This week’s episode opens with a pregnant woman washing ashore on the island. She stumbles through the jungle (I hate to nitpick, but she sure looked like she was holding a basketball under her wet dress), until she comes to a stream. As she bends over to take a drink, she is startled by a reflection of a woman.
This scene mirrors a scene from Season 3’s “The Cost of Living”, where Mr. Eko takes a drink from a stream and sees the Smoke Monster reflected in the water. This is definitely NOT a coincidence. Store this info away, as I’ll be coming back to it later.
The pregnant woman is frightened, but the other woman tries to calm her down. The two women speak to each other in Latin. The use of Latin (although I think Latin is just representative of an archaic language), the lack of hieroglyphics on the island (i.e. no one from ancient Egypt has landed there yet), and some other clues (like the game) suggest that this is probably taking place a few hundred years prior to the birth of Christ. But more importantly, I think we are to believe that this is thousands of years ago,,,,whether it is 2,000, 3,000 or 5,000 years ago I don’t think it matters. After a musical cue, the language they speak switches to English. I think this is simply a cinematic technique (similar to that used in “Judgment at Nuremberg”) to avoid having the entire episode in subtitles. It is safe to assume that for the remainder of the episode, the characters are actually speaking to each other in Latin.
Claudia, the pregnant women, peppers the other woman with questions, such as:
CLAUDIA: How did you get here?
WOMAN: The same way you did...by accident
But, the woman is not particularly interested in a Q&A session, saying, “Every question I answer will lead to another question.” This was a clever little line, as she is talking as much to the audience as she is Claudia. The reality is that the show will not be able to answer all the questions that the fans have. While this episode provides the origin of Jacob and the Man-in-Black, it raises a new question as to where this woman came from. But, I tend to agree with her quote in that we will never get an answer to everything. The answers we need are the ones that have relevance to the main story and I think we will get those. Anyone who thinks the series will address every possible question will ultimately be disappointed.
Claudia goes into labor, and with the woman’s help, gives birth to a son. She says, ”His name is Jacob.” The woman wraps this quiet child in a light colored cloth. The labor isn’t finished, though, and a second boy is born: “I only picked one name.” The second boy is screaming and is wrapped in a dark cloth. Claudia wants to see them, but the woman apologizes and kills her with a stone.
Mom....Jacob’s touching me again!
Let’s pause here, because we received a lot of info in a short period of time. First, we now know that Jacob and the Man-in-Black are twin brothers. And when we look at the light and dark wrappings (and later the hair color), it makes me wonder if perhaps the fate of the brothers was predestined as good and evil, respectively. I find this interesting, as this season has so often referenced freewill and choice, that we are maybe seeing that it was fate all along for these characters to play their respective roles. Also, in the bible, Jacob and Esau were twins. Here is a synopsis of that story:
Jacob and Esau were the twin sons of Isaac and Rebecca. It is written in at least two bible passages that God loved Jacob, but hated his brother Esau. Similarly, Isaac favored Esau, but Rebecca favored Jacob. Jacob used deception to receive Esau’s birthright to become spiritual leader of the family, leading to protracted animosity and conflict, including Esau’s vow to kill Jacob. Jacob and Esau, become the leaders of Israel and Edom, respectively. In the Book of Obadiah (Hebrew Bible and Old Testament), Edom is destroyed with no survivors at the “end of days”.
I’ve written before about the Jacob/Esau parallels in LOST, and we see them again in this episode. The first thing I noticed related to this is that the Baby-in-Black is not given the name Esau and doesn’t even appear to have a name (or at least it isn’t revealed to us). I think this was a smart move by the writers, because it has been built up as a mystery for so long that any name, with the exception of Esau would be a disappointment. To give him the name Esau would have had too many people looking at them as the literal biblical Jacob and Esau. And that would be a mistake. There are also allusions to Cain and Able, Romulus and Remus, etc....but clearly Jacob and Esau are the inspiration for these two characters. I’ll try to touch on the Jacob/Esau parallels as they come up.
As for the killing of Claudia, the first thing that struck me about it was the similar behavior to Rousseau. Recall that Rousseau kidnapped Aaron from Claire in Season 1. The crazy-mom similarities (remember we have crazy jungle-Claire now too) though interesting, are not as important as the specific motivation was for the murder. My guess is that she looked at this as an opportunity to train her replacement. Jacob and MIB are the “candidates” to replace her.
