There was an untapped undercurrent in the show which could have dramatically changed its course.
And it reminds us of an interpretation of an old nursery rhyme.
Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after.
Up got Jack, and home did trot
As fast as he could caper
He went to bed and bound his head
With vinegar and brown paper.
There are several different tales about the origin of "Jack and Jill."
One of the most popular versions involves French royalty. Many believe
that the rhyme about Jack falling down and breaking his crown refers to
the king of France, Louis XVI, who was beheaded during the French
Revolution. And the "Jill who came tumbling after?" That would be his
dear wife, Marie Antoinette, who also lost her head in the French
Revolution.
Juliet could have been the Island Queen if she had accepted Ben's advances. But since Ben killed her lover in order to control her, that relationship was DOA before it began. Ben's relationship with women was more torturous than normal. But even afterward, Juliet held a lot of sway among the Others, possibly because she stood up to Ben and lived to tell. She was smart, she knew how things worked, and she could navigate her way to manipulate even Ben.
Jack was the leader of the survivor camp. Over time, he began more assertive and controlling as he made unilateral decisions on missions. He became the focal point of the Others ire. So much so that Ben tried to convert Jack into an Other, an ally. It almost worked as Jack stayed in the Others camp after Kate and Sawyer escaped the cages.
Both Jack and Juliet had similar fates of the French nobles. Both died on the island, at the hands of the island politics.
Showing posts with label Juliet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Juliet. Show all posts
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
FALLING OUT
How easy is it to fall in and out of love.
Shannon knew she was a beautiful young woman. She used to it to gain the attention of suitors, boyfriends and a lazy, carefree lifestyle. But she continually made bad choices, ran out of money and had boyfriend issues because her relationships were so superficial.
Kate knew she was cute, but never dolled herself up as a beauty queen. She used her charm to get men to do her bidding, and falling in love with her was not on her agenda. She was independent and did not need the admiration of a man to make her happy. Or so she thought, until it was too late. Her relationships were hit and miss, and the men in her life literally got caught in the cross fire and paid a heavy price trying to capture her heart.
Juliet never expressed herself as attractive since she was engrossed with her work. As a student, she fell for her smart scientific husband, but that puppy love did not equate into a meaningful, story book relationship. His work and her work did not allow the couple to work on their own personal feelings for each other. It ended in divorce. And to further to cut the ties, Ben had Juliet's ex hit by a bus in order for her to accept Alpert's invitation to join the island research.
The only woman who truly had a deep, caring and loving relationship with a man was Rose. She found her soul mate late in life. They was a strong and natural bond between them. When Rose got sick, she accepted her fate while Bernard tried in vain to find a miracle. In one regard, the island was the couple's final paradise - - - together, alone, forever.
Juliet and Sawyer's final relationship started as a matter of convenience and security, then bonded when the time travel arc ended with the Swan construction site implosion. Only in death would Juliet be happy with her Sawyer.
Shannon's true love story was much weaker. A week long affair with Sayid was somehow transformed into the epic tale of lost lovers - - - even though Sayid had pined for 6 seasons for a woman named Nadia.
But just as improbable, Kate's relationship with Jack was also weak. In the O6 story line, they had a major falling out because of Jack's addictive jealousy personality and Kate's inner will to be independent. Kate was trapped in the suburban homemaker lifestyle of her mother which Kate detested. The "divorce" in the O6 arc was clean and absolute, as Jack spun off into his own personal darkness. They fell out of love harder than a person jumping out of a plane without a parachute. Why Kate and Jack reunited in the after life is one of those music chair moments - - - because there was nobody us to pair up.
Shannon knew she was a beautiful young woman. She used to it to gain the attention of suitors, boyfriends and a lazy, carefree lifestyle. But she continually made bad choices, ran out of money and had boyfriend issues because her relationships were so superficial.
Kate knew she was cute, but never dolled herself up as a beauty queen. She used her charm to get men to do her bidding, and falling in love with her was not on her agenda. She was independent and did not need the admiration of a man to make her happy. Or so she thought, until it was too late. Her relationships were hit and miss, and the men in her life literally got caught in the cross fire and paid a heavy price trying to capture her heart.
