 Cindy interviews J. Wood, the author of Living Lost. Miracles, viruses, plane crashes and acts of terror perpetrated by a group of Others. This is the perplexing and radical world created by J.J. Abrams in his hit television show, LOST. Joley Wood, with wit and insight, explores the show's quirky details, and argues for an idea as weird as the show itself: That we're all stuck on the island.
CINDY: The main point of your book is that we are all stuck on the Island. I totally know what you are talking about, because I feel like I am lost in a jungle of mystery everyday, especially at school! (And I'm pretty sure my brother is an Other!) Anyway, I am told that Lost is an "allegory." How can watching Lost help me find my way in the real world? J. WOOD: Wow – nice question. How can watching Lost help you find your way in the real world? I'm not sure any show or system (religious, philosophical, educational) can show *anyone* how to find their way in the real world; finding your way takes a lot of trial, error, failure, and trying again. But that may be what Lost presents; the characters don't solve their issues easily, and the best-laid plans go astray. If they present any kind of model, it's that they take their lumps in stride and learn how to struggle along with others around them in order to identify and accomplish their goals. So if Lost can help you, it may be by showing that easy answers just don't exist, and finding your way takes work and cooperation. CINDY: Which Lost character do you think you're most like? I think I'm most like Charlie because he's usually a nice, happy guy, but he gets some intense moods sometimes, which my Mom says is totally me. Plus, he's short. And English, which I'd REALLY like to be. (I'd talk just like Hermione Granger!) J. WOOD: Hm. This is one question I've not really thought much about. I'm a wiseacre and my mouth gets me in trouble, which seems Sawyerish. I'll also get obsessive over my work, which sounds more like Jack and Locke, but I don't take things on faith like Locke. I admire Sayid's way of sizing up situations and knowing the relevant questions. But if I'm honest, I'm probably most like Vincent. Even my nose is cold. CINDY: My cousin Dwight says Locke has "daddy issues." What does that mean? J. WOOD: Dwight's right; Locke really wants to have a father figure, a dad, or really any kind of organizing force in his life. Remember, he didn't grow up with a dad or a mom, and Locke wants that organizing force so badly that he's willing to ignore warning signs. But when that organizing force fails him, Locke goes off the deep end – with his dad, with the commune in Washington, with the Swan hatch, and it looks like he's leading up to something with the Others. But he's a hard person to read; he may be getting past his daddy issues now, and doesn't need that organizing force as much as he used to. Locke's not the only one with daddy issues; Jack has them, Michael had them as a dad, Sawyer has them, Sun and Jin have them, and now we know Hurley does too. CINDY: Speaking of daddy, my Dad has given up on Lost because he says the writers don't even know what's going on and they're just making it up every week. Do you feel they have a defined and well thought out story arc? Or that they've done a good job of advancing the story and are "playing fair" with the audience? J. WOOD: I do think they have a pretty clear narrative arc. The head writers/producers, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, have said a number of times that they knew the beginning and the end, and had some points to hit along the way. How they got from one point to the next, though, has been flexible. For instance, they knew there was going to be a kind of leader for the Others, but Ben was only supposed to be on for three episodes. Now he's always there, and they've adapted the story to fit him in without sacrificing their overall plan. That happened in part because of Michael Emerson's strong performance and the audience response. The same happened with Mr. Eko – his storyline was extended. And Paulo & Nikki's storyline was moved up because so many fans seemed to despise them. But are they playing fair? That's another question, and I think it depends on how you decide what's fair and what isn't. I think this narrative works like a game; we're given information, and that information takes on a new meaning as new information emerges. The characters – just like the audience – are trying to figure things out as they go along based on that information. If you're expecting regular television that sums everything up in 42 minutes, then no, they're not playing fair. If you're expecting something that demands some interaction and effort in order to get what's going on, then I think they've done a great job; they're dropping clues and setting up a magnificent gamespace every week for us all to play in. Yes, there's some loose threads at the moment, but they've also tied up a number of things (say, Locke's legs, the difference between the Others and the Dharma Initiative, and now we know there's something odd going on with the island's healing abilities and the Others). I'm giving the writers the benefit of the doubt, because I, at least, haven't been disappointed. CINDY: What's up with the smoke monster? J. WOOD: Smokey! On the blast door map, it looks like the Dharma Initiative referred to him as Cerberus, who was the three-headed dog from Greek mythology who guarded the entrance into the underworld. Cerberus would allow individuals into the land of the dead, but once they checked in, they couldn't check out. Rousseau calls it a "security system" to protect the island, and we know that the Others have a sonic barrier (security system) set up to keep Smokey out. Is it natural? We hear all kinds of mechanical noises when it appears, so maybe not. When it scans people, it flashes a bright light that seems to be penetrating the person's consciousness – almost as if it's taking photographs of that person's memories (some would say soul). Once it has information, it seems to be judging people, which may be one of the reasons the Others are so concerned with good people/bad people; the wrong kind of person won't make it past Smokey. (But what they consider good and bad may be quite different from what we consider good and bad; the Others say they're good people, but they've also killed.) *Is it from this world?* We know from "One of Us" that the submarine trip to the island can be pretty intense, which suggests they're not just going through regular water. Perhaps Smokey arrived from somewhere else as well. One thing's for sure; it's the one mystery on the island that the audience seem willing to live with. CINDY: Who is Jacob? Is he a good guy or a bad guy? J. WOOD: Jacob's an interesting figure. His name has biblical overtones; Jacob was the biblical patriarch who fought with a strange man, most say an angel (Genesis doesn't, but later books call the man an angel). Jacob wouldn't let go of the stranger until he got its blessing. After fighting day and night, the stranger/angel then renamed Jacob Israel, which means "struggled with god," and Jacob took this to mean the stranger was god. From there, Jacob had twelve sons who end up giving rise to the Twelve Tribes of Israel; one of those sons was named Benjamin. In the Old Testament (Malachi), it's written that god loved Jacob, but hated his brother Esau; "hate" is a bit strong and means something different today than it did back then, but it's worth noting that (as far as I've found) Jacob is the only *individual* in the bible that god says he loves (at least in the Old Testament). Jacob was also known to be clever, and tricked Esau out of his birthright. (Esau had a hard time with his brother.) So Jacob is someone who's faced god and gave rise to the twelve tribes that made up a good part of the recorded ancient history of the Mediterranean world. He's also a trickster. One thing Lost does is use its literary resources very effectively; when they show a book or have a character with a name that has some kind of greater meaning, it's worth looking at what the other texts say and how they might relate to the Lost narrative. The Jacob of the island, then, may be someone who's nearly divine, is starting a new tribe or nation, and is a trickster. Is he a good guy or a bad guy? That might depend on if your on his side or not (it's kind of like the question of whether Lost is playing fair or not). We know the Others have a healthy respect for him. ------------------------------------------------- Living Lost is available here from Amazon and other book stores.
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