The next scene finds the Boy-in-Black (now about 13) walking along the beach, where he finds a game...which appears to be Senet. Senet is believed to be the world’s oldest board game and is somewhat similar to backgammon (recall John Locke’s description of backgammon to Walt in the series Pilot: “Two players. Two sides. One is light … one is dark.”). Boy-in-Black (BIB) invites Jacob to play with him, as long as he doesn’t tell their “mother”.
JACOB: Why can’t we tell her?
BIB: Because she’ll take it away. So, do you want to play or don’t you Jacob?
JACOB: Yes....I want to play.
This is the beginning of a game that has been going on for thousands of years. They use black and white stones as the playing pieces. We’ve seen black and white stones as having symbolic meaning for these two players (most notable on the balancing scale in the seaside cave).
Couldn’t a Nintedo Wii have washed up on shore instead?
Later, Jacob returns to the cave where they live with “Mother” (the woman who killed Claudia). She is working on a loom. (Recall that in last Season’s finale, Jacob works on a loom to create a tapestry). Mother is able to quickly get the information about the game out of Jacob. (Note how easily Jacob is manipulated by Mother).
Mother goes to BIB, who is sitting on a log on the beach, and asks, “May I join you?” (Note these are the same words MIB used in “The Incident” when he joined Jacob at the base of the statue).
BIB: Jacob told you what I found.
MOTHER: Of course he did. Jacob doesn’t know how to lie. He’s not like you.
BIB: Why, what am I like?
MOTHER: You’re....special.
We’ve heard the word “special” used before to describe several of the characters.....but most often for John Locke (ironic that the BIB will eventually take on the form of Locke) and Walt.
Mother claims the game came from her.
MOTHER: Where else would it come from?
BIB: Somewhere else, across the sea.
MOTHER: There is nowhere else. The island is all there is.
While Mother is clearly lying, I actually like this line, in that it implies that the island is all that really matters. This interesting discussion continues:
BIB: Where did we come from?
MOTHER: You and your brother came from me and I came from my mother...
BIB: Where is she?
MOTHER: She’s dead.
BIB: What’s dead?
MOTHER: Something you will never have to worry about.
And she kisses him. It seems clear, at this point, that Mother favors BIB as her replacement (and that the she intends for him to become immortal by passing him the responsibility). Jacob appears to be simple and naïve. BIB, on the other hand, is clever and manipulative....just like Mother. This is a place where we see some deviation from the Jacob/Esau analogy, as in the bible Jacob was favored by his mother.
We next see the boys running through the jungle, hunting boar. However, they see some men (apparently, the boys have never seen any other humans). They run back to the cave to tell mother what they saw.
MOTHER: They are not like us. We are here for a reason.
BIB: What reason?
Mother blindfolds the boys and leads them through the jungle, while lecturing them about what makes these men dangerous: “The same thing that makes all men dangerous. They come, they fight, they destroy, they corrupts, and it always ends the same.” These are the same words MIB would use in his beach meeting with Jacob in “The Incident” to describe the people that come to the island.
JACOB: We’re people....does that mean we can hurt each other?
MOTHER: I have made it so that you can never hurt each other.
Jacob’s words represent foreshadowing of the events that will follow...where MIB kills Mother and his brother. But it also begs the question, how did Mother make it so the boys can’t hurt each other? It appears to be true, because Flocke was unable to kill Jacob directly and instead used Ben Linus. I hope this is something that is eventually explained.
Mother removes the boys blindfolds and they see a cave that is glowing gold with a stream running through it.
JACOB: What is this place?
MOTHER: This is the reason we’re here.
I wonder about this line. On the surface, it seems to imply this is why Mother, Jacob, and BIB are here. But perhaps, she is speaking of mankind. This is the source of all life.
MOTHER: Don’t go in there.
BIB: What’s down there?
MOTHER: Light....the warmest, brightest light you’ve ever seen or felt. And we must make sure no one ever finds it.
BIB: It’s beautiful.
MOTHER: Yes it is. And that’s why they want it. Because a little bit of this very same light is inside of every man....but they always want more.