Juliet never expressed herself as attractive since she was engrossed with her work. As a student, she fell for her smart scientific husband, but that puppy love did not equate into a meaningful, story book relationship. His work and her work did not allow the couple to work on their own personal feelings for each other. It ended in divorce. And to further to cut the ties, Ben had Juliet's ex hit by a bus in order for her to accept Alpert's invitation to join the island research.
The only woman who truly had a deep, caring and loving relationship with a man was Rose. She found her soul mate late in life. They was a strong and natural bond between them. When Rose got sick, she accepted her fate while Bernard tried in vain to find a miracle. In one regard, the island was the couple's final paradise - - - together, alone, forever.
Juliet and Sawyer's final relationship started as a matter of convenience and security, then bonded when the time travel arc ended with the Swan construction site implosion. Only in death would Juliet be happy with her Sawyer.
Shannon's true love story was much weaker. A week long affair with Sayid was somehow transformed into the epic tale of lost lovers - - - even though Sayid had pined for 6 seasons for a woman named Nadia.
But just as improbable, Kate's relationship with Jack was also weak. In the O6 story line, they had a major falling out because of Jack's addictive jealousy personality and Kate's inner will to be independent. Kate was trapped in the suburban homemaker lifestyle of her mother which Kate detested. The "divorce" in the O6 arc was clean and absolute, as Jack spun off into his own personal darkness. They fell out of love harder than a person jumping out of a plane without a parachute. Why Kate and Jack reunited in the after life is one of those music chair moments - - - because there was nobody us to pair up.
Friday, October 4, 2013
IMPLODING STORY LINE
It is one point that is glossed over as being superficial. But it shows the story structure problems of the show when it comes to a consistent mythology.
It deals with the Hatch and The Incident.
As the LOST story unfolded in real broadcast time, many of us thought that the Hatch "implosion" was "The Incident" that was whispered about in the Others Dharma camp. But then we had the story tangent of Juliet being trapped in the hatch excavation pit banging a rock on an atomic bomb when the white light flashes and we next see another implosion debris field at the site.
Two separate incidents. The same results: there was a massive crater (implosion).
Normally, a massive discharge of energy will create an explosion, where the debris field would be scattered about a wide range of area. There still may be a crater at the epicenter.
When Desmond turned the fail safe key, we saw the Hatch cover land on the beach (an explosion) but also saw the effects of the station crumpled down into the crater (an implosion). When Juliet's cliffhanger flash happened, we really only saw the end result of her being trapped in the debris of the implosion (as the construction scaffolding was twisted upon her).
That left us with various assumptions on what happened in each event. In Desmond's case, the fail safe key had to have been attached to a detention device (a bomb) for the sole purpose of stopping the runaway electromagnetic build up. Hence, the explosion and implosion as the EM field apparently "re-sealed" itself. In Juliet's case, the "incident" began as the drill hit the EM pocket. Now some people thought Juliet "set off" the a-bomb by banging on it, but that is not how atomic weapons detonate to cause a chain reaction explosion. Further, if the atomic bomb did explode, Juliet would have been vaporized; instead, we get her portfolio death scene with Sawyer.
Which is oddly consistent with Desmond's event. Dez somehow survives the explosion-implosion. He is found naked wandering the jungle. Why did Desmond survive and Juliet die? They both experienced the same EM event. And why was Desmond's clothes stripped away but Juliet's was not?
The writers often tried to set mirror events into the plot lines. But the writers never explained any distinguishing results from those mirror situations.
You cannot even argue that naked Desmond running in the jungle was symbolic of his "rebirth." Juliet's "sacrifice" was more straight forward until she said "it worked." What worked? Did she re-boot the island time clock? How would she have known that, she was buried in a debris pit. Or did she think that she died and went to heaven (sideways world). But that makes little sense since she was the last to be "awakened" in the sideways story line. Besides, at the moment of her death she was thinking about her love, Sawyer. But in the sideways world, her fantasy life began with being married to Jack, and having his child, David, before getting divorced. There is a major inconsistency between the cause and effects of the two Hatch location incidents.
