John Locke/Theories

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John Locke

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Healing

The driver of the car that hit Emily Locke was not Anthony Cooper, but Richard Alpert himself. It was the first test conducted by Richard to see if Locke really was the chosen one.
The person driving the car that hit Emily was trying to make sure that Locke was never born.
This person could of been Ben. We know he's left the island multiple times, and for all we know multiple periods in time. It would be an interresting twist. It could also have been Widmore as he was with richard at the time Locke divulged his date and place of birth and could have used this information to locate johns mother and prevent her ever giving birth to him. we know widmore was also leaving the island multiple times and fathered Penelope durin this time.
The Island has been protecting him all his life, from his early illnesses resulting from his premature birth ("Cabin Fever"), through his fall that should have killed him instead of "only" breaking his back ("The Man from Tallahassee"), to his recovery from his paralysis ("Pilot, Part 1") and being shot by Ben ("The Man Behind the Curtain"), who acknowledged that he was not thinking clearly when he shot Locke ("Cabin Fever").
The Island sent Abaddon to tell him to take a walkabout ("Cabin Fever"), positioning him for his delivery to the Island.
His legs stop working because the Island was preventing Locke from changing Boone's fate by making sure Locke could not climb up to the Beechcraft.
In "The Man from Tallahassee", we see Anthony Cooper push Locke out of a window. This should have killed him. In fact, it did kill him and when Jacob touched him ("The Incident, Parts 1 & 2") and brought him back to life.
Jacob's nemesis can heal. He does this when Locke arrives on the island, and again when he his shot (appearing as walt). He does this so he can ultimately die and he can take his form and kill jacob.
Is it significant that not only was Locke resurrected when his body returned to the Island (Un-Locke, I guess), but also when Jacob touched him after he was pushed out of the window?

Locke's faith

The episode title "Lockdown" was named for the events occurring in the Hatch as well as "Locke" physically being brought "down". It was also foreshadowing regarding Locke's eventual fall from faith.
Faith played a bigger part in Locke's life while he lived on the marijuana commune in "Further Instructions", and suggests that he gradually lost his faith between that time and when he went to Australia.
John's tag line has always been, "Don't tell me what I can't do!" and his own bullheadedness leads him to deny his true destiny in favor of choosing his own way.

Jacob's enemy orchestrated the Time Flashes to manipulate John Locke

While at first the time periods visited seemed random. This is because we were learning about them primarily through the eyes of several different survivors. However, when focusing on John Locke's experiences only, and using current insight regarding the events of the Season 5 finale, a pattern begins to develop: John Locke's experiences during his time-traveling better serve to enhance his faith and his connection to the Island, and these experiences were a direct result of the manipulation of time traveling by an outside force; conceivably and specifically, Jacob's enemy. Let's look at John Locke's final moments on the Island:

