Dead is Dead. Those who have died on the island or whose dead bodies were brought to the island are dead. There are bodies of these dead which are now animated but they are only around because Jacob needs their help with the living.
First, let us start with Richard Alpert. I was rewatching "Because You Left" and I noticed something very odd about the scene where he removes the bullet from Locke's leg. If you look closely at the man who first appears with the torch, he has a modern watch on his left wrist but then Richard comes into view and guess what, NO Wristwatch! Also, the music plays the Jacob sound (that is always heard outside Jacob's cabin) when the first man with the torch appears! Another weird scene is when Richard Alpert suddenly appears to young Ben Linus after he chases a vision of his dead mother. Richard asks if his mother died on or off the island. Why would that matter unless he knew that it made a difference of who it really was.
So the real Richard Alpert is Dead and his body is an illusion hiding who he really is. This explains why he does not appear to age, because he is not really Richard Alpert. He is another man who can change his appearance and wears a watch on his left wrist. So who is pretending to be Richard Alpert for over 50 years? I leave that for your guesses and the season 6 finale. But the reason for the illusion is pretty clear. Whoever it is needs to hide their true identity to avoid recognition by the living.
Next is Christian Sheppard, dead in Sydney, his body arrives on island, then his body disappears, his visions haunt Jack, Locke, and Claire, and he guides Locke to his death off-island because he can "speak on (Jacob's) behalf." His case is not unlike Yemi, Eko's brother, who appeared to Eko and sent him to death via Cereberus. Both have been temporarily visioned to judge their family members as worthy to protect the island. But they are dead and will always be dead.
As for everyone else who died on the island, they are dead and their image can be used by Jacob to persuade the living to do some "work". See Charlie, Ana-Lucia, Boone, Libby, Etc.
So the X-factor in all these deaths is Cerberus. It scans certain people and downloads their memories. (Eko, Locke, Juliet and Kate, Brennan (french team)). It then decides if you need to be dragged to its temple where you are killed and you are replaced with a version who is determined to protect the temple (Robert-French Team). It tried to do this to Locke but Jack Dynamited him, sound deters Cerberus like the explosion, the sonar fence, and probably the temple where the heiroglyphs are written above the crack in the corner. So this security system is a little more savage in its method than Jacob by taking over dead bodies.
Finally there are those dead who died on the island but who get to speak for themselves near the site of their death. The four U.S. Soldiers who Miles talked to, Rousseau and Karl talking to Miles, the dead Boar, etc.
So the next time you see someone who was dead, ask yourself, did they die on the island, was their dead body brought to the island, is their vision happening next to the site of their death, and were they killed by Cerberus? If you answer these questions you will know who it really is and why they appear.
Thanks for reading and let me know if you think of any more! Theory by LostButNotForgotten
First, let us start with Richard Alpert. I was rewatching "Because You Left" and I noticed something very odd about the scene where he removes the bullet from Locke's leg. If you look closely at the man who first appears with the torch, he has a modern watch on his left wrist but then Richard comes into view and guess what, NO Wristwatch! Also, the music plays the Jacob sound (that is always heard outside Jacob's cabin) when the first man with the torch appears! Another weird scene is when Richard Alpert suddenly appears to young Ben Linus after he chases a vision of his dead mother. Richard asks if his mother died on or off the island. Why would that matter unless he knew that it made a difference of who it really was.
So the real Richard Alpert is Dead and his body is an illusion hiding who he really is. This explains why he does not appear to age, because he is not really Richard Alpert. He is another man who can change his appearance and wears a watch on his left wrist. So who is pretending to be Richard Alpert for over 50 years? I leave that for your guesses and the season 6 finale. But the reason for the illusion is pretty clear. Whoever it is needs to hide their true identity to avoid recognition by the living.
Next is Christian Sheppard, dead in Sydney, his body arrives on island, then his body disappears, his visions haunt Jack, Locke, and Claire, and he guides Locke to his death off-island because he can "speak on (Jacob's) behalf." His case is not unlike Yemi, Eko's brother, who appeared to Eko and sent him to death via Cereberus. Both have been temporarily visioned to judge their family members as worthy to protect the island. But they are dead and will always be dead.
As for everyone else who died on the island, they are dead and their image can be used by Jacob to persuade the living to do some "work". See Charlie, Ana-Lucia, Boone, Libby, Etc.
So the X-factor in all these deaths is Cerberus. It scans certain people and downloads their memories. (Eko, Locke, Juliet and Kate, Brennan (french team)). It then decides if you need to be dragged to its temple where you are killed and you are replaced with a version who is determined to protect the temple (Robert-French Team). It tried to do this to Locke but Jack Dynamited him, sound deters Cerberus like the explosion, the sonar fence, and probably the temple where the heiroglyphs are written above the crack in the corner. So this security system is a little more savage in its method than Jacob by taking over dead bodies.
Finally there are those dead who died on the island but who get to speak for themselves near the site of their death. The four U.S. Soldiers who Miles talked to, Rousseau and Karl talking to Miles, the dead Boar, etc.
So the next time you see someone who was dead, ask yourself, did they die on the island, was their dead body brought to the island, is their vision happening next to the site of their death, and were they killed by Cerberus? If you answer these questions you will know who it really is and why they appear.
Thanks for reading and let me know if you think of any more! Theory by LostButNotForgotten