JACOB: Can they take it?
MOTHER: No... but they would try and if they tried they could put it out. And if the light goes out here....it goes out everywhere. And so I’ve protected this place, but I can’t protect it forever.
BIB: Then who will?
MOTHER: It will have to be one of you.
OK.....this was an extremely important exchange in the episode. First, note that Mother describes it as “the warmest, brightest light you’ve ever seen or felt”. Ask yourself this: How does she know? I’ll come back to that later. Second, Mother says that “a little bit” of the light is in “every man”. This, coupled with some of the things we learn later about this location, leads me to believe that she is referring to souls. The light is a collection of souls....souls of those who have died and those yet to be born. In the Harry Potter series (one of my “go-to” references), Voldemort believes he can obtain immortality by dividing his soul. Perhaps in this mythology, the opposite is true....immortality can be obtained by acquiring more souls. And this may be why there is such intense interest in the island. If you can harness its power, you can live forever.
Now also look at the comment relative to the light going out on the island, means that goes out everywhere. What does that mean? Well, we know of someplace that the light has gone out.....the sideways universe. In that reality, the island has been destroyed and is sitting at the bottom of the sea. Does this mean that the people living in the sideways universe have no souls? Does it mean that sideways-Aaron was born without a soul? I have to believe this is where the sideways story is driving to. Something is not right in that world....and I’m betting that this is it.
Well Jacob, I suppose you could roast marshmallows over it.
Life goes on for the brothers and in the next scene they are back to playing Senet:
BIB: You can’t do that Jacob.
JACOB: Why not?
BIB: Because its against the rules.
JACOB: You made the rules.
BIB: I found it. One day you can make your own game and everyone will have to follow your rules.
We’ve often heard reference to “the rules”. In fact, it seems that Jacob did indeed create the rules for the island. And these rules have been guiding the actions of island leadership (Ben, Richard, Widmore, etc) for a long time.
BIB sees a vision of Claudia....but Jacob can’t see her. BIB quickly ends the game and goes to chase the vision he saw. He catches up to her and asks:
BIB: Why can’t Jacob see you?
CLAUDIA: Because I’m dead.
This was a curious response. Jacob and BIB are twins. Why wouldn’t they have the same capabilities? Then again, MIB is “special”.
Claudia takes BIB to see the village where the men are. She explains that they came to the island 13 years ago by a ship:
CLAUDIA: Its how we came from across the sea.
BIB: There is nothing across the sea
CLAUDIA: There are many things across the sea. You came from across the sea too.
BIB: No. That’s not true. That’s not what my mother told me.
CLAUDIA: She’s not your mother. I am.
While Claudia has told BIB the truth, I get the sense that she is not operating in an above-board manner. This struck me as a temptation being presented to BIB...kind of like the serpent presenting the apple to Eve. Recall Jacob’s description from earlier this season about the island being a “cork” on a “bottle” keeping the evil from escaping. What I am wondering is if Claudia is a representation of the evil and is manipulating BIB to fulfill the purpose of releasing the evil....similar to how John Locke was manipulated by the island visions.
You need to get off the island soon, my son. Filming on High School Musical 4 starts next week.
BIB gets Jacob and they sneak away from the cave. BIB tells Jacob what he saw and they argue about leaving Mother.
BIB: She’s not our mother!
Jacob snaps and attacks BIB. I think that Jacob may have already known, deep down, that Mother isn’t really their mother. If we did a Myers-Brigs personality type test on Jacob and BIB, my guess is that BIB would be a “thinker” and Jacob would be a “feeler”. I think that while Jacob appears not to be as bright as his brother, he is more emotionally sensitive. Mother hears the ruckus and stops the fight.
Stop saying that! I do NOT make faces like Jack Shephard!
BIB: There is another place across the sea. It’s where I’m from and I’m going to go there. I’m gonna go home.
MOTHER: Who told you –
BIB: My mother.
MOTHER: I’m your mother.
BIB: You killed my mother. Jacob, she was your mother too. We don’t belong here. We don’t belong with her. Come with me.
JACOB: No.
MOTHER: My love, you need to know this. Whatever you have been told, you will never be able to leave this island.
BIB: That’s not true. And one day I can prove it.
