Countdown to Freedom...: Better Questions for my Final

Thursday, May 04, 2006

Better Questions for my Final

My last final is for Jurisprudence in Property (basically, how did we come up with the laws for property that we have). I have decided that there are better ways to do this. Namely, using Lost as a backdrop for these issues.

Question 1: Is there any basis for the Other's claim that the Island is theirs when no one (other than Dharma and the Lostaways) are aware the island even exists?

Question 2: Do the medical miracles that occur (for Rose, Jin, and Locke) give the these particular Lostaways some claim in the land that everyone else on the island does not have? In answering this question, think about whether anyone should have ownership in medical miracles or the island that produces them.

Question 3: When the food drops occur, does the ownership of the island play any part in ownership of the food? In answering this question, think about Locke's (the philosopher) idea that labor is necessary for ownership.

Question 4: The hatch requires certain numbers be pressed ever 108 minutes. Does Locke's labor theory play any part in ownership of the hatch?

Question 5: What property claims does Sawyer have on all the guns he stole and is now holding hostage?

Bonus question: If Hurley is crazy and making it all up, what television show would J.J. Abrams be ripping off (and can that television show own the right to the whole show all being in someone's head)?

1 Comments:

At 11:53 AM, Anonymous said...: You think he's stealing from somebody else? Well, in terms of shows based on a dream, the two that come to mind are the season of Dallas where Pam (or maybe Bobby) dream the whole thing up. I think one of them dies in the dream and the other wakes up at the end of the season to see the "dead" one get out of the shower.
As for a whole show, the only one that comes to mind is Newhart. The one set in Vermont, with the Inn and Peter Scolari and the three brothers (two Daryls). At the end of that show, Newhart wakes up in bed next to the woman who played his wife in another show. She's Suzanne Pleshette.
I doubt they have any rights to it. I mean, The Wizard of Oz was "just a dream," too, and they didn't sue Newhart or Dallas. If there were some other noticeable connections, they might be able to sue, but if it is just the concept of show-that-you-think-is-reality-but-only-a-dream, then there's no real recourse. Unless your name is Walter Mitty, then you can imagine winning millions in a well-publicized court battle.