Here is my explanation for the whispers heard by several castaways. It also attempts to explain the "monster." I came up with most of this in the "Whispers - Ghosts" thread, which is available here:

http://www.thefuselage.com/threaded/index.php?topic=7578.15

I think the "Others" have some way of downloading memory and manifesting that memory in different ways, including whispers and other sounds. They search people's memories for something that will torture them--something that makes them feel guilty or scared. They do this for two reasons--to gather information about people on the island, and to torture them into submission. I believe this is what happened to Ethan. The Others used his past demons to torture him into essentially becoming their slave.

The main evidence behind this theory is the whispers heard by Danielle, Sayid, Sawyer, the Diary Writer, and possibly Kate. In Outlaws, Sawyers hears a whisper that repeats the last thing said by the man he killed. Danielle also hears whispers--those whispers might be repeating things said to her by the other scientists she killed because they were "infected". Sayid also heard whispers--perhaps repeating things said by various people he tortured and/or killed while a member of the Republican Guard. The Diary writer mentions whispering as well--she also mentions a trial in Louisiana and later says she is the "last person" to judge Charlie for killing Ethan. Finally, many people believe Kate heard the word "help" during WTCMB--was this the last thing said to her by the person she killed?

All these people are seemingly all being visited by the ghosts of their pasts--and not just in their flashbacks. There must be something to this-something that has to do with a group of people or an entity on the island.

Beyond the whispers, you have Jack seeing a vision of his father--perhaps his guilt and sadness over his father was so strong that the Others were able to manifest that memory into a vision rather than just a whisper.

If the Other's can download memory, this can also explain the "monster." Patch mentioned in another thread that the "monster," when you first hear it, sounds like a much louder version of the sound made by the wheels of the beverage cart during the Pilot. Interestingly enough, that beverage cart was mentioned again in Outlaws.

I think that the sounds of the "monster" are simply another manifestation of memory. Everyone heard it because it was based on a shared memory--the plane crash. The Others used sounds from the plane and the crash in order to frighten the island newcomers. After all, the crash was a traumatic experience for all of them. And the crash was probably the first memory that the Others were able to download--it was the most recent and was shared by all.

Now, the problem here is how to explain what happened to the pilot. My guess is that the particular manifestation of memory and feeling (whispers, vision, or other more physical manifestation) is determined by the strength of the memory and the emotion around it. For instance, if you have a strong, negative memory, the Others can manifest it into a whisper. An even stronger memory or emotion can take the form of a vision. And an extremely strong feeling of guilt and fear can take a more physical form. Maybe the pilot's feeling of guilt over the crash, and the fear he experienced while the plane went down was so strong that his memory took a form physical enough to kill him.

I'm still trying to work this theory out, so any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Please nit-pick away! :) I don't know, this may be going a bit too far into the fiction side of science-fiction, but if Charlie starts hearing Ethan whispering, I think there may be something to this.

(props go out to Ophelia, angelharp42, patch410, and Samurai-Luigi and probably others who's posts in the thread linked above led to this theory).

Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you! This is the most believeable theory this far. I´ll be glad to keep an eye open for clues that will help you out! God darn it woman...you this smart all the time?

Hmm . . . I like this theory, but not I'm going to nit-pick away. :laugh:

Are the Others human? How are they able to access memories? And exactly where are they downloading them too? (Maybe that's what's in the hatch--a room of servers!)

I really like the idea that the strength of the emotion is proportional to the 'energy' that the Others can harness from it. You explain the sounds of the 'monster' as sounds from the crash. Would the movement of the trees then be a replay of how the trees had to move as the fuselage hit the beach?

What are these manifestations? Are they happening, or are they not? How real are they?

Hope I didn't nit-pick too much! It's a very attractive theory because it ties in all of the weird happenings that are going on on the island.

The Unnamed Madman: wow, thanks! :)

WhiteSapphire: your nit-picking is more than welcome!

Lets see....

Are the Others human? How are they able to access memories? And exactly where are they downloading them too? (Maybe that's what's in the hatch--a room of servers!)