So, why can’t BIB leave the island? Is it because Mother thinks he is the one to take her place? Is it because they are unable to determine how to leave (remember that it requires travel on a very specific bearing to leave)? Or is it a “rule” that has been established.
Later, Jacob joins his mother on the beach, where she is rocking back and forth....clearly shaken by the departure of BIB. She admits to killing their mother.
MOTHER: I couldn’t let you become one of them. I needed you to stay good.
JACOB: Am I good, Mother?
Hmmm...very interesting question. It is one that the audience has been asking for quite some time. Jacob’s actions don’t always seem to be “good”. My guess is that there is no absolute good and bad....only which direction the scale tips. Mother, though, has a much more direct answer:
MOTHER: Of course you are?
JACOB: Then why do you love him more than me.
She contemplates the answer.
MOTHER: I love you in different ways.
A curious response.....remember that for a little later. Jacob agrees to stay with Mother.
We next see a grown Jacob weaving a tapestry. And honestly....what a piece of crap. A couple of thousand years of practice has really improved looming skills.
Jacob goes to visit his brother at the village across the island, where they sit down for a game of Senet. MIB wants to know why Jacob watches the village. (Notice that Jacob’s voyeurism continued for thousands of years with his use of the Lighthouse). Jacob responds that he want to know if Mother is right about the people.
MIB: You want to know if they are bad. That woman is most definitely insane, but she is right about that.
JACOB: I don’t know about that....doesn’t seem so bad to me.
MIB: That is easy for you to say....looking down on us from above. Trust me....I’ve lived among them for 30 years. They’re greedy, manipulative, untrustworthy, and selfish.
Recall the Smoke Monster has been described as one who passes judgment. Here we see MIB judging the people of the village.
JACOB: Then why are you with them?
MIB: They are a means to an end.
JACOB: What end?
MIB: I’m leaving Jacob. I found a way off the island.
JACOB: No, its impossible.....there is no way off the island.
MIB throws a dagger at a nearby well, where it sticks to the stone. Notice that this is the same dagger Dogan gave to Sayid to kill Flocke and MIB gave to Richard to kill Jacob. He explains that there are places on the island where metal behaves strangely (implying magnetism).
MIB: What are you going to do when she dies?
JACOB: She’s never going to die.
MIB: Jacob, everything dies.
JACOB: I don’t want to leave this island. It’s my home.
MIB: Well it’s not mine.
Look how even though Jacob is grown, his sheltered life still gives him a child’s perspective. MIB on the other hand has grown up. He is cynical and angry.
After Jacob explains to Mother that MIB has finally found a way to leave the island, she goes to visit him, where he is working in a well. Notice how she appears rather suddenly....almost out of thin air (very Christian Shephard-like).
MIB: I’ve spent 30 years searching for that place that you brought me as a child....that waterfall with that beautiful light. And I’ve walked this island from end to end....not once coming close to finding it....and then I began to think....what if the light underneath the island....what if I could get there from someplace else. Figuring out how to reach it took a very long time.
MOTHER: The people with you....they saw this too?
MIB: Yes. They have some very interesting ideas about what to do with it.
MOTHER: Do with it? You don’t have any idea –
MIB: I have no idea because you wouldn’t tell me, mother!
What this passage tells us is that from this time on, whenever man has come to the island he tries to exploit the power here. We’ve obviously seen this with the DHARMA Stations, and it is very likely that they were just the most recent residents to try.
MOTHER: What is that?
MIB: It’s a wheel…We’re going to make an opening…one much bigger than this one; and, then I’m going to attach that wheel to a system we’re building. A system that channels the water and the light. And then I’m gonna turn it. And when I do…I’ll finally be able to leave this place.
In the same thirty years, your brother only finished one tapestry.
So here we have one of the really big mysteries on the island: Where did the frozen donkey wheel come from? Now we know that MIB built it to tap into the energies of the island as a means of escape.....which we know would work because we’ve seen both John Locke and Ben Linus transported to Tunisia by turning the wheel. But it begs the questions:
MOTHER: How do you know all this? How do you know it will work?
MIB: I’m special....Mother.
