21 February 2007

Philosophy in Lost 2

I forgot about yet another character on Lost who is named for an Enlightenment philosopher. Rousseau, the strange woman who lives in the woods, is aptly named after Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the Enlightenment thinker best known for his theories on nature versus society. As Rousseau lives in a "state of nature" and acts as a contrast to the island "societies" of the crash victims and the others, this is a perfectly chosen name.

Also, I found some info on how John Locke relates to his Lost namesake here. Seems his social theories and his personal biography may be more of a connection than his epistemic positions.

So, now the count is 4 Enlightenment philosophers! Who will be next? Spinoza? Berkeley? Voltaire? I can't imagine them incorporating a Gottfried Leibniz. Maybe Adam Smith, though - that name sounds commonplace enough.

No comments: