|
This article or section has been nominated for a cleanup The content on this page may be out of place, overwritten, and/or contradictory. You can help Lostpedia by cleaning it up. |
|
|
This article or section has been nominated for an update The content should be updated to include new information that has been released, specifically information from "Across the Sea". You can help Lostpedia by updating it. |
|
- This article is about the rules concerning the island. For the rules of time-travel, see Time travel.
Jacob's conversation with his nemesis in the beginning of The Incident suggest that the two are playing by the same rules. Just like Ben cannot kill Widmore, Jacob's nemesis cannot kill Jacob. ("The Incident, Part 1")
That Widmore left the Island regularly and had a daughter with an outsider, was considered against the rules. In the same vein, Ben broke the rules when he came back to the Island after turning the Frozen wheel. ("Dead Is Dead")
The Loophole
"Do you have any idea how badly I wanna kill you?" ("The Incident, Part 1")
In reference to these rules, the Man in Black stated he was unable to kill Jacob and that he'd find a "loophole" to do so. ("The Incident, Part 1")
| “ |
NEMESIS: Do you have any idea how badly I wanna kill you? |
” |
Later, the Man in Black was able to manipulate Ben into killing Jacob for him. Before the attack, Jacob said to his nemesis that he had "found his loophole." ("The Incident, Part 1") 140 years prior, he attempted to have Richard kill Jacob, and judging from Jacob's actions to defend himself, it's likely that he would have succeeded. ("Ab Aeterno") Therefore, it seems that the "loophole" consists of having a proxy kill the protected party on behalf of the agressive party. In other words, only someone outside the Rules can kill someone protected by the rules. It is worth noting that Bram, and later Sayid were unable to kill the Man in Black, suggesting that the "rules" may only have protected Jacob, become invalid upon his death, or the attempts failed due to Jacob playing no direct role in them.
If Ben and Charles are bound by the same rules as Jacob and the Man in Black, then such a loophole may exist for them as well. This may be how Charles was able to "change the rules." ("The Shape of Things to Come")
Possible references
The DHARMA acronym
The following references use the phrase "the rules", but it is unknown what set of rules they are referring to. It could either be the same rules that Ben and Widmore follow, an entirely different set of rules, or they were simply using the phrase as a cliche or idiom.
The DHARMA Initiative
- As learned in The Lost Experience ARG, the acronym "D.H.A.R.M.A.", as in the DHARMA Initiative, means "Department of Heuristics And Research on Material Applications Initiative"
- Heuristics are methods to solve problems, also known as "Rules of Thumb"
- The study of heuristics can be found in many fields of study, including psychology, communications, and engineering - all of which are DHARMA volunteer positions
- The word "dharma" itself literally translates as "that which upholds or supports" and is generally translated into English as "law"
- The Dharmacakra, a symbol which appears throughout Lost, is also known as the "Wheel of Law"
- A "law" is defined simply as "a system of rules"
- Chang tells the construction worker at the orchid that time travel has 'rules that can't be broken.' ("Because You Left")
"The 23rd Psalm"
Eko faces the Monster. ("The 23rd Psalm")
When Eko first faced the Monster, the Whispers mentioned "the rules":
| “ |
"Who are you and why are you here?" |
” |
"Stranger in a Strange Land"
In a note to Isabel, Ben stated that "the rules" didn't apply, with regard to Juliet's trial. ("Stranger in a Strange Land")
| “ |
ISABEL [reading]: Ben has commuted Juliet's sentence. Execution is off the table. He says the rules don't apply. He has, however, ordered her to be marked. |
” |
"Enter 77"
"We can't risk it, you know the rules." ("Enter 77")
Beatrice Klugh referenced "the rules" in a conversation with Mikhail during a tense hostage situation. As Sayid and Kate exited the Flame with Beatrice Klugh as a hostage, they came upon Mikhail, who was holding Locke as a hostage. During the confrontation, Beatrice and Mikhail began shouting to each other in Russian. ("Enter 77")
| “ |
(Translated from Russian) BEATRICE: We can't risk it, you know the rules. MIKHAIL: There's still a way out. BEATRICE: We won't let them into the territory. You know what to do. It is an order. BEATRICE: (English) Just do it, Mikhail! (Mikhail takes aim at Beatrice) MIKHAIL: (English) Forgive me. (Mikhail shoots Beatrice) |
” |
"The Substitute"
Mysterious kid to Man in Black:
| “ |
You know the rules. You can't kill him. |
” |
"The Shape of Things to Come"
| “ |
KEAMY: Tell your daddy good-bye. ALEX: Dad... They're serious. They killed Karl and my mother. BEN: Alex... I have this under control. Everything's gonna be okay. ALEX: Please, daddy! Just please, please. KEAMY: You have ten seconds, Ben. BEN: Okay, listen. KEAMY: Nine... BEN: She's not my daughter. KEAMY: Eight... BEN: I stole her as a baby from an insane woman. She's a pawn, nothing more. She means nothing to me. I'm not coming out of this house. So if you want to kill her, go ahead and do it! Alex is shot. SAWYER: I don't see 'em. They just left her body there and disappeared into the jungle. LOCKE: They won't be gone for long. It's gonna be dark in about 20 minutes, and then they're gonna come for him. SAWYER: Then let's just hand him over. LOCKE: I don't think these people have any intentions of letting us walk out of here alive, James, no matter what we do. SAWYER: Well, I ain't got no intention of dyin'. BEN: He changed the rules. |
” |
"Because You Left"
The rules were mentioned by Faraday to Desmond:
| “ |
FARADAY: What is important, Desmond, is what I'm about to say to you. I need you to listen. You're the only person who can help us because, Desmond... the rules... the rules don't apply to you. You're special. You're uniquely and miraculously special. DESMOND: What are you talking about? |
” |
This is probably referring to the rules surrounding time.