Interesting that MIB uses the same word that Mother used: “special”. MIB seems to know things. He knew how to play Senet without being taught. In some ways it is like John Locke, who was also called “special” and seemed to possess new knowledge (hunting and survival skills) when he arrived on the island. This would lead me to believe that island bestows upon certain individuals special abilities. However, the counter argument would be the example of Walt, who had abilities before he arrived on the island. This would suggest that the island chooses people who have certain abilities.
MIB: I don’t belong here.
MOTHER: Then I suppose this is goodbye.
She gives him a motherly embrace......and then bashes his skull against the wall.
Mother next takes Jacob back to the golden cave. Notice that she “passes the torch to him”.....a symbolic gesture of the transition that is about to come: “You’re going to protect it now.”
JACOB: What is down there?
MOTHER: Life...death....rebirth. It’s the source....the heart of the island.
OK....so there it is. We’ve been asking ourselves since LOST started what the island is.....and now we seem to have an answer. I’ve suggested previously that the island is a gateway to the afterlife/underworld. Based on this week’s episode, I believe I was partially correct. The light we are seeing here is where the dead go (at least those who can move on). But it also seems that this is where life comes from. This could tie into the reason the statue of Taweret (goddess of fertility/childbirth) is built on the island. But also notice the word “rebirth”....suggesting reincarnation. We’ve seen reincarnation referred to before on the island. The van Ben drove when he was in Los Angeles had the name “Canton-Rainier” on it, which is an anagram for “reincarnation”. And of course we have seen John Locke reborn through the Smoke Monster. So, I’ll amend my theory to say that the island is the gateway to “what is beyond”....call it Heaven, Hell, Valhalla, Fields of Aaru, Elysium, Hades, etc. It is where we come from and where we go.....the source and destination for our souls.
MOTHER: Just promise me, whatever you do, you won’t ever go down there.
JACOB: Would I die?
MOTHER: I’d be worse than dying, Jacob....much worse.
The main thing I took away from this is, again, how does Mother know what happens to you when you go into the cave? I think there is a pretty strong argument that she may have been down there herself.
Mother takes out a wine jug (one that appears to be the same one we saw earlier this season in “Ab Aeterno”. She removes the cork....an interesting symbolic gesture given the analogy Jacob made to the island being the cork and the wine representing the evils of the world.
MOTHER: Drink this.
JACOB: What happens when I do?
MOTHER: You accept the responsibility....that you will protect this place for as long as you can. And then you’ll have to find your replacement.
Jacob is reluctant. We’ve seen him in this episode as a simple man......one who is probably not prepared for this responsibility....and he knows it.
MOTHER: It has to be you.
JACOB: No it doesn’t. You wanted it to be him.......Now I am all you have.
MOTHER: It was always supposed to be you, Jacob. I see that now. And one day you’ll see that too. But until then...you don’t really have a choice.
One minute you are weaving some crappy tapestry and the next you are asked to be the protector of all the souls in the world. A difficult decision. But Jacob....the one who always tried to please Mother....does what she asks and drinks the wine. I know some people are looking for a direct answer as to what the wine is and why it transfers the power to Jacob, but I think the only answer is: “it just does”. Wine has been used in religious ceremonies for as long as there has been religion. I don’t find it odd at all that wine is the sacrament that will seal the covenant to make Jacob the protector of the island.
Mother then tells him: “Now, you and I are the same.” While this seems like the truth, I am pretty certain she is lying. I think there is a whole lot more to Mother than the job she just gave to Jacob. And I believe we see that in the next scene.
MIB wakes to see the well completely filled in, his village burning, and all of his people murdered. Before leaving the camp, he pulls his Senet game out of the ashes and breaks down....a mixture of pain and anger.
Now wait one minute.....how in the heck did Mother kill an entire village of hunters and refill giant holes in the ground? Simple....she is the Smoke Monster (or alternatively, she has the ability to summon the Smoke Monster, like Ben Linus did). Throughout the series, we have seen the duality of the two sides (one is white....the other dark)....but they have remained in balance. Before two entities (Jacob and MIB) took over these roles, both parts may have been played by a single person....Mother. She represented both the good and the bad. Perhaps this is why she loves the boys in “different ways”.