I think the Others are human, and my guess is that they are scientists who specialize in mind control of some kind. Perhaps they came to the island specifically to experiment, or were headed elsewhere to work but were marooned on the island, like Danielle's group. I have a feeling that they've been on the island a very long time, and something about their physical appearance prevents them from fitting in with the new castaways, which is why they sent Ethan.

As for where they are downloading them to, I'm not sure but I like your idea about the hatch. I do think the hatch is involved in this somehow.


Would the movement of the trees then be a replay of how the trees had to move as the fuselage hit the beach?


I think so.


What are these manifestations? Are they happening, or are they not? How real are they?


I'm not sure if they are real or not. There is evidence for both possibilities. If the Others can use mind-control, then it would make sense that they are implanting these visions and sounds in people's minds. This is evidenced by the fact that Locke apparently didn't see Jack's dad in White Rabbit, and Sawyer didn't hear the word "help" that Kate (possibly) heard in WTCMB.

However, what happened to the pilot was real, as far as we know. So, it could go either way.

As for the actual science behind all of this...I admit I'm a little...er...lost. What can I say, I have a liberal arts degree. :)

I'm kind-of hoping our Fuselage science geniuses will pick this theory up and add to it. Or rip it apart, of course.

I have a feeling that they've been on the island a very long time, and something about their physical appearance prevents them from fitting in with the new castaways, which is why they sent Ethan.*


Why wouldn't Ethan look like the rest of them? Is he a newer castaway?

And this is not serious at all, but when you mentioned their appearance stops them from fitting in, I just thought of the cartoon version of a mad scientist with a giant head. Weird, I know.

Interesting. If the scientists can read thoughts, then there's no reason that they shouldn't be able to implant them. Maybe even through something as simple as radio waves. In theory, they could also direct these transmissions so that one or many people think them up.

OK, well, this isn't really a spoiler, but some people might not want to know, so I'll spoiler-font it anyway. It has to do with what the whispers are really saying.

If the whispers are just signals that the Others are sending directly to the survivors, then how come, if you read the transcripts of the whispers, it sounds like they are talking to each other at some points? Shouldn't they be able to keep these conversations inaudible if they are not directed?

Why wouldn't Ethan look like the rest of them? Is he a newer castaway?


Yes--I do think he came to the island fairly recently. There must be some reason why he was sent to infiltrate these crash survivers and take Claire. I think they sent him because he was the only one who could pass as one of them. I definately don't think he was raised on the island--he speaks English like a North American, he knows what golf is, etc. I don't think he was lying when he said is name was Ethan Rom and he was from Ontario.

As for why the Others wouldn't fit in, it might be that they are all older, or that an experiment went wrong that makes them look different. Or, a better idea might be that they've just been isolated on the island so long that they wouldn't be able to fit in culturally with new arrivals.


OK, well, this isn't really a spoiler, but some people might not want to know, so I'll spoiler-font it anyway. It has to do with what the whispers are really saying.

If the whispers are just signals that the Others are sending directly to the survivors, then how come, if you read the transcripts of the whispers, it sounds like they are talking to each other at some points? Shouldn't they be able to keep these conversations inaudible if they are not directed?


Also not really a spoiler but just in case:

Hmm...hadn't really thought of that. I wasn't aware that we had actual transcripts of the whispers. But, if the whispers appear to be carrying on conversations, maybe the conversations are also memories, rather than the Others talking to one another.

I just thought of something else regarding Sayid. I remember people thinking they heard the whispers saying "Question them," when Sayid was alone in the forest at the end of Solitary. Sayid presumably had to question the Republican Guard at some point. Maybe Nadia once told Sayid to "question them," referring to his bosses in the military. Although, if this were true, then you'd think the whisper would be in Arabic.

Oh, and I like your idea about radio waves. The Others do control the distress signal, so maybe that plays a part in this.

And Danielle said it was broadcasted from somewhere else......does that have to be from the island????