Ben's lying has been so convincing that it's become an inside joke with us fans. However, some of his lies have slipped through to us and we have eventually come to take them as "truths", unsuspecting that Ben is even lying to us, the audience. As of now, we perceive that many of the things Ben told us about the Island in Season Four are most likely true: that there are rules, that Locke was supposed to be the new leader of the Others, that the only way to save the Island was to move it, etc. But what if it turns out that Ben's actually twisted the truth so that he ends up gaining from it in the end?
In "316", Christian told Locke that LOCKE WAS THE ONE INSTRUCTED TO MOVE THE ISLAND, NOT BEN. In essence, that is true. In "Cabin Fever" Locke asked how HE could save the Island and the reply was that HE would move it. I think Jacob's intention here was to move the Island once to remove Locke and leave Ben on the Island. Ben, knowing pretty much everything on the Island, would know how to stop the Island's violent movements through time, and would halt the Island eventually. This would give way for Locke to come back to the Island and claim his leadership. Ben, however, didn't see things Jacob's way and wanted to remain the leader of the Others. So he twisted the instructions, moved the Island, left Locke, who knew nothing about how to save the Island or why he should save it even, so that he and the other survivors who might affect Ben's chance of becoming leader again would die, and Ben would eventually find his way back to the Island. I believe he used the same tactic to ! steal the Island from Charles Widmore. Now every thing was going according to plan for Ben until Locke found a way to leave the Island and warn the Oceanic Six. Now Ben's plans are screwed and the only way to fix them is by using Locke's return to his advantage. He killed Locke ahead so that when Locke returned to the Island, he wouldn't be able to claim his leadership and Ben would become leader of the Others again. Then he went to Jack and convinced him that he wanted to help them.
Now as you can see, my theory is entitled "The 1977 Battle for the Island." For a while now, I've been babbling about how Ben's lies have got to us, but how is this related to the main part of my theory? First, I will attempt to explain the Island's relation to its inhabitants and visitors. The Island is a body that constantly moves through time and space, and because it is so special, it needs to be protected and that is the role of the Others. Think of the Island like Free Willy where the Others are the people who wanted to make sure Willy got back to the ocean. The DHARMA Initiative, along with others like the U.S. Military, tried to claim the Island and exploit its abilities, much like the people who tried to exploit Free Willy. In that case, the visitors would try to take the Island from the Others in a Battle for the Island. Most of this time, we have somewhat come to understand that the impending war that Widmore mentions in "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" prob! ably refers to his conflict with Ben. But what if we have it wrong? What if Widmore and Ben are actually on the same side and they just have personal issues against each other? In fact, I believe that during the time of DHARMA Initiative (think of "LaFleur") Charles Widmore was already the leader of the Others. Ben helped out in the Purge, and as a result, Ben became an Other. But here's where the other big question comes in: at the end of season three, we asked why do they have to go back to the Island? How are the Oceanic Six supposed to save the people they left behind? Now I don't think Jacob intends for the Oceanic Six to save the people they left behind. I think he intends for the Oceanic Six to save the Island since by bringing them back, they would be able to clearly see what DHARMA is doing to the Island and they would be moved to save it.
So yeah, that's my theory. By the end of this season, we will see a sort of war between DHARMA and the Others for the Island, and the presence of the survivors in between will cause unforseen circumstances, probably even some variations in the Purge. Theory by Frank Patris
In "316", Christian told Locke that LOCKE WAS THE ONE INSTRUCTED TO MOVE THE ISLAND, NOT BEN. In essence, that is true. In "Cabin Fever" Locke asked how HE could save the Island and the reply was that HE would move it. I think Jacob's intention here was to move the Island once to remove Locke and leave Ben on the Island. Ben, knowing pretty much everything on the Island, would know how to stop the Island's violent movements through time, and would halt the Island eventually. This would give way for Locke to come back to the Island and claim his leadership. Ben, however, didn't see things Jacob's way and wanted to remain the leader of the Others. So he twisted the instructions, moved the Island, left Locke, who knew nothing about how to save the Island or why he should save it even, so that he and the other survivors who might affect Ben's chance of becoming leader again would die, and Ben would eventually find his way back to the Island. I believe he used the same tactic to ! steal the Island from Charles Widmore. Now every thing was going according to plan for Ben until Locke found a way to leave the Island and warn the Oceanic Six. Now Ben's plans are screwed and the only way to fix them is by using Locke's return to his advantage. He killed Locke ahead so that when Locke returned to the Island, he wouldn't be able to claim his leadership and Ben would become leader of the Others again. Then he went to Jack and convinced him that he wanted to help them.
Now as you can see, my theory is entitled "The 1977 Battle for the Island." For a while now, I've been babbling about how Ben's lies have got to us, but how is this related to the main part of my theory? First, I will attempt to explain the Island's relation to its inhabitants and visitors. The Island is a body that constantly moves through time and space, and because it is so special, it needs to be protected and that is the role of the Others. Think of the Island like Free Willy where the Others are the people who wanted to make sure Willy got back to the ocean. The DHARMA Initiative, along with others like the U.S. Military, tried to claim the Island and exploit its abilities, much like the people who tried to exploit Free Willy. In that case, the visitors would try to take the Island from the Others in a Battle for the Island. Most of this time, we have somewhat come to understand that the impending war that Widmore mentions in "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" prob! ably refers to his conflict with Ben. But what if we have it wrong? What if Widmore and Ben are actually on the same side and they just have personal issues against each other? In fact, I believe that during the time of DHARMA Initiative (think of "LaFleur") Charles Widmore was already the leader of the Others. Ben helped out in the Purge, and as a result, Ben became an Other. But here's where the other big question comes in: at the end of season three, we asked why do they have to go back to the Island? How are the Oceanic Six supposed to save the people they left behind? Now I don't think Jacob intends for the Oceanic Six to save the people they left behind. I think he intends for the Oceanic Six to save the Island since by bringing them back, they would be able to clearly see what DHARMA is doing to the Island and they would be moved to save it.
So yeah, that's my theory. By the end of this season, we will see a sort of war between DHARMA and the Others for the Island, and the presence of the survivors in between will cause unforseen circumstances, probably even some variations in the Purge. Theory by Frank Patris