"Because You Left"
- The Beechcraft First time jump; 1990's-ish. A crucial moment in John Locke's history with the island was the discovery of this airplane and the events that transpired. Look it up. Huge impact on John to experience this crash firsthand. This would likely influence his faith that the Island is guiding him somehow. Then he is shot in the leg and left for dead. Until...
  - Meeting with Richard. And guess who else? Jacob's enemy in John's body, and Ben listening in the distance. Jacob's enemy manipulated Richard to go over there. The words that Richard used to persuade John were the words of Jacob's enemy. He was minipulating all of them. John's mission is to leave the island, retrieve the Oceanic 6 and Ben and bring them to the island for some unknown purpose. This is also where we learn that John might have to die to accomplish this. So the flaw in logic is that the man impersonating John Locke after the return to the Island on Ajira 316 would have to know that John would die, and that the success of this plan would somehow lead to the events of "The Incident" for all parities involved. He would have to know the future. However, conceivably an enemy that had the ability to time travel might know a thing or two about the future or the past.
"The Lie" and "Jughead"
- The Flaming Arrows. During "The Lie" the survivors, not including John Locke, are attacked on their camp by a mysterious group or archers. After they escape, They reunite with John, after he saves them from a group of people in U.S. Army fatigues. We learn in "Jughead" that these individuals were a group of people living on the island including Charles Widmore, Eloise Hawking, and...
  - Meeting with Richard, part 2. Part 1, technically. John makes his way into camp and meets with a version of Richard who is meeting John Locke for the first time. We know that John has a history with Richard. We know that Richard visited him in the hospital the day he is born, and that it was this future/past John that suggested he do that. Richard visited him as a boy, and was always telling John how special he was on the Island. Richard has a ton of faith in John. I think that this is the direct result of this experience. My belief is that the individual who is causing the time travel is using this particular experience to manipulate Richard Alpert. He will listen to whatever John Locke says to him. John always speaks the truth, and Richard recognizes this through all of his experiences with John over the years. So when Jacob's enemy comes to town in John's body, no matter how outrageous his demands, Richard will always obey.
"The Little Prince"
- The Hatch, dude. The Hatch! After another time switch, John Locke and his people are taken to a night that happened a few months prior during Season 1 of the show. The events of that night at the hatch, where John sees the light from the underground facility is one of the most important moments from John Locke's life. The moment his faith is solidified. John is calling out to God, and God answers. Of course, it's not God. It's Desmond. But that doesn't matter. For the character of John Locke, this seals the deal. He has total faith in the Island. Whatever happens, John is going to go full force. Now he knows what he has to do. He is going to follow the path set out for him by Jacob's enemy without question. He thinks he is doing what is best for the Island, for his friends, and for himself and his devotion, but he's not. We know now that it was a manipulation, and I believe that John had to come to this decision by no other means. The enemy knew that John would have to experience a string of miracles, as he always does, before he would be convinced to do his bidding.
  - Back to the Future The survivors travel through time again. Probably to now. It is a time after Ajira 316 has crashed on the island. They are persued by unknown assailants. They travel again, out of harms way. It's 1988 and Danielle and her team of Scientists are living on the island. There are a series of jumps through time before John finally makes it to the Orchid station to complete his task of leaving the Island. These time jumps do appear to be more random in nature, but the rapid pace with which they occur begin to take their toll on the individuals involved. Charlotte, Miles, and Juliet could be dying. People everywhere are lost and alone. John is the only one who can stop the turmoil. While the current events of the time periods visitied may not have any direct impact on the storyline of John Locke, the well-being of everyone on the Island is his priority as leader. They arrive at a modern version of the Orchid Station, before quickly being transported to an earlier time where they find a well that John Locke enters. While John is going down the well, the group is taken to a time before a well even existed. The result of this is John ending up at the bottom of the well with a broken leg. Very similar to what happened during "Because You Left", John is injured (in the leg), and meets with an eerie individual who instructs him further on his path. This time it is Christian Shepard. We don't fully understand yet who Christian is working for, or the how or why. He has stated in the past to John that he represents Jacob and his desires. We don't know what's going on with that. But he has the information that John needs to return to the island after he has fulfilled his mission. He also tells him how to leave. John leaves with the assistance of a big wheel.
"The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham"
- John travels to the modern day in our dimension to reunite the Oceanic 6 and return them to the Island. John is a failure in his mission and is filled with self doubt. He discovers that maybe Richard was right. We know what happens after that. John dies. This new guy takes over John's identity. For what greater purpose, we cannot know, yet. Part of that plan involves manipulating Benjamin Linus to kill Jacob, with some assistance from Richard Alpert. Things that have been set in motion for some time, but at least begining with the time traveling.

Relation to the Others

Leadership of The Others

Ben did not kill Locke when he had the chance in "Lockdown". This is because Ben wants Locke to lead The Others.
- In "The Man from Tallahassee" Ben reveals a curiosity and fascination with Locke due to his miraculous healing. This is what saved him. Had it been another of the Survivors, Ben would have killed them and escaped.
  - Ben could not kill Locke without incurring Jacob's wrath.
Ben's manipulation of Locke into believing that he failed to push the button indicates he wanted him to concentrate less on the then seemingly trivial tasks of the Swan.
John's leadership will be the end of the Others. He was suppose to be a scientist, (based on actions by Richard) and not the rough and tumble knife wielding type (as Abaddon wanted).
John is only leader of The Others because Richard knew if he didnt become leader, he would never go back in time and it would cause a time-paradox.
Locke makes his own destiny. The only thing that allows him to be leader of the others is that Alpert remembers him from their meeting in 1954 and therefore goes to his birth in 1956 and visits him all throughout his childhood. Alpert remembers Locke from their meeting in 1954 and thinks he is destined to become leader of the others. However, it is only because Locke is given leadership of the others that he is back in 1954 in the first place. Nowhere in there is he given a mandate, which is why the island is going out of control. The others, and therefore the Island, are missing a leader. When the oceanic 6 left, so did the true future leader of the others, presumably Jack or Aaron, but it is unsure which one, that is why they all need to return.

