ABC’s LOST explained!
Still wondering what the television show LOST was all about? I have answers!
SPOILER ALERT – the following article will completely explain and therefore give away to the most important puzzle pieces from the hit ABC television series LOST. Therefore if you haven’t seen the show and don’t want the end to be spoiled, stop reading this article right here! As for the rest of you who have wondered… what did it all mean? I have the answer for you!
Now that the spoiler warning is out of the way, lets get right to it…
The most mysterious lingering question remaining regarding the television show LOST is… what is the golden light in the cave at the heart of the island?
If only we knew what the light was maybe we could determine what the island was. And if we knew those facts we could piece together all the remaining details. Some might say the question was already answered when Jacob claimed the island was like a cork (when he said that he wasn’t lying which I will explain later) yet saying the island is a cork really only raises another question instead of giving any type of comprehensive answer, after all… if the island is a cork, what does that mean? I for one am glad that the writers didn’t spell it all out for us because if they had, it would have robbed us the opportunity to ponder the larger questions and solve the puzzle ourselves and ultimately that was the fun of LOST.
SO WHAT WAS THE LIGHT?
The golden light in the cave at the heart of the island is the same light that was behind the frozen donkey wheel that the MIB, Ben, and Locke, all were attempting to manipulate or channel to their benefit throughout the show. It also seems to be the same light (or a type of it) that engulfed the island when Desmond flipped the fail safe, when Juliette ignited Jughead, and each time our losties were bounced around when the island was skipping in time.
Most folks assume the light is God, or spirituality, or possibly the personification of goodness, or life, or something similarly vague. None of those solutions help us piece together the puzzle that is LOST.
Drum roll please…
Continue…
I think this is the BEST explanation concerning this show
I have nothing to say, except… THANK YOU so much! You answered all those questions I had. I never thought that “time” was the answer for everything 🙂 Maybe, this answers should have been explained at the end of the show 😀
Now I think we all have our own Black Smoke xD
I just stumbled upon this… someone had posted it in a drug band message board that I frequent. MIND = BLOWN.
After reading your thoughts I’m kind of amazed that I haven’t heard this theory elsewhere… I’ve read a lot of LOST theory and this is all new territory. I mean that in the best way possible… your explanation is so thorough and just makes so much damn sense that it’s hard to believe it hadn’t been thought of before. So bravo to you, Sir.
I read this for the first time yesterday and have thought of little else since. Thank you for the enlightenment, truly.
I wish the lost creators(carlton cuse and damon lindleof) would coment on this article.
I think this is a great analysis; however the representation of a physical force (for lack of a better term) in both literal and figurative/symbolic methods is a cause for concern. What is the light was unfettered free will? I feel if free will is substituted for time, the analysis holds up, and my explain even more.
I just like popping back in here to read this again and see the comments others are putting here. Still think the ending was bunk.
After my earlier post, I got to thinking that instead of a “re-imagining,” as I originally put it, of ideas and symbols that have been around for ages, the show reinvested these ideas with modern significance through scientific understanding. The addition of modern science to ancient archetypes expands upon our awareness of the world and our place in it, thus making it a truly modern mythos. Also, I wanted to add that the choice of light, the speed of which being the only “constant” in the universe, as the representation of time and the…um…” force”/power of the Island, not only backs up your theory re: Einstein, but enforces the potent combination of symbolism and science in the series. Add the emphasis on our contemporary understanding of human psychology, and we have “Lost” — something we can all watch over and over and find new meanings in for a long time to come. Well, at least for those of us who refuse to believe that it’s all the ravings of a madman, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. No, “This means something!”
Thank you for this. I always disliked literal interpretations of “Lost” because it is a deeply thought out and elaborate metaphor, and not a one-to-one allegory (“the Island is Hell” or “the smoke monster is the devil”). The genius of the show always lay in its openness to interpretation as in some strange old myth, The Bible, or all great literature that folk still feel is fit to talk/argue over. That is why “Lost” will last — a great, rich, phantasmagorical re-imagining of our world culture and science in a modern format with a “timeless” message. Thank you for adding new detail to the tapestry for me!
Thank you Ben! I also loved your email that you sent me and I hope you found my answer satisfactory!
This is a fantastic theory. It really sums up the entire show and things feel so clear! I’m just curious as to where you began to start researching when it came time to write the theory.
Just finished watching the whole series on Netflix over the past 2 months, and found it addicting. Friends told me to read your blog for answers to the many questions left by the finale.
I love your theory, it makes more sense than any others discussed online or with friends. LOST is truly the most intriguing show I’ve ever watched, and as a person who reads the Bible and follows the teachings of Jesus Christ, I loved the many references to Scripture and the theme of forgiveness and redemption.
Excellent blog!
A good theory ! I’ve seen LOST Season 1-5 twice and 6 once. It crossed my mind that the Island is a cross between time dimensions and the mysterious energy is in fact time but never stuck with it because my mind was distracted by all the smoke mirrors that LOST throws at you to keep you intrigued. i also thought for a moment that the Island is Mu / Lemuria / Atlantis.
But you have to admit, a good writing technique (and above) doesn’t need a side explanation, excellent as it may be (yours). Also, at the end of a story, redemption in afterlife no matter what you did prior destroys the purpose and meaning of the whole experience.
I bet the creators of LOST would have liked to have thought your theory first and implement it with consistency and confirmation (vague or not).
Great read!
I hate you, Ericknowsitall! I’ve been struggling with the meaning of LOST for months and you go and figure it all out like some kind of prophet. I’ve had nose bleeds trying to understand it! I guess I should be thanking you now that my nose bleeds have come to a end. …okay…Thanks!
I love the theory and will be studying it in detail as I watch the series a second time with Little Sis!
Thank you!! Best theory I have heard yet, and it makes total sense. *Whew.* 🙂
I just happened to stumble upon this theory and I must say I am blown away and in complete awe. Hands down, your connection of piecing together such an intricate puzzle is thought provoking and has opened my eyes to some new concepts I never considered. I have come to some of the same ideas you have posted but I must say I bow down to you lol! This post just made my day and cleared up some uncertainties regarding the series. I want to thank you for posting it and seriously you made my day. I firmly believe you got it spot on. I have read some really great concepts posted by others on various websites and some that made me want to smack them and say seriously are you watching what the rest of us are watching? Genius you are indeed and thanks so much for taking the time to break it down in such an articulate way.
Thank you Boris! If you like my theory make sure to share it on Twitter, Facebook, and anywhere else that LOST fans might be hiding. 🙂
Mate, thank you very, very, much. I loved Lost, but the simple fact is that I was hopeless when it came to find some kind of closure or answer to all the problems. There were so many mysteries and questions left unanswered, everything from “What the golden light is” to “why do pregnant women die on the island?” I never imagined that there was a single answer that would wrap up every mystery on the island in a nice, neat package. I thought that the writers themselves didn’t know the answers to the questions that they had created, but now I realize I was dead wrong. They just didn’t want to give the answers away for free, so that we could puzzle over them.
Thank you. I’ve had my brain hemorrhaging for months trying to understand what had happened, and you’ve saved me a trip to the hospital for neurosurgery. Your theory makes complete, and perfect sense, and it makes Lost all that more enjoyable. I need to watch it again, knowing this theory. Thanks.
This is the best theory I’ve read and I subscribe to it 100%. I have a couple of notes about MIB being good in some cases and that is with regards to his group in season 6.
To Claire, MIB is good because her past (her past being Aaron) is all she has a motivation to keep going. The same can be said for Sayid and Jin when they stay with MIB’s camp: the aspects of their past that they miss most are what MIB has promised them.