Why was Desmond more "important" than Juliet to move the story to its climax? In retrospect, Desmond was touted as being "the secret weapon" to take down MIB but he never achieved that goal. He was immune to high EM energy. The light cave apparently had high EM energy. Someone had to "re-boot" the island so Desmond was drafted to be that worker by both MIB and Jack, the new island guardian. But Desmond failed to finish his job; Jack had to intervene. Desmond did not have the final death blow to defeat MIB. Kate shot MIB.
And what did Juliet's death do to move the story line forward? The only thing was to reinforce the will in Sawyer to leave the island. It is also a strange path to believe that it took a three year time travel work camp imprisonment with the Dharma group to teach Sawyer that there was someone who could love him in a respectable relationship. Do we then assume that Sawyer lived unhappily ever after until he died and went to the sideways purgatory to be keystone copped into an unbelievable reunion with Juliet at a candy machine?
It the incidents were merely markers for the theme of death and rebirth, the story was not well crafted to bring those points home. If you believe the island was real, then Desmond's "rebirth" is symbolic that fate will keep you on your path of destiny? Or, in Juliet's case, one's rebirth can only occur in the after life.
It deals with the Hatch and The Incident.
As the LOST story unfolded in real broadcast time, many of us thought that the Hatch "implosion" was "The Incident" that was whispered about in the Others Dharma camp. But then we had the story tangent of Juliet being trapped in the hatch excavation pit banging a rock on an atomic bomb when the white light flashes and we next see another implosion debris field at the site.
Two separate incidents. The same results: there was a massive crater (implosion).
Normally, a massive discharge of energy will create an explosion, where the debris field would be scattered about a wide range of area. There still may be a crater at the epicenter.
When Desmond turned the fail safe key, we saw the Hatch cover land on the beach (an explosion) but also saw the effects of the station crumpled down into the crater (an implosion). When Juliet's cliffhanger flash happened, we really only saw the end result of her being trapped in the debris of the implosion (as the construction scaffolding was twisted upon her).
That left us with various assumptions on what happened in each event. In Desmond's case, the fail safe key had to have been attached to a detention device (a bomb) for the sole purpose of stopping the runaway electromagnetic build up. Hence, the explosion and implosion as the EM field apparently "re-sealed" itself. In Juliet's case, the "incident" began as the drill hit the EM pocket. Now some people thought Juliet "set off" the a-bomb by banging on it, but that is not how atomic weapons detonate to cause a chain reaction explosion. Further, if the atomic bomb did explode, Juliet would have been vaporized; instead, we get her portfolio death scene with Sawyer.
Which is oddly consistent with Desmond's event. Dez somehow survives the explosion-implosion. He is found naked wandering the jungle. Why did Desmond survive and Juliet die? They both experienced the same EM event. And why was Desmond's clothes stripped away but Juliet's was not?
The writers often tried to set mirror events into the plot lines. But the writers never explained any distinguishing results from those mirror situations.
You cannot even argue that naked Desmond running in the jungle was symbolic of his "rebirth." Juliet's "sacrifice" was more straight forward until she said "it worked." What worked? Did she re-boot the island time clock? How would she have known that, she was buried in a debris pit. Or did she think that she died and went to heaven (sideways world). But that makes little sense since she was the last to be "awakened" in the sideways story line. Besides, at the moment of her death she was thinking about her love, Sawyer. But in the sideways world, her fantasy life began with being married to Jack, and having his child, David, before getting divorced. There is a major inconsistency between the cause and effects of the two Hatch location incidents.