Not the Leader of the Others or the Survivors

Although John Locke has a special connection to the island, he is not the rightful leader. He is not a man of science (like Richard, Ben, Jack etc.) and has yet to speak with Jacob (despite claiming to). He told Richard he was their leader, but as we saw in Cabin Fever, Locke failed all of Richard's 'tests'. John's destiny is to help the island (or die trying) bring back it's true leader: Jack Shephard
The whole reason that Locke is believed to be meant to lead the others is because he told Richard that he was their leader in the future when they were in 1954.
Jack is supposed to be the leader and Locke will become Jack's leader. Jack and Locke will replace Ben and Richard.

Reincarnation

Locke is the reincarnation of Magnus Hanso. In the episode Cabin Fever, Richard Alpert asks John to identify items that already belong to him. This is similar to a process that is used to determine who has been reincarnated as the new Dalai Lama. He chose a compass and a vial of sand. He recognized the Book of Laws, but took the knife because that is what he wanted. This disappointed Alpert who knew that he was lying. Damon and Carlton said that they researched the search for Dalai Lamas in the Official Lost Podcast/May 8, 2008.
Young Locke does not choose correctly. These are not items from the older Locke's future but rather the items that were owned by the person who Locke is supposed to be a reincarnation of. The leader of the island is not supposed to be a hunter but a man of laws. We see through Locke's childhood and teenage years that he constantly denies his true nature as a man of Science.
Orignally after the tests Locke was thought not to be a reincarnation but eventually proves he is . After Locke in his younger years Ben was thought to be the reincarnation of Magnus Hanso
The importance of taking children is because the others,Mainly Richard want to test to see if its Magnus Hanso reincarnated but Ultimately it turns out to be Locke even though he fails to complete the tests.

Interaction with the Monster

Locke's first encounter with "the Monster" was in the jungle while hunting for boar. When approached, Locke faced up to the Monster and later told Jack, "I've looked into the eye of this Island..., and what I saw was beautiful." One might conclude that this was the first time Locke knew that the Island was where he belonged. That first encounter may not have been "The Monster" at all, but something entirely different. Or, if it was the same entity, it (from what has been described of it) took on entirely different characteristics from what we have seen and know of the Monster.
During that encounter Locke is converted by/to the island in some manner analogous to Rousseau's team("This Place Is Death").
Every other time we see The Monster (as itself, not other people) in the show, it's either killing people or scanning them and showing them their past. If this was the monster, and it was scanning John, he wouldn't say what he saw was beautiful, since his life was pretty much humiliating, and this would be the first time the monster showed up as a bright light entity, hinting at a possibility that it wasn't the monster that he saw.

Miscellaneous theories

Locke's ultimate aim is to learn more about the island, being the place that has healed him. He is simply using the Others as his means of gaining this information.
Locke will soon become the new leader of the Others only to either get them to co-exist with all the other Losties or to get their info on the island and then set them up to be captured. This wont happen untill he becomes the leader so he can learn as much as he can.
Locke is partly responsible for the death of Charlie. When Charlie and John were searching for Eko after the discharge he told Charlie that "Bad things happen to people who hang around me." Boone hung around Locke and was even his apprentice for weeks before being killed after the Beachcraft fell from the cliff. Eko hung around Locke for a shorter amount of time, but was beaten to death by the Monster. Charlie hung around with Locke for a while also, before drowning in The Looking Glass.
Locke has prior military service. His interest in military strategy can be seen by his role-playing a colonel while playing Risk at the box company ("Walkabout"). Additionally, another hint surfaces in The Man from Tallahassee that he may be a Vietnam veteran: the government worker tells him, "It's relevant, Mr. Locke, because if the government's going to continue paying your disability insurance, I have to figure out whether or not your condition has improved," which could refer to a veteran's benefit. Ben doesn't contradict Locke when he says, "For all you know I was a commander in the navy." Despite Ben's intention to show Locke that he knows about Locke's life, he doesn't contradict or counter this statement in any way, instead looking a little confused. Also, in Man from Tallahassee, while he is watching TV in his apartment, what looks to be a framed collection of military combat patches is displayed behind him, above the couch.
Richard's test (Cabin Fever") was to see which period of his life (if any) Locke was flashing back from (a-la Desmond) when Richard arrived. Since Locke wasn't flashing back (as far as we know) his answer confused Richard, who was expecting the self-proclaimed leader of the others (in 1954) to be someone with Desmonds abilities.
John Locke is a symbol for Christ. When Shepherd made the comment about knowing the meaning of sacrifice to John and then how John made his way with his battered body to the wheel, it was symbolic of Jesus' sacrifice and his journey to the cross. In the Bible, the House of Jacob refers to the nation and people of Israel. It is prophecied in the bible that the Israelites will return to their homeland (which is the House of Jacob) when armegeddon takes place and Jesus returns. This is represented on Lost by what's going with the O6 trying to get back to the island, John Locke sacrificing his life and being restored. Also, John's father's real name was Anthony Cooper. Therefore, using the standard tradition of a child taking their father's surname, his name is "John Cooper" - JC: Jesus Christ. I believe this is an intentional easter egg on the part of the writers.
Never destined to be on 815 but was destined to be on the Island.

