Was Locke referring to looking into Smokey when he says that he saw a wonderful "very white light"?
Eko seems terrified and says, "That is NOT what I saw."
Another dark / light contrast.
Heaven/Hell symbolism?
Is this how the Smoke monster shows 'the future' in a way?
If so, could Desmond's ability have some connection to Smokey?
It's surprising, because it's not like Locke was a great person before the island anyway (drug ring, or whatever he was in) so why would he see white light?
I think Eko not seeing a white light was a sign that he actually IS a "bad man," while Locke is not. We know Locke did not kill Eddie, and yet Eko killed probably dozens of people. I think smokey judged him, and it didn't have a good result for him. Maybe the judgment happened in ? with Charlie, and smokey was just waiting for Eko's return to finish the job.
That's an interesting thought, Jenny. And maybe it's right.
But I think we are meant to think of who is a good man and who is bad man, and how it is all relative. Why does Smokey get to judge? On what criteria does Smokey decide?
Is it as black and white (no pun intended) as murderer v. not-a-murderer?
If this show ISN'T about pergatory, like TPTB say it's not, then why does Smokey get to decides fates on this island?
I really liked Eko, and since I had a hunch (as many of us did) that he would be killed, I expected to be pretty saddened at his death. However, this episode completely altered my opinion of him. It seems to me that he was a bad man. (However, I am REALLY going to miss having him around.)
I think that the saying "the road to hell is paved with good intentions" is appropriate here. He would not repent for any of his sins. No matter how well-intentioned they were, he still committed acts that required remorse. I think that this is why he did not see the white light.
It's hard to see any of our beloved losties a "bad" because we have so much invested in them. But considering how many lives he's taken, I would say Eko was more bad than good. Sure he had a bad life, but each time he killed, that was a decision he made. He didn't have to kill. Those two guys in the 23rd psalm didn't have to die, IMO.
I was wondering about this, as well. It really lends more validity to the theories that the monster can manifest itself differently to different people (i.e. Kate's horse, Sawyer's boar), and IMO the Yemi scenes also hinted at the monster being able to manifest as people (i.e. Christian, wet Walt).
In that way, I think that the monster manifests itself in the form of something that is a reminder of redemption for the person... Eko saw the faces of the people in the village. What does that mean about Locke seeing the white light? Hmmm who knows. Didn't we see Locke being pulled into a hole by the monster as black smoke, though? I wonder if that means the manifestations it has for different people "evolve."
I was also interested in the fact that the monster seemed to back away as Locke was heading up to Eko, as if it were, for lack of a better scared of Locke?
I love how much they teased us with the monster tonight! The monster is one of my favorite mysteries, and they rarely touch on it.
This island is an entity and its reasons for judging whether a person is "good" or "bad" is amazingly similar to a vengeful god of absolutes. When you take into account that the island demands sacrifices, it implies that this island follows a paganistic approach to life and death.
Given the deaths of Boone and Shannon were not because of their "goodness" or "badness", the island must have a consciousness if it needs to will Locke, Eko, and Charlie to do its bidding. It seems as though the island is fighting for something...maybe its very existence.
I think this episode (and all the Eko episodes) was very good at giving us a religious connection to this earthy island. I believe The tomb of Jesus (Eko clearing away the rocks from the plane), the visions, and scripture references all help those of faith sympathize with the island's god-like intentions.
If you believe in a higher power, it almost seems as though divine justice was committed against our killers from Oceanic Flight 815. However, if this island is nothing more than a science experiment gone awry, with a roving killing machine on the loose from the DHARMA Initiative or another corporate entity on the island, then these deaths are random and senseless.
Either way, is it coincidence or is it fate? That's the actual big question mark.
It's surprising, because it's not like Locke was a great person before the island anyway (drug ring, or whatever he was in) so why would he see white light?
....as far as we know, Locke never killed anyone . ( at least as far as we know) Plus, Locke might have repented, which would explain why he saw the whitelight, ...but that doesn't explain why Locke was attack by the black smoke monster in [" Exodus "
..nor why the black smoke monster seem to have left/run away, once Locke, Sayid, and the other showed up the first time, Eko enounter the monster.
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