Why was Desmond more "important" than Juliet to move the story to its climax? In retrospect, Desmond was touted as being "the secret weapon" to take down MIB but he never achieved that goal. He was immune to high EM energy. The light cave apparently had high EM energy. Someone had to "re-boot" the island so Desmond was drafted to be that worker by both MIB and Jack, the new island guardian. But Desmond failed to finish his job; Jack had to intervene. Desmond did not have the final death blow to defeat MIB. Kate shot MIB.
And what did Juliet's death do to move the story line forward? The only thing was to reinforce the will in Sawyer to leave the island. It is also a strange path to believe that it took a three year time travel work camp imprisonment with the Dharma group to teach Sawyer that there was someone who could love him in a respectable relationship. Do we then assume that Sawyer lived unhappily ever after until he died and went to the sideways purgatory to be keystone copped into an unbelievable reunion with Juliet at a candy machine?
It the incidents were merely markers for the theme of death and rebirth, the story was not well crafted to bring those points home. If you believe the island was real, then Desmond's "rebirth" is symbolic that fate will keep you on your path of destiny? Or, in Juliet's case, one's rebirth can only occur in the after life.
Friday, July 26, 2013
IT WORKED
"It worked."
Juliet said that after the Incident where the bomb or EM energy pocket imploded the Hatch during its construction in the flash time of 1977.
Many assumed that she meant that whatever happened brought them back to the present time period. But in reality, how could a severely injured Juliet, trapped under rubble, know she had time skipped to the present?
In the last big scene, there is a clue:
[Flash sideways - Sawyer is walking down the hospital corridor. He stops Jack has he passes by.]
SAWYER: Hey, you know where I could get some grub around here?
JACK: Uhh... the cafeteria's closed, but there's a vending machine down the hallway.
SAWYER: Thanks, doc.
JACK: Yeah, no problem.
[Sawyer looks on as Jack walks away, pausing for a moment. At the vending machine he flattens out his dollar bill and inserts it into the machine. He presses the buttons for an Apollo bar (G23), but it gets stuck in the machine.]
SAWYER: Oh, come on...
[He shakes the machine but the bar doesn't budge.]
SAWYER: Unbelievable.
[He attempts to reach inside the machine to grab the bar. A woman approaches.]
JULIET: Can I help you?
SAWYER: It's okay... I'm a... I'm a cop.
JULIET: Mmmm. Maybe you should read the machine its rights?
SAWYER: [laughing] That's funny.
JULIET: Mmmm... Can I tell you a secret?
SAWYER: Please.
JULIET: If you unplug it, and then you plug it back in again... the candy just drops right down.
SAWYER: Is that right?
JULIET: Yes, and it's technically legal.
SAWYER: Oh... give that a shot...
[He unplugs the machine and all the lights in the room go off.]
SAWYER: Oops...
[Juliet laughs, grabs the bar from the machine and gives it to Sawyer.]
JULIET: It worked.
[Sawyer grabs the candy, but as his hand touches Juliet's, they both begin to see flashes of their time together on the Island. They jump back in surprise.]
JULIET: Oh...
SAWYER: Whoa... did you feel that?
JULIET: We should get coffee some time.
SAWYER: I'd love to but the machine ate my dollar, I only got one left.
JULIET: We can go dutch.
[As she says that last line we see her on the Island, they flash to her dying in Sawyer's arms as she says the same line. Juliet holds Sawyer's hand and they begin to experience more flashes of their 1970's DHARMA life; Sawyer holding up a daisy, them hugging, spooning in bed, more hugging and kissing, Sawyer holding Juliet from falling in The Incident, Juliet falling.]
SAWYER: Juliet? Juliet it's--it's me. Ju--
[They embrace and Juliet begins to sob.]
We have to ask ourselves "What worked?"
Juliet's plan to help a stranger game a vending machine worked as Sawyer got his candy bar. But was her phrase "It worked," coupled with a touch the "magic spell" that unlocked their repressed memories of their island life? We still don't understand why the characters in the sideways purgatory after death cannot remember their island past. Or when they do remember the trials, tribulations and good memories of the island they get all euphoric.
But if we take a different perspective on Juliet's "It worked" in the hospital, we may get a different understanding of the sideways world.
