(Group 1: The Long Con)—What You Do & Who You Are
+7 9 Votes
Rate it:
By jazprof
- (Group 1: The Long Con)—What You Do & Who You Are
- Created: Oct 9, 2007
- Last updated: Aug 14, 2008
- After episode: 3.22: Through The Looking Glass
- Status: Current
- Flag this theory:
Sayer’s con-artistry depends on the break-up of families and stems from the break-up of his own family. Like all revenge narratives it creates a vicious cycle. In that cycle what one does becomes who one is—one’s identity becomes inescapable because of the cycle.
— jazprof
Towards the beginning of the episode, Sawyer describes Charlie as a divorced man whose wife has wound up with everything leaving him to live in an apartment. I noticed that because shortly afterwards Cassidy talks about having been left nothing in her divorce (which turns out to be untrue). Then at the end of the episode, when Sawyer is talking about how people in the camp took all of his stuff, I thought—it’s like he feels the entire camp divorced him and wound up with everything in the settlement.
Sayer’s con-artistry depends on the break-up of families and stems from the break-up of his own family. Like all revenge narratives it creates a vicious cycle. In that cycle what one does becomes who one is—one’s identity becomes inescapable because of the cycle. Gordy, Sawyer’s partner in the FB says to him: “You think you’re in love, but you’re not. You know, a tiger doesn’t change his stripes, James. You’re a con man, just like me. And it’s not what you do, it’s what you are.” The metaphor of the tiger is odd though, because in the original story (Just So Stories by Kipling) it is the leopard who doesn’t change his spots, not a tiger and stripes. I don’t know why the writers would make that change, but the association I have is with Blake’s Tiger: “Tiger! Tiger! burning bright/In the forests of the night,/What immortal hand or eye/ Could frame thy fearful symmetry?” (http://www.online-literature.com/blake/632/)
That might be interesting for two reasons. One is that Blake has quite a different notion of good and evil than in traditional Christian thinking—he sees them as necessary balancing forces, yin/yang—which seems similar to what the writers on Lost are aiming for. The other is the Tiger’s “fearful symmetry”—revenge cycles create a fearful symmetry: you kill someone from my tribe, so I kill somone from your tribe, so you kill someone from my tribe….The crime that Cooper committed against Sawyer in his childhood has created a fearful symmetry in his life: “I’m not a good person, Charlie. Never did a good thing in my life.” Being and doing completely conflated there. But there’s also a suggestion as to how Sawyer might break out of that cycle in what Gordy says to him—by loving someone. And interestingly the way I read the whole end of the con with Cassidy is that it almost seems like part of the con for Sawyer is to leave Cassidy with the idea that they still love each other—how much he did or didn’t love her is left up in the air. He tells her that Gordy will kill both of them—which is part of the end of the con, but we also hear Gordy really threaten that—so how much is con, how much is real?
Doing one good thing—it’s ironic if, by taking the guns and preventing Jack and Ana Lucia from going to war—Sawyer actually did do one good thing, and Charlie really did save Aaron.
Other things from the episode:
Vincent appears—Sun is frightened, then at ease when she realizes it’s just Vincent. It rains (dissipation of tension? see: http://lost-theories.com/theories/2007/oct/04/positivenegative-life-energy-m/). Then the real attack happens.
Kate is conned by Sawyer. Or does she figure it out and let it happen because it fits with her own con (the even longer one)?
Sawyer plays Locke and Jack off against each other—things are never going to resolve well unless the two of them team up.
Sayid/Hurley—hear Glen Miller on the radio. Glen Miller disappeared on a flight between London and Paris in 1944.
Key characters
| Short Name | Full Name | Episodes | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sawyer | James “Sawyer” Ford | 3.4, 2.3, 2.6, 2.13, 1.16, 3.10 | 455 |
Key episodes
| # | Title | Aired | Central character | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.13 | The Long Con | 2-8-2006 | Sawyer | 86 |
Poor Glen Miller. He was awesome.
Great post, jaz. :-)
I really really like this there are so many points you have made !+1
notice how vincent always pops up before something happens that dog is psycic!.
Lol me too Kitty. If I can get damn Tv-links to work. Grrrr.
Mrs pretends to be a tiger
So does this mean Kate has the tiger by the tail when she tries to love Sawyer?
Now… I know that sounds naughty, but it doesn’t have to be…
wink
Heya Agent,
jaz waves to Agent
Well, Sawyer does call Kate Sheena and Sheena can communicate with wild animals, even if she has to break into their cages to do so.
Hey there JP.
:)
So yeah… I was contemplating the reason they might have changed leopard to tiger. To have the tiger by the tail is a popular saying.
Fun site: http://www.doghause.com/idioms6.asp have a tiger by the tail Informal. to find oneself in a situation that has turned out to be much more difficult to control than one had expected.
LOL - that Kate is Sheena might mean that she can fare better than Cassidy perhaps.
I like that Sawyer wasn’t compared to a wolf: a man who habitually tries to seduce women.
I found it also very interesting on this page that “swan” is likened to surprise and/or disbelief in some contexts.
I think I’m done with my random animal nonsense now.
:oP
Good stuff jazcat. I especially like your reasoning on the leopard / tiger proverb.
An interesting fact about tigers and some other animals is that the skin beneath their fur is also striped so they certainly can’t change their stripes.
I did some searching on the proverb and found this from the American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms.
“A leopard cannot change its spots. Also, the tiger cannot change its stripes. One can’t change one’s essential nature. For example, He’s a conservative, no matter what he says; the leopard cannot change its spots. These metaphoric expressions both originated in an ancient Greek proverb that appears in the Bible (Jeremiah 13:23): “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots?” It was first recorded in English in 1546.”
Oh, Miss Jazzie Jazz: Outstanding observations, on this episode! +1
The psychological trauma of what young Sawyer witnessed, as a child, propelled him into a whirlwind of revenge, hell bent! He devoted his entire life to finding Cooper and killing him. His misdeeds and crimes, along the way, stemmed from a self loathing, from being powerless to save his Mother from his Father’s wrath, and ultimate violence. He also developed a hatred towards women, and a belief they were to be used, and then punished. It reminds me of the saying “Damaged People, are Dangerous People”! And, in Sawyer’s case the most damage he has done, is to himself! That is why all the ladies want to save him!
I predict Sawyer’s setback after killing Cooper, is temporary. I believe he has what it takes to turn it all around! I predict we will see greatness from him eventually.
Shammie: Very informative!
+1 Jaz. I think the message could also be that the tiger cant change his stripes but that these losties arent really being their authentic selves and dont know what their stripes really are at this stage.
I would agree with you, Katnip! When Sawyer is conning, he views the people he’s working his con on, as non human entities. Whereas, on “the island”, he is placed in the situation of being with Real Live People, which places him in very unfamiliar territory. It forces him into “intimate relationships”, something he is completely at odds with. So, he keeps people at bay, by making them dislike him, in order to avoid anyone getting close to his vulnerabilities.
I love Sawyer (TM).
I thought we did away with trademarks and copyrights awhile ago under pain of death.
Best beware or else Dural the drum thumper and revolutionary may go ninja on you. ;)
Sorry Sham but can’t I just keep one little one? Bats eyelashes
blushes
Awww shucks mrs. You have to ask jaztator.
Hah! Katopy-writer, no ninja worth her kamas is going to be seen, pfffft…
I’ve got all the TM’s safely buried somewhere in the jungle, smirk, so, good thing you don’t hate me, eh, freckles? :-)
Well ‘cept there was that “T” I lent to Desmond, Mmmmmm Desmond, oops there goes an “M”….Ah, hell….