More Thoughts on LOST The Constant

So, I've been thinking a lot about one of the paragraphs I wrote in the LOST, The Constant post...

"What's interesting about Vonnegut's book [Slaughterhouse Five] is that a main character in the book is Sci Fi writer Kilgore Trout, who is the book version of Kurt Vonnegut.  In Phillip K. Dick's Valis, which Locke gave to Benry Gale to read last week, one of the main characters is Horselover Fat, the book version of Phillip K. Dick.  Not sure if that connection is intended or important, but it certainly was interesting to me."

I can't shake this comparison from my head.  Plus, I've added to it.  The creators talk about Stephen King (who is a huge fan of the show) being a big inspiration for the show.  We've seen Juliet use Stephen King as her choice for the Other's book club, and when Benry Gale was first given a book by Locke back in season two, he commented, "No Stephen King?"  In Stephen King's magnum opus, The Dark Tower Series, (which the creators of LOST have talked to Stephen King about adapting) the last three books include a character who is a writer named Stephen King.  That's right, he puts himself into the story.

So, what does this mean?  I think it means that a character we have been introduced to is actually the "author" (if you will) of the events the LOSTies are embroiled in.

So, who is it?

Well, as I see it, there are a few possibilities.  Let's look at each I think likely in turn.

Benry Gale:
Seems the most obvious, as two of the things that caused me to construct this theory center around him, he was given VALIS and he made the Stephen King comment.  Plus, he placed himself in the hands of the LOSTies for reasons that have never been made completely clear.  What was he doing and why did he get caught by Russeau?  Was it because he wanted to get caught by the LOSTies, to see Locke and Dr. Jack in their habitat to better judge them and how they might react?  It is certainly a possibility.  We've definitely learned over and over again that he isn't trustworthy.  He first introduces himself as Henry Gale, we later find out his name is Ben Linus and that he has numerous other aliases.  He claims that he was born on the Island, which is a lie, and claims that he never leaves it, but if he doesn't leave, why all the foreign currency and the fake passports, and why do the Freighter people have a picture of him that appears to have been taken off of the Island?  Therefore, anything that he says can not be taken at face value, and he could easily be something else that we haven't previously suspected.

Jacob:
Of course, we aren't too clear yet as to who or what exactly Jacob is, but I think it is entirely possible that he is the "author" of everything that has happened so far.

Christian Shepherd:
This is the one that I'm leaning towards.  Partly because of the fact that Hurley saw him in Jacob's chair, partly because of Dr. Jack's insistence that he was upstairs and alive (if drunk) in his flash forward from last season's finale.  Whether it is actually Christian Shepherd or not (maybe the body was taken over by Jacob who doesn't have a body of his own?) is up for debate, but fact that Christian Shepherd is going to play a larger role is something I have no doubts about.

Matthew Abaddon:
Again, we don't know too much about this guy, but seeing as he was introduced just before this connection was placed into by consciousness due to the use of Valis and the homage paid to Slaughterhouse Five, I have to include him as a possibility.  The fact that he asked Hurley "Are they still alive?" makes me think it probably isn't him.  The author of their situation would know about the fate of the other LOSTies.  However, we have to consider the possibility that the situation being authored is the situation of the Oceanic 6, meaning the lies that they are being forced to tell concerning the Island and what happened there.  If that is the case, he is a logical choice.

In my mind, these are the most likely possibilities, a few others that are possible are the heads of each of the big corporations that we have been introduced to throughout the history of the show.

Mr. Paik: Sun's father and head of Paik Heavy Industries

Charles Widmore: Penny's father and head of Widmore Labs

Then there's Alvar Hanso, founder of the Hanso Corporation and Dharma.

I stand by my belief that the connection of these companies (be it as competitors or partners), so the head of any of these corporations could be the "author" of everything that happened.

Until Next Time, these are some of the thoughts I had this weekend as I played over the events of last weeks brilliant episode again and again in my head.