My Name is What
A Rose by any other name still falls for Bernard. And yet, there exists a real power in tying identity to one’s moniker. Many cultures elevate names to lofty or even spiritualistic levels. Lewis Spence writes, “in many Australian tribes a man gives up his name for ever at the time when he undergoes initiation into the ceremonies which confer upon him the rights of manhood…New names are thus probably given at initiation, and carefully concealed for fear of sorcery.” He also reveals that “many Egyptians received two names – the ‘great’ name and the ‘little’ name, or the ‘true’ name and the ‘good’ name; the latter was that made public, but the ‘true’ or ‘great’ name was most carefully concealed.” In short, names are quite important.
The subject of names begs many varied approaches. One way is to look at those that are loaded with significance through their connection to historical figures. This puts into play John Locke, Rousseau, Jacob, and even Edmond Burke. Another method examines the importance of who is called what by whom. For example, names provide tremendously important insight into character relationships, such as those who call Sawyer by his pseudonym versus his real name, and those who refer to Hurley versus Hugo. The fact that Sawyer deemed it important to take on the name of the man he loathed most marks tremendous power attached to names. For this initial leap into the realm of names, I looked into the significance of names based on their origins.
I conducted a series of searches for the significance of baby names on the Internet and encountered some intriguing reveals. For example, Biblically, “Benyamin” is the twelfth and youngest son of the patriarch Jacob. Furthermore, during the Middle Ages the name was frequently bestowed upon sons whose mothers had died in childbirth. Of course the connection between the names Benjamin and Jacob sheds a fresh light on the relationship between the sinister deceiver and he who resides in the foot of the statue.
The origins of the name Richard are supposed to mean “powerful leader.” One ironic note is that the name Katherine derives from Greek to mean “pure,” which does not so aptly fit the rather sullied Ms. Austen. Jacob means “he who supplants,” or one who takes the place of another, as through force, scheming, or strategy. In my search for the significance of names I stumbled upon the interesting fact that both Jack and James are variant forms of Jacob. Furthermore, Jack is also recognized as a variant on the name John. Whether the producers of the show are aware of this connection is unclear, but certainly an interesting tidbit.
Clearly the producers of LOST intended the historical allusion names to be compelling by nature, so I would surprised if they were not acutely aware of the deeper meanings of the origins names which do not necessarily have historical significance. On a final note, I find it supremely important that the audience does not yet know the true name of Jacob’s foe, the man in the black shirt, Mr. Black, Mr. Loophole, Zombie Locke, etc. As much power as there lies in possessing a name, an even greater strength can be found in the absence of a name.
