Themes
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Territoriality / Boundaries
Many of the characters on the show "don't know their boundaries" from a metaphorical point of view. Perhaps the most notable example is when Christian Shepherd overstepped his bounds and operated on a patient drunk, and was subsequently reported by Jack, though Jack himself is frequently pushing the limits of medicine and human interaction.
In "The Hunting Party" in a flashback:
Christian: "Careful. There's a line, son. You know it's there. And pretending it's not -- that would be a mistake." (at seeing Jack's closeness with Gabriela)
Jack: "Guess you would know."
Christian: "It may be okay for some people, Jack. But not for you."
Later on in the same episode, he meets Mr. Friendly:
Mr. Friendly: "This is not your island. This is our island. And the only reason you're living on it is because we let you live on it... We've got a misunderstanding, Jack -- your people, my people. So listen carefully. Right here there's a line. You cross that line, we go from misunderstanding to something else."
Jack appears always willing to push the boundaries, in near-hopeless situations, such as considering an amputation for Boone. He returns to the area of the invisible "line" in "S.O.S." and challenges Mr. Friendly (it turns out he is not around, but they find Michael instead). This all appears to foreshadow a confrontation at a later time over the territory of the island.
Internally between the castaways, there are conflicts over territories, such as when Jack wanted everyone to move to caves. After the hatch was opened, Jack and Locke are always butting heads over who will have control over major issues within it, and both seem to have made it their home. Locke is especially possessive, at one point even calling it "my" hatch.
There are indications from the maps that we have seen that there are areas outlined by both Danielle and the blast door map maker, such as "The Dark Territory." Also, the blast door map has writing about "accelerated de-territorialization of Ursus maritimus" (relating to polar bear research).
In "S.O.S." Locke attempts to redraw the map, and does so on a page of poetry (a poem called "Sur les Débuts de Melles Rachel et Pauline"). In the poem, there is mention of "crossing swords over jealous flags," a reference to territoriality as well.
Item Last Updated: April 23, 2006, 03:01:19 PM by Pandora
