“Lost” Applied to Life, Without “Survivor” Parallels
I sincerely hope that my Beautiful Cynic will appreciate the title, for it’s her I had in mind when it was penned (or digitised as is the case these days). For the reader at large, you’ll be pleased to know that all cryptic references end with this paragraph.
Even if you didn’t sit through a single episode of Lost, chances are you’re aware of the many red herrings, twists, and surprises abundant in the series. Endless speculations and interpretations are to be found and heard everywhere. Co-workers, magazines, the couple at the bus stop - somewhere during your day you’ve been exposed to Lost and its ways.
As humans have a kind of allergic aversion to prolonged uncertainty, but as long as there is a prize at the end of the confusion, we’ll trek the unknown landscape for three seasons, plus. Is this why so many of us have tuned-in to Lost? If so, why are we able to delay the gratification that comes with later answers when Lost is concerned, but when CSI attempted to introduce story lines that weren’t limited to an episode, the viewers pined to no end?
If I made it sound like I have the answers to these questions, I’m sorry. I don’t. Sure, I have theories, but so does everyone else and their uncle. I’m hopelessly (and snobbishly proud of it) out of touch with Hollywood and the entertainment industry, and have already exceeded my threshold for discussing it. However, as the title of the entry suggest, there is something I have to say. Hear me out.
Any decent book claiming to be factually accurate will by virtue include references to the sources of information presented. These sources will come in the form of recommended reading, study results, quotes from various authors, scientists, philosophers, and in some cases a quote from a nincompoop claiming to know something about anything*. These references are recurring, and soon you’re left wondering “Who is this Bertrand Russel or Carl Sagan guy? What is this book that everyone keeps mentioning?” You want answers and before long you’re reading a second book to get them. As was the case with the first, in the process of reading you have learned three new names, and titles of five other books that sound interesting.
Where does it all end? On the Lost series, likely with Season 5. For all else, hopefully not a second sooner than the time your pulse comes to a halt for the last time. Life is a brief adventure in a magical, all the while natural universe, and for every answer we wrangle out of it, we find a grander question. The answer we sought becomes nearly insignificant, so small. Our thirst has not been quenched, and we’re back for more.
As the late Carl Sagan once said: “In some respects, science has far surpassed religion in delivering awe. How is it that hardly any major religion has looked at science and concluded, “This is better than we thought! The Universe is much bigger than our prophets said, grander, more subtle, more elegant. God must be even greater than we dreamed!”? Instead they say, “No, no, no! My god is a little god, and I want him to stay that way.”
* Jerry Falwell with (paraphrasing) “9/11 attacks are god’s response for tolerating abortion”, Ray Comfort with “A banana is the atheist nightmare obviously designed for easy human consumption”, G.Bush Jr. “God told me to strike at al Qaida and I struck them” (Washington Post), ad infinitum. Einstein was right when he hypothised that stupidity is indeed infinite.