Island Juliet could have been remembering how she and Sawyer found happiness in the after life when she said "it worked." Her mind flashed to the hospital vending lounge. She understood her place in the universe. She knew everything would be okay in the end.
This again puts the sideways world earlier in real time than the island world. Considering the time itself was a nebulous concept throughout the series, this is a possible connection between the two worlds. It may hint that one needs to know in the island realm that things will be okay in the sideways afterlife in order to actually die in the island world. It may sound strange, but Christian's explanation of the sideways world (something the main characters created themselves) was actually referencing the characters creating the sideways world to work out their purgatory problems in order to move on. The purgatory characters were using their dreams, fears and fantasies to escape to the island (and not escape from it as shown in the pilot episode) to work out the issues that kept in purgatory.
Perhaps, Juliet was stuck in purgatory because she could not move on in her past relationship with her ex-husband. Her inability to give up her feelings for her ex-husband in Florida mirrored her loneliness in the sideways existence with her cordial but distant relationship with Jack. It was only throwing her subconscious spirit into the island world could she work through her personal demons of clinging emotional behavior to find a new love of her life. She just happened to stumble upon another desperate spirit in Sawyer who also had learn to let down his guard to overcome his commitment issues. They became soul mates because their after life souls found each other in the spiritual proving ground called the island.
Juliet said that after the Incident where the bomb or EM energy pocket imploded the Hatch during its construction in the flash time of 1977.
Many assumed that she meant that whatever happened brought them back to the present time period. But in reality, how could a severely injured Juliet, trapped under rubble, know she had time skipped to the present?
In the last big scene, there is a clue:
[Flash sideways - Sawyer is walking down the hospital corridor. He stops Jack has he passes by.]
SAWYER: Hey, you know where I could get some grub around here?
JACK: Uhh... the cafeteria's closed, but there's a vending machine down the hallway.
SAWYER: Thanks, doc.
JACK: Yeah, no problem.
[Sawyer looks on as Jack walks away, pausing for a moment. At the vending machine he flattens out his dollar bill and inserts it into the machine. He presses the buttons for an Apollo bar (G23), but it gets stuck in the machine.]
SAWYER: Oh, come on...
[He shakes the machine but the bar doesn't budge.]
SAWYER: Unbelievable.
[He attempts to reach inside the machine to grab the bar. A woman approaches.]
JULIET: Can I help you?
SAWYER: It's okay... I'm a... I'm a cop.
JULIET: Mmmm. Maybe you should read the machine its rights?
SAWYER: [laughing] That's funny.
JULIET: Mmmm... Can I tell you a secret?
SAWYER: Please.
JULIET: If you unplug it, and then you plug it back in again... the candy just drops right down.
SAWYER: Is that right?
JULIET: Yes, and it's technically legal.
SAWYER: Oh... give that a shot...
[He unplugs the machine and all the lights in the room go off.]
SAWYER: Oops...
[Juliet laughs, grabs the bar from the machine and gives it to Sawyer.]
JULIET: It worked.
[Sawyer grabs the candy, but as his hand touches Juliet's, they both begin to see flashes of their time together on the Island. They jump back in surprise.]
JULIET: Oh...
SAWYER: Whoa... did you feel that?
JULIET: We should get coffee some time.
SAWYER: I'd love to but the machine ate my dollar, I only got one left.
JULIET: We can go dutch.
[As she says that last line we see her on the Island, they flash to her dying in Sawyer's arms as she says the same line. Juliet holds Sawyer's hand and they begin to experience more flashes of their 1970's DHARMA life; Sawyer holding up a daisy, them hugging, spooning in bed, more hugging and kissing, Sawyer holding Juliet from falling in The Incident, Juliet falling.]
SAWYER: Juliet? Juliet it's--it's me. Ju--
[They embrace and Juliet begins to sob.]
We have to ask ourselves "What worked?"