John Locke as the Savior of the Island

John is the true leader of the island, and the others have been waiting for him for a long time.

John has been subjected to a series of tests since he came to the island, to test whether he was truly ready to be the leader of the island.

1. He was tested to see if he could let go of his emotions about another person when necessary. This was in the form of Boone dying, and John passed it by accepting that it was necessary for Boone to die.

2. He was tested to see if he was willing to kill for the island. He failed the first time, when he failed to kill his father. However, this test was contrived by Ben, and not the true test. John passed the true test when he killed Naomi in cold blood to be able to protect the island.

3. He was tested to see if he would give up a life on the island he loved in order to protect it. He was not able to pass or fail this test, because Ben took his place not knowing that it was for Locke to do. If Locke had turned the wheel, knowing he could not return, he would not have been ejected from the island, and would have passed this test.

4. The final test was to see if John was willing to die for the island. Unfortunately for him, the only way to ever truly prove that somebody is willing to die for something is for them to ACTUALLY die for it. Fortunately for him, he was never intended to stay dead, and having now proven that he will do anything for the island, he will be resurrected having returned to the island.

John is special because he can lead without being corrupted. Ben and Widmore have proven they cannot. The war Widmore spoke of is, of course, between Ben and Widmore, but ultimately neither will win. Only John will survive to lead the others, the survivors of both the 815 and the 316 and any remaining people on the island. John will also prove to be the solution as to why reproduction is fatal on the island.

Possible cultural references

Esau

In the bible, Esau is the twin brother of Jacob. Esau is a "hunter who prefers the outdoor life", while Jacob was "a gentle man who dwelled in tents". Locke hunts, and in "the Brig" Ben is seen living in a tent. Also, Esau is the son of Isaac; in the bible we have the Abraham/Isaac sacrifice tale, in "the Brig" Locke spares his father ("Isaac"?), it seems very much like a retelling of the bible story in reverse.

Lugus

The highest deity in the Gaulic pantheon, Lugus was a nature god, a hunter and a craftsman. His name was Lugh to Irish Celts and might be connected to Loki, another god, this time the Nordic trickster. Those two aspects cover Locke's ambiguous personality.Lugus' father Cian was able to change forms to appear as animals or other people, not unlike Locke's conman father Anthony Cooper. Lughnasa (the feast of Lugus) is the Irish word for the month of August, as the God Lugus was associated with the harvest. Lugus was known for being multi-skilled rather than proficient in one area.

Josaiah

Josaiah was the King of Judah. According to the story told by Eko in What Kate Did, while Josiash was in power, the Temple was in ruin and people worshiped false gods. Josaiah wished to re-build the Temple with gold, but was unable to. Instead they used the Book of Laws to re-build. Locke was presented with the Book of Laws as a child, and he didn't accept it as something which belonged to him. The Temple is a sanctuary for the Others. Locke will use the Book of Laws to correct the damage which Ben, the false god, has caused. This will allow him to re-build the Temple and the community within the island.