Don’t believe this? Let me recount my evidence:
- She appears at the stream....mirroring an earlier Smokey appearance
- Mother and MIB use the same words to describe people who come to the island
- She has knowledge of what is in the cave
- She seemed to appear suddenly before MIB in the well
- She wiped out an entire village
As Jacob and mother head back to their cave, we get a sweet little “Terminator” reference:
JACOB: Storm’s comin
MOTHER: Yes...there is.
Jacob is obviously referring to some inbound rain. Mother, though, seems to know that there is great conflict ahead for her sons? Before they arrive at the cave, Mother sends Jacob off to get some firewood. Her warning for him to “be careful”, tells us that she knows what is coming.
After Jacob leaves, she enters the cave to find it in disarray. However, she also sees the Senet set and takes one black and one white stone in her hand (representing her two sons) and lifts the black one (MIB.....the favored son) up to look at it. Suddenly she is stabbed in the back by MIB. Through his tears, he asks:
MIB: Why wouldn’t you let me leave, mother?
MOTHER: Because I love you. Thank you.
Mother is grateful for being relieved of her responsibility. This is not at all dissimilar to Jacob’s stabbing....where he goaded Ben into killing him.
Jacob returns and is enraged. MIB tries to explain, but Jacob will have none of it. After beating MIB senseless, Jacob drags him through the jungle
MIB: She burned them...she was crazy....she burned them all.
MIB is desperate to earn his brothers forgiveness.
MIB: You can’t kill me Jacob....she made it that way.
JACOB: Don’t worry brother. I’m not going to kill you.
They arrive at the golden cave.
MIB: She brought you back here. Why would she?
Even though MIB wants to leave, he seems somewhat incredulous that Jacob has been chosen to protect the island (somewhat similar to Jacob stealing Esau’s birthright).
JACOB: Because I have to protect it now. You want to find the light...you want to leave this place? Then go.
He throws MIB down and he floats into the cave and is sucked down into falls. Seconds later, the light appears to dim out and the Smoke Monster emerges. The implication here is that the Smoke Monster is a reformation of MIB. But I’m not so sure this is correct.
Good thing Mom’s dead or I’d be totally grounded.
After Jacob leaves the golden cave area, he finds MIB’s dead body at the side of a stream. Jacob carries the body back to the cave where his dead mother is. He arranges the bodies next to each other and places one white stone and one black stone in a leather pouch and puts it with the bodies. Interspersed with this “funeral”, are scenes of the discovery of the bodies by Jack, Kate, and Locke in Season 1. The discovery of these bodies and the stones fueled much speculation of the identity of “Adam and Eve”, as they were called by Locke. Now we know they are MIB and Mother.
I’ll just put their dead bodies here in my living room and it will be just like old times.
People will likely cry foul at this line from Season 1’s “House of the Rising Sun” (which was conveniently left out of the flashbacks):
KATE: Any idea how long they've been here?
JACK: Long. It takes 40 or 50 years for clothing to degrade like this.
We now know the bodies have likely been there for 2000 years or so. However, I don’t think people should be too critical of this point. At the time that episode was written (it was just the 6th episode of the series), the basic themes and ideas behind the series had been establish, but the detailed mythology was not worked out until it was known that the series would continue beyond Season 1. When all is said and done, I’m sure there will be some things to criticize the writers/producers about, but this isn’t one of them. I’m satisfied with how they addressed this mystery.
As the show ends, Jacob says, “Goodbye brother.” To me, this implies that Jacob’s brother is gone and is not really the Smoke Monster. My belief is that the Smoke Monster is using MIB’s form....just as it has been using John Locke’s form. Now people will point to Flocke’s statements about wanting to “go home” and “leave the island” as proof that it is indeed MIB, but the Smoke Monster may still be a prisoner on the island. And his home may be the great beyond (the source of life and the place we go when we die) and that is the place in which he wants to return. I believe that the souls of both MIB and John Locke are trapped with the Smoke Monster. If this is true and the Smoke Monster is destroyed, it may provide the opportunity for these two souls to be released and go on to the “beyond”.
I’ll leave you with one more question to think about. If MIB couldn’t leave the island (and I am assuming this “rule” also applies to Jacob), how is it that Jacob has appeared many times off the island?
With that....I think I am done. While this episode was not one of my favorites (although after 3 viewings it is growing on me), it certainly gave me a lot to think about. I’m sure it has you thinking as well.
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