Juliet's plan to help a stranger game a vending machine worked as Sawyer got his candy bar. But was her phrase "It worked," coupled with a touch the "magic spell" that unlocked their repressed memories of their island life? We still don't understand why the characters in the sideways purgatory after death cannot remember their island past. Or when they do remember the trials, tribulations and good memories of the island they get all euphoric.
But if we take a different perspective on Juliet's "It worked" in the hospital, we may get a different understanding of the sideways world.
Island Juliet could have been remembering how she and Sawyer found happiness in the after life when she said "it worked." Her mind flashed to the hospital vending lounge. She understood her place in the universe. She knew everything would be okay in the end.
This again puts the sideways world earlier in real time than the island world. Considering the time itself was a nebulous concept throughout the series, this is a possible connection between the two worlds. It may hint that one needs to know in the island realm that things will be okay in the sideways afterlife in order to actually die in the island world. It may sound strange, but Christian's explanation of the sideways world (something the main characters created themselves) was actually referencing the characters creating the sideways world to work out their purgatory problems in order to move on. The purgatory characters were using their dreams, fears and fantasies to escape to the island (and not escape from it as shown in the pilot episode) to work out the issues that kept in purgatory.
Perhaps, Juliet was stuck in purgatory because she could not move on in her past relationship with her ex-husband. Her inability to give up her feelings for her ex-husband in Florida mirrored her loneliness in the sideways existence with her cordial but distant relationship with Jack. It was only throwing her subconscious spirit into the island world could she work through her personal demons of clinging emotional behavior to find a new love of her life. She just happened to stumble upon another desperate spirit in Sawyer who also had learn to let down his guard to overcome his commitment issues. They became soul mates because their after life souls found each other in the spiritual proving ground called the island.
Monday, July 1, 2013
WHAT WAS WITHIN
What lies behind us & what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
What lied inside the main characters of LOST is a matter of speculation. There were conflicting motivations and apparent psychological issues which cloud a clear reading of how each character's actions were based upon their past principles or morals.
In the episode “The Cost of Living,” Juliet wheels a TV up to the aquarium where Jack is being held prisoner and tells him she’s going to show him a movie: To Kill a Mockingbird. She then tells Jack the reasons why he needs to save Ben; he is a great man and will die if Jack doesn’t operate. But on the TV screen is not the movie, To Kill a Mockingbird, but Juliet holding signs telling Jack that Ben is a dangerous liar and asking him to botch the surgery and kill Ben.
The conflicting simultaneous messages confuse Jack. As a doctor, he pledged an oath to do no harm to a patient. But his patient is a man who has kidnapped and imprisoned Jack and his friends. A fellow doctor is asking Jack to kill the patient on the operating table because he is an evil liar and a dangerous man. This creates a serious moral dilemma in Jack.
In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus tells his son Jem that it is a sin to kill mockingbirds because they are themselves harmless and innocent creatures. Throughout the book, symbolic ‘mockingbirds’ – innocent people --- destroyed (or almost destroyed) by evil created by the deep South prejudice and racial tensions between whites and blacks in a small community. The book reminds the reader that everyone carries within themselves both good and evil. The tension created by the small town trial based up upbringing, environmental and lack of understanding.
There were immediate tensions between the 815 survivors and the Others, which resulted from a lack of mutual understanding, ignorance or fear. The 815ers could not trust the Others, whose first actions were to spy on them, then attempt to kidnap or harm the survivors. The Others continually told Jack's people that they "were the good guys," but they are the ones who destroyed Michael's raft and kidnapped Walt.
Jack knew he could not trust any of the Others. Juliet had been using a good cop-bad cop routine on him. Jack refused to cooperate. He was separated from Sawyer and Kate on purpose. During this time, Jack's will power to be a calm intellectual leader began to turn to anger and revenge. Whether that was Ben's plan, to bring the bad side of Jack to the surface in order to manipulate it, is unclear.
