Benjamin Linus After "The Other Woman"

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You-Know-Who
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Benjamin Linus After "The Other Woman"

Post by You-Know-Who »

I think "The Other Woman" gave us several insights into Ben's character. The combined impact of the stuff in the flashback with his "crush" on Juliet and the stuff in the present with his videotape of Widmore, made me understand Ben's motivations and character better. I wrote up how I see Ben's character and history relating to each other and in turn the islands history.

I think Ben is similar to Locke in a way that they both are in search of a family.
Ben hated his abusive father and his mother died, so he was always in search of love and belonging. The problem with Ben is that's he's too much of a control freak and a perfectionist and he doesn't understand that he has to be accommodating and make compromises for people to like him, instead he just controls them and puts them where he want's them (eg. goodwin), but that always comes back to bite him as evidenced by Juliet hating him.
Ben is just lonely, I don't think growing up in a barracks full of scientists and a abusive dad who's a lowly janitor is the best upbringing for a child. Despite those circumstances he found friendship in Annie, but something unknown happened to her, maybe by Dharma's doing.
So Ben was possibly angry at Dharma for taking away his only friend and he wanted to revolt, so he started associating with the natives whose leader is Jacob and who've lived on the island for a long time and who possibly came from the Black Rock. These natives didn't want Dharma messing with the island and it's special properties (just like the Others and Ben don't want Widmore to start messing with the island) so they use Ben as an infiltrator to destroy Dharma from within (just like Ben is using the man on the boat, probably Michael, to destroy the freighter from within), to add insult to injury they did it by using Dharma's own experiments on itself (the gas from The Tempest).
Then the natives settled into the Barracks they conquered (just like Locke's group settles into the Others barracks) and Ben worked himself up the ranks and soon he learned how to control Jacob (again - control freak) and he convinced people that he's the only one who can speak to him.
Ben is always in search of family and with the Others he's trying to build a utopian perfect family made of the perfect people. But he doesn't understand how you do that, his character traits and personality combined with the circumstances he grew up in and is living in right now make him unable to do so. But if there is one thing that Ben loves and loves to control it's the island, and it probably loves him back (all though that is debatable considering Ben's whole tumor fiasco). The island is the only thing he can call home, and he loves it. So that's probably why he's telling Sayid to kill all those people, because Ben's mission always was and always will be to save his home (the island) from what he perceives as any harm.

If you look at the big picture this show just decided to focus on the survivors point of view, but we could have as easily started the show with the Dharma people or the Others/Natives. That's why I don't think any point of view is right or good, each side has it's own respective points and I think just like Darlton always say it's a matter of perspective. that said from the evidence I have right now I'm actually probably on Ben's/Locke's side at the moment. I don't want anyone messing with the island! I want Penny to come rescue everyone who wants to be rescued and Locke and co to stay and live on the island, also as we see from the flashfowards people want to go back to the island so there must be something there.

Anyways, what did you guys think of Ben after this episode?

phat_cartman
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Re: Benjamin Linus After "The Other Woman"

Post by phat_cartman »

That's a really interesting writeup, thanks! But to answer your question about Ben... I think, after this episode, the same thing I've always thought about Ben... that he's a sociopath with a God complex. He plans and plans and plans, he manipulates and he lies. He uses propaganda so well it would make Kim Jong Il blush! Remember, propaganda works because 80% is true, which gets you believing and invested in the speaker. Then the other 20% that's not true, is generally accepted with the rest. And like the writers of Lost, Ben uses perspective to twist facts when presenting evidence, to make you think exactly what he wants you to think, in order to accomplish his end goal.

Hey Clustin!! I'm back :) Well, I never stopped listening to the podcasts... just got REALLY busy.

Claude
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Re: Benjamin Linus After "The Other Woman"

Post by Claude »

phat_cartman wrote:
Hey Clustin!! I'm back :) Well, I never stopped listening to the podcasts... just got REALLY busy.
Welcome back Cartman! Glad to know you're around again...

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