Killing Candidates
Jacob's candidates apparently can't be killed possibly until they are no longer considered candidates. In the "The Substitute" Hurley tells Dogen that he can't stop Hurley from leaving the temple because Hurley is a candidate. This fact was prompted to him by Jacob's Ghost.
Dogen would not kill Sayid directly and attempted to have Jack poison him on "What Kate Does".
In "The 23rd Psalm", the MiB as the Smoke Monster did not kill Eko until much later in "The Cost of Living". He had never been seen to spare anyone's life until then. In a similar vein, Locke allowed it to drag him off, believing it would not harm him, before being freed by the other Losties. Locke was known to have a special connection to the Island which gave him some insights.
Coincidental References
"Rec Room Rules: Listen Respect Others"
The following episodes use the phrase "the rules", but they are clearly not referencing The Rules of Ben and Widmore:
- Shortly after the crash, Locke taught Walt the rules of backgammon. ("Pilot, Part 2")
- Sawyer explained the rules of his "I never" game to Kate. ("Outlaws")
- Ana Lucia forcibly told Sawyer that if he didn't like the rules (i.e., her rules), then she'll toss him back into the tiger pit. ("Everybody Hates Hugo")
- While Hurley was in the Santa Rosa Mental Health Institute, there was a sign that read "Rec Room Rules: Listen Respect Others". ("Dave")
- An image of this sign also curiously appeared on the second Lost jigsaw puzzle titled, "The Others".
- As Locke put a grenade into Miles' mouth, Locke told him that there was no use in having rules if there was no punishment for breaking them. ("Eggtown")
- While Captain Gault beat a disobedient crew member, he stated that the rules of desertion still applied to everyone. ("Meet Kevin Johnson")
- Achara, Jack's former lover in Thailand breaks the the rules by revealing to "outsider" Jack what his new tattoo means. When Achara's brother Chet and a group of Thai men find out, they beat Jack and force him to leave the country. ("Stranger in a Strange Land")
- When tending to Naomi after her crash, Mikhail states that she will be better in a day. Charlie, due to the severity of Naomi's wounds questions this and Mikhail replies "on this island the rules are a bit different". ("D.O.C.")
- Jacob tells Richard no one can come inside the statue unless invited, ("Ab Aeterno") words that Richard would repeat to Bram and Ilana when they tried to enter the statue 140 years later. ("LA X, Part 1")
Trivia
- In the movie Saw, Michael Emerson played one of the victims of the villain in the film. His character was forced to obey "the rules" in order to discover the location of the antidote to the poison that was in his body.
- In military or police operations, the rules of engagement (ROE) determine when, where, and how force shall be used. The Rules Ben and Widmore follow appear to be some form of ROE, as they've been shown to specifically relate to the use of deadly force against each other. Furthermore, Alex's death being described as a "change in the rules" could indicate that her status as a combatant had changed under the ROE.
- According to the Ab Aeterno-Enhanced transcript the loophole materialized when the Man in Black took the form of John Locke. Earlier, sending Ricardo to kill Jacob, was his first attempt to find the loophole.
Unanswered questions
| Unanswered questions |
|---|
|
- For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: The Rules/Theories
- What are The Rules?
- Who is subject to the Rules?
- How, why, and when were they formed?
- Why does Ben believe the death of his daughter changed the Rules?
- Given that Widmore believes she was supposed to die regardless, did it really change the rules or just course correct?
- Were the Whispers referring to the same rules as the ones followed by Ben and Widmore?
- Do Ben and Widmore follow the same rules as Jacob and his Nemesis?
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