Jack, like Atticus, is a professional man who must decide to take on an unpopular case. When Atticus chose to defend a black man – and really defend him – he made a very unpopular decision that turned many of his own peopleand friends against him, but his belief in the constitution and the equality of all men gave him no choice but to do the right thing, despite this being a dangerous decision for him and his children. Will Jack follow the path of Atticus Finch and save the life of the man who is holding him prisoner, or will Jack betray his Hippocratic oath and kill Ben for Juliet?
Jack decides the only way to resolve these contrary conflicts is to make a deal. He makes a deal with Ben that Jack will do the surgery in exchange Sawyer, Kate and Jack's freedom.
Jack's prognosis is that Ben's death is certain without surgery done "yesterday." Ben assents to immediate surgery, but Jack scoffs and explains that he's not going to do it - because he doesn't trust the Others to keep their end of the bargain to free Jack, Kate and Sawyer. He shouts angrily at Juliet. Ben says he is disappointed in Jack's decision but with a wry smile on his face, Jack replies "At least you won't have to be disappointed for very long."
Later, Kate is brought to the aquarium. Jack and Kate ask if each other are okay, and Jack asks after Sawyer. Kate explains that they're being kept in outdoor cages and made to haul rocks for "something big." When Jack asks if Kate has been hurt, Kate starts to cry. Jack begins to reassure her that things will be OK, but Kate blurts out that he has to do the operation.
Startled, Jack glances at the spy camera, and then asks how the Others have persuaded Kate to urge him to do the surgery - what they offered her, what they did to her to manipulate her. Kate replies, "Nothing," Jack demands, "Then what are you doing here?" Unable to contain her emotions, Kate answers that they've threatened to kill Sawyer. Jack looks up at the camera before turning away in frustration and anger. Kate apologizes and insists that "she" (Juliet) promised that they would let them go if Jack did the operation soon. Jack asks Kate, rhetorically, "And you believe them?" to which Kate answers, "I have to." Kate tries to plead with Jack, but he tells her, "We're done here." Kate pursues the point, but Jack looks up at the camera and says (to Ben), "Hey! We're done here!" then turns away from Kate. In the monitoring room, Ben, troubled, tells Juliet angrily to take Kate away.
At this point, Jack feels that he is losing control of his life. Ben is pressing him to do something he does not want to do. Juliet's hard luck story may or may not be the truth. Kate's choice of Sawyer's life over Jack's relationship angers Jack. It is furthered to rage when he spies Sawyer and Kate cozy in the bear cages.
This rage changes his mind. Instead of refusing further to do surgery on Ben, Jack agrees. He tells Ben that when he's done, he needs to get "the hell off this island."
During the operation, Jack's moral compass drifts. He decides to re-take matters in his own hands by purposely cuts a small incision in Ben's kidney sac, creating a crisis only he can solve. Jack has turned the cards on Ben, who lies helpless on the table bleeding to death. This action by Jack actually saves Sawyer, who was just about to be killed by Pickett. Tom's call on the walkie comes through ordering Pickett to give the walkie to Kate or else the "doctor's gonna kill Ben." Danny reluctantly gives Kate the walkie-talkie. Jack tells Kate she has an hour head start, and asks her if she remembers the story he told her on the beach the day of the crash. Kate says she remembers. Jack directs her to call him on the radio when she is safe and to tell him the story. Kate is distressed and hesitates, looking from Sawyer to the walkie and says, "I can't leave without you!" Jack responds by yelling "Kate, dammit, RUN!"
So Jack had to make an immoral action for a greater purpose of freeing Kate and Sawyer from the Others. He bought them time to escape, but at the cost of his own freedom. This plot twist did earn Jack a certain amount of respect from Juliet, who would use their mutual dislike for Ben to gain an alliance. An alliance which would cause a wedge between Jack and the rest of the beach camp upon his return. In some respects, Jack's relationship with Juliet would lead to Juliet's demise during the Incident, a forever cemented the rift between Sawyer and Jack.
Jack was willing to compromise friendships and principles for a higher purpose. It was also a turning point where Jack learned he had the power to take a life in order to save other lives. This may have been what Christian told Jack that he could never be a leader because he could not make "life and death decisions."
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