brought with him/her their greatest challenge in life. This is no coincidence- it is clear and consistent. the island to me represents some kind of purgatory "Lost." These people are being given a second chance in a controlled environment. When they have shown their true colors or learned their life's greatest lesson, they die and go to heaven or hell. Walt and Locke represent some sort of spritual duality- i.e. the "black and white" comment during the backgammon game at the beginning of season 1. Locke could represent the fallen Satan (who really doesn't know he has done anything wrong because he is motivated by his love for God, and also looks like a real nice guy) and Walt could be the lamb. The problem of the missing children is very troubling- are they being taken because the fallen are attracted to their innocence? The island itself represents the natural cosmology with which humans have to deal, and the numbers/hatch represent the power of choice and technology, and our moral choices in wielding it. It (tech)is a temptation. The numbers function the same way that tech functions in the real world; they attract more power to the user, while sucking the power away from those around you who do not have the numbers (tech) in their possession. This actually happens in real life if you look at the distribution of tech and wealth in the world, and the patterns of famine, war and disease in less industrialized areas. The reason that the survivors from the front end of the plane have fared better than those from the tail is their mindset. There is no other explanation. They have generally tried to organize to improve their lot and maintain some sort of humanity. The tail end survivors have used their power against each other to create a dog-eat-dog situation. They are creating more negativity with every step that they take. This show is an illustration of what really happens in life. I believe the show falls into the genre of Magical Realism- which novelist Haruki Murakami describes as a phenomenon where "abnormal things happen to normal people" a metaphor for real life, if you ask me. Everyone knows real life is stranger than fiction. I think the creators/writers of the show had set these parameters at the outset, and have let the characters evolve within the given conditions naturally over time, responding to the audience over time. In essence they are playing God and doing it in a very entertaining way!

You're all wrong!

I think that they have been hypnnotised. And people from they're memories. All of the passengeres are connected somehow.

i think, it is a study of the way people react in different situations in a controlled enviroment. they are being studied by someone. think about it. how long will they push the button out of fear, how will a group react with little interaction with the "others" and little to no real threat, how will a group react with much more interaction with the "others" and very real threats. heck the "others" could be being studied as well.

i think its real. there not dead and there not dreaming. but really the producers are leading differnt people in differnt ways. if you think its a dream you have more fate and would be more like loche and if you think its all just plain and simple with no deeper meaning your like jack. Thats why the characters were made these ways. so we could follow them and there ways. I think all the theories are right because this is just that kindof show where its whatever you believe in.

HAH! Taylor that's worth at least 2 stars there. Brilliant.

"How about an air disaster? A commercial flight...say over the Pacific...New Zealand" "Nah...too Peter Jackson." "On the way to Australia then, the plane crash lands on some unknown island...." "Terrorism?" "The hell with that. But you have somebody who LOOKS like a terrorist." "An Arab..." "Well..." "An Iraqi soldier? Former soldier... Republican Guard." "That's good...but what's he doing going to Syndey?" "I have no idea. But he's soldier, with survival skills." "For the desert ..." "Whatever." "Main cast? Can't have 250 members" "No. Plane breaks up. A section washes up on the beach. Maybe 40 survive." "Still too many." "Enough for background. Have the usual ensemble. They have to come to grips with being on the island..." "With a guy who looks like a terrorist." "And other people they don't trust. Nobody trusts anybody. Of course nobody knows where they are; island's not on the chart. So we can keep 'em as long as we can dream up stories." ""I heard somebody once found a polar bear on Bora Bora." "That's bullshit." "No really." "A polar bear? How do you work that in?" "Hell if I know." "Work it in. See how it goes. Let me know." "Will do. Thanks." "Thank you, Walt."

I have to agree with #19 about the show being written on the fly. I also think the writers come here and read the comments to get ideas and check if people have guessed what's coming so they can re-write it. A good example of this is after the season 2 premiere people posted pictures of the window next to the dining table and speculated about what was "outside" the following week, Locke opens the blind for no real reason and reveals it's just a concrete wall and a floodlight. Convenient.

I found this, some are saying it's a hoax though... recently found an interesting natuarlly occuring thoery found in our world that states everyone has a mirror image somewhere in the world. You may have heard of this. Its called Roussau's genetic mirror theory, and I must say it is very interesting. Roussau's genetic mirror theory says that everyone in the world has an exact twin somewhere, however according to the theory you never encounter this person, by laws of probablitly and other natuaral occuring phemnomen. Its the theory that was devised by a French Mathematician named Marseille Roussau in the year 1988. He used a series of numbers to explain his theory. Now I know you're not going to believe this but here goes. 4 8 15 16 23 42 Let me explain... The 4 stands for 4 degrees of separation (not 6 or 7 as commonly stated.) Roussau believed that everyone in the world was connected by four different people. So in theory could meet yourself by using four different people connected to you. Example: Your brother's, boss's, neighbor nephew, knows your mirror. Hard to believe, I know but keep reading. The 8 stands for the eight continent, or the only place in the world where you could meet your mirror. He calculated it to be somewhere in the south pacific. Now we know its not actually as large as the other contintents but its used figurtively because everyone in all 7 continents could meet there mirror on the 8th universal continent. The 15 stands for the chances of you acually meeting yourself on this place, as in 15 out of 4,815,162,342. Look at the second set "815." Ring any bells? Interesting huh? The 16 stands for the maximum amount of people that could encounter thier twin all at the same time. Think about the number of main characters. The 23 is the number of years apart your twin and yourself are. You are not the same age as your twin. By chance and probablity it takes 23 years exactly for the same genes that made you to be connected again to form another you. The 42 stands for the maximimum number of years your twin and yourself can be alive at the same time. However people do die at diffferent times so thats why everyone isn't dead at 75. For example my twin was born on Sept. 6 2003 b/c i was born on Spet. 6 1980. Now that doesn't mean i will die in the year 2045, I could, but its not set in stone. My twin could die when he is 16, and then the whole thing starts over again. This is all very complicated and I don't know how well I explained it but the connections with the show are too coinidental to not be real. Roussau and his team (wife, included) went to the 8th continent. You can figure out how they died and why by the numbers and equations. It also fits with every character. You can predict when they will die. There are others on the island who are twins of the survivors, but have been there 23 years longer. There is a book Roussau wrote 16 years ago in 1988 when he came up with the theory. Thats where I got it from.

Locke is the only one old enough to have been part of the original experiment in the early eighties. Locke is the key. ;o)