The "Real" Locke will Return

When Ilana asks Richard what lies in the shadow of the statue, he replies (in latin) with "he who will protect/save us all". The "will" implies that this refers to someone other than Jacob, a savior or leader who has yet to rise to prominence. Interestingly, the only person currently "lying in the shadow of the statue" is the corpse of the real John Locke, perhaps implying that a true resurrection is in store, and that Locke really is "special" and destined to save the island, from "Jacob's Nemesis", or whichever force is revealed to be the true enemy.
- Richard claims that Locke "never seemed special", but Jacob tells Hurley that he (Hurley) is blessed by his ability to communicate with spirits of the departed. The real John may save and protect everyone by appearing to Hurley in spirit and explaining to him how he and the rest of the people Jacob has chosen can stop Jacobs opponent and fix whatever negative effects Jacobs death will have on the island and its people. This would also recall Charlies dialogue to Jack in season 1 that "if theres one man I expect to absolutely save us all, its John Locke".
The philosopher John Locke wrote about personal identity and consciousness, believing one being could serve as a host for two separate consciousnesses as long as past experiences and memories existed for each. This philosophy is related to the Christian idea of resurrection and the question of a person's identity remaining the same after resurrection. In Locke's book, An Essay on Human Understanding, Locke poses that consciousness can be transferred from one being to another while preserving one's personal identity. It is possible that the physical body of John Locke is "dead" but that his identity, or consciousness, now exists in the new body of Jacob's nemesis. They are working together to eradicate Jacob's authoritarian control over the island.
It is shown in the flashback that Jacob saved Locke from death. I doubt Jacob would do that unless Locke still had a role to play at that point. I suppose it's possible that Locke's role was simply bringing the O6 back, but it's also possible that he still has another, much bigger purpose left to fulfill.

Locke and the Island

There has always been a disconnect between what "The Island" would want and what "Jacob" would want. We see that conflict in a variety of settings. Ben for a long time has been unable to distinguish between what the Island wants and what Jacob wants. When he says in "Cabin Fever" that he "used to have dreams" and the constant reminder that he has been following Jacob's orders that are written on a piece of paper (we have seen this before but most clearly stated in Incident Part 2). This shows that he has no idea what the difference is between Jacob and the Island. Locke on the other hand does know. He understands that Jacob has a level of power of manipulation of the Island's powers that are very powerful. In order to truly gain control of the Island you must win over the Island's trust and be able to manipulate the Island better than Jacob.

Walt's dream

In "Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" Walt tells Locke that "I've been having dreams about you. You were on the Island, wearing a suit, and there are people all around you. They wanted to hurt you, John." The scene that Walt describes refers to the moment when post-death Locke or "Jacob's Enemy" is first revealed and he is surrounded by the passengers of 316.

It perhaps foreshadows a moment after Richard and the Others discover he is not really Locke, and attempt to kill him. Walt's dream was not about Locke, but Nemesis in the guise of Locke.
except Locke was not wearing a suit at this time and make the dream incorrect.

Jacob's Enemy Playing Locke

Jacob's nemesis is the orchestrator of Lockes destiny. Every event (dreams, healing, the Monster, etc.) that caused Locke to believe he was special was caused by Jacob's nemesis and not Jacob. Nemesis did this in order to manipulate everyone (Richard, Jacob, Locke, etc) into believing Locke as a leader, and used that leadership as a way to kill Jacob. Nemesis was the one who convinced Locke to leave the island (via Christian), and the one to tell him he must die (via Richard), all in order to take his body. This was the "longest con" in history.
- Tabula rasa is an idea developed by philosopher John Locke that says the mind is a blank slate and only develops when nutured. The Monster (aka Esau) first meets Locke in Walkabout and spares his life, because Locke was judged as as a man of faith, not free will (the opposite of Jacob's belief). This made him the perfect blank slate to be nurtured and thus, conned.
- Jacob's nemisis inhabited Locke's body when the plane crashed. That is why Locke was able to walk, recovered after being shot, and many other healings that took place for Locke. Also, he knew that island like no one else on the plane crash. He spoke of destiny from season one right after the crash. The real John Locke died on that plane crash and Jacob's enemy took over Locke and thus, John Locke became the ultimate sacrifice.

Bible reference

flight number 316, john locke = john 3:16, the bible: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,[a] that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." emphasis added.
perhaps indicating how richard never ages, he believes in jacob. as richard says "i'm this way becasue of jacob"

Locke's destiny as leader of the Others

Richard is the one who helps pick the Other's leader. During the time jumps seen in the first 6 episodes of Season 5 Locke tells Richard, in "Jughead", that he is their leader and giving him a compass sets Richard on a journey of verifying Locke's leadership. In "LaFleur", Sawyer explains to Richard who they (Losties/Kahana crew) are by reminding him of their 1954 encounter. Then in "The Incident, Parts 1 & 2", Jack tells Richard that he wouldn't give up on Locke. Richard takes all of this info and convinces the Locke of his destiny to be the leader of the island. Unknowingly, John is the maker of his own destiny.
Jacob's nemesis starts it all, by healing locke when he arrives on the island.

Locke represents Jacob(The Optimist).Jack represents Jacobs enemy(The Pessimist)

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