Animals/Theories

From Lostpedia

Main Article

Theories about Animals

Main Discussion

Theories may be removed if ...

Stated as questions or possibilities (avoid question marks, "Maybe", "I think", etc). More appropriate for another article. Illogical or previously disproven. Proven by canon source, and moved to main article. Speculative and lacking any evidence to support arguments. Responding to another theory (use discussion page instead). This does not include responses that can stand alone as its own theory. Usage of an indented bullet does not imply the statement is a response. See the Lostpedia theory policy for more details.

Contents 1 General 1.1 DHARMA logos 1.2 Remote control 1.3 Origin 1.4 Top of the food chain 1.5 Purpose 2 Specific animals 2.1 Birds symbolize betrayal 2.2 Bunny 2.3 Cats 2.4 Kate's horse 2.5 Polar bears 2.6 Tree frog 2.7 Shark 3 Seven Deadly Sins 4 See also

General

DHARMA logos

• All animals experimented on by DHARMA Initiative have a logo on them somewhere, including the polar bears. The logo may be under the bears' fur or on a fur-less place like a foot pad. Lip/ear are common locations on animals where researchers/vets put tattoos

Remote control

• The shark was being remote controlled / manipulated using technology from the Aquarium section of the Hydra station as a way of either spying or thwarting the survivors of the raft assault.

Origin

• The chickens and boar were introduced by the crew of the Black Rock.
• The chickens and boar were introduced by earlier Polynesian settlers, or the builders of the statue.

Top of the food chain

• Both polar bears and great white sharks are at the tops of their respective food chains. Ursus maritimus and Carcharodon carcharias are both mentioned in the blast door map notations, indicating the mapmaker's knowledge of these animals on the Island, and perhaps their relevance.

Purpose

• The shark played an important role within the DHARMA Initiative's philanthrophic research, such as serving as a test object for new drugs.

Specific animals

Birds symbolize betrayal

The appearance of birds is a signal that a betrayal is imminent. Examples:

• When Kate is convinced by the farmer to stay one more night so that he can turn her over to the police, there are a number of plates with birds on them on the walls.
• When Jack's father tells him, as a child, that he doesn't have what it takes, there is a statue of a bird on a table.
• When Charlie tries to get his brother to break up Driveshaft according to a pledge they made to each other, his brother refuses, telling Charlie to "grab a bird", English slang for one of the number of groupies in the room.
• When Boone tells Shannon about finding the door to the hatch - against Locke's wishes - birds wings can be heard fluttering in the background.
• When Sawyer is about to betray Cassidy, there is a statue of a bird on a table and also a birdcage on a different table.
• In the same episode, when Sawyer is betraying Locke by getting him to move the guns, Locke is looking through a book with "Owl" in the title.
• Charlie is betrayed by his vision, where he sees a dove that encourages him to save the baby in the name of good; instead the rest of the survivors think he is trying to harm the baby and becomes a pariah.
• When Michael is leading Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley into the Others' trap the Hurley Bird flies over.
• Just as Charlie and Claire seem to be reconciling their differences, migratory seagulls appear, and Charlie, concerned by Desmond's ominous behavior, tells Claire that her idea to capture one is stupid, which leads to an argument and temporary break-up.
• When Walt is asking for help with his homework (on birds)when in Australia, his Step-father ignores him, which results in a bird flying into the window and dying. When Walt's mother dies, his step-father calls Michael and tells him he doesn't want to look after Walt anymore

Bunny

Main article: Bunny/Theories

Cats

• The cat named Nadia is a manifestation of the "Monster". ("Enter 77")
  • However, Mikhail has had the cat for some time. It is unlikely the Monster would appear in a form significant to Sayid, but spend most of its time in that form with Mikhail. Also, Sayid, unlike others who have seen apparitions from their past on the Island (Jack, Kate, Eko, Hurley), has never encountered the Monster in black smoke form.
  • Damon Lindelof commented about "Sayid's little cat" along with Kate's horse in connection with the magic box in the March 26, 2007 episode of The Official LOST Podcast. If it's true that Kate's horse is a manifestation of the smoke monster, then Lindelof's comment may indicate that the cat might be as well.[1]
• Nadia/the "Monster" watched Sayid to see if he would kill Mikhail in order to determine whether Sayid was a "good person" or not. ("Enter 77")
• The cats seen in Enter 77 are actually one and the same.
  • Unlikely as one is male and the other is female.
• Possible cultural references:
  • The Prisoner - A black cat appeared in cameo roles in two episodes of this show ("Dance of the Dead", and "Many Happy Returns") which are reminiscent of the cats in Lost. ("Enter 77")
  • Schrödinger's cat - A cat in a box with a firecracker may be an allusion to this. ("Enter 77")

Kate's horse

• The horse appears to be very real; however, it is a group hallucination, since both Kate and Sawyer can see it. Kate touches the horse, so if it is a hallucination, it is not merely an auditory and visual one.
• It is a manifestation of the Monster.
• The horse is Wayne reincarnated, similar to Sawyer's boar.
• The horse is a sign that Kate is saved. It did save her before by crashing the marshal's car after her arrest.
• Horse escaped from The Flame.
  • This seems likely as it was too well groomed to be wild.
• The horse came out of Ben's Magic Box
• The term "dark horse" is typically used to describe a political candidate who might be viewed as an unlikely choice. This could symbolize Kate taking on more and more leadership qualities, rather than the attitude of "I'm coming with you" that she personified in Season One.

Polar bears

Main article: Polar bear/Theories

• The polar bears are a result of the Dharma Initiative's experiments.

Tree frog

• The tree frog will appear again, it is Sawyer's manifestation of the "Monster".
• The frog is a manifestation of Sawyer's conscience and his crushing it may be a creative device to indicate a shift to his darker side, especially as he had been getting softer in previous episodes.

Shark

• Sharks are the only animals that can not be afflicted with cancer. The DHARMA Initiative may have been studying this trait in order to cure cancer.

Seven Deadly Sins

• The Seven Deadly Sins (Pride, Envy, Anger, Sloth, Gluttony, Greed, and Lust) all are represented by separate animals. Six of the seven animals have been seen on the island.

Sin---Animal---Example

• Pride---Horse---Kate's Horse
• Envy---Dog---Vincent
• Anger---Bear---Polar Bears
• Sloth---Goat---Not Yet Seen
• Greed---Frog---Sawyer's Tree Frog
• Gluttony---Pig---Wild Boars
• Lust---Cow---Mikhail Bakunin's cows at The Flame
  • A drunken love affair is certain in the future of Mikhail who is alive. Damon merely misspoke.

• All but the goat have been seen in some form or another on the island.
• Some of the survivors represent these animals.
• Each of the survivors has committed one or more of the Seven Deadly Sins.

See also

• The "Monster"/Theories

Animals (Theories about animals) v • t • e
Birds • Boar • Cats • Cattle • Chickens • Dog (Bpo Bpo) • Dog (Vincent) • Rat (Eloise) • Horse (Kate's) • Horse (Others') • Horses (Bedouins') • Medusa spider • Moths • Orangutan (Joop) • Polar bear • Rabbits • Shark •Sea urchins • Tree frog