Dr. Christian Shephard

Meaning of the name: anointed, follows Christ

Christian is the enigma, the mystery in the puzzle. Is he a villain or a hero? A sinner or a saint? A liar or a leader? His whole adult life he was an alcoholic. He pushed his son, pushed him away and to a purpose, but what was that purpose? To become one of the world’s best spinal surgeons or was it something more? In death, Christian is seen wandering the jungle, a man donning white sneakers and a crisp suit, a man dressed in drab, dark clothing. But are they the same man? Christian has left instructions to several survivors, guided them, and led the way. But is he leading them to where they need to be? Or entangling them in a trap that they cannot foresee? He says he works for Jacob, but do we really know this is true? Could this story be winding down to a show-down between father and son? Only time can tell.

Margo Shephard

Meaning of the name: pearl

Margo hasn’t had much of a major role in the big picture of the significance of the Shephard family. Often she was neglected by her husband and resentful of her son, Jack, for driving her husband even further away. But after believing that Jack may have died in the crash, she welcomed him back with open arms, ready to forget all the pain that their family had experienced.

Dr. Jack Shephard

Meaning of the name: god is gracious
Also called Moses. Moses lead the Israelites out of Egypt and away from slavery.

He may be the key to it all. Once a man of science, insecure and afraid of the unknown, he is now a true man of faith, doing whatever he can to find his destiny. As the leader of the survivors, he made many mistakes, lost many people, and in many ways, lost himself. Ignoring his path, he went down another and found himself on the brink of death. But everything has changed now. To quote Jacob, all he needed was “a little push”, someone to believe in him. He found that with Kate, but being the unselfish and good-hearted man he is, he sacrificed the thing he wanted most, Kate, to erase all the mistakes he had made in the past. To get a second chance at doing things right. To save all those that had been lost. Next season we’ll discover more of Jack’s path and find out if he will ever get his happy ending.

Katherine Anne Austen

Meaning of the name: pure (first name); grace (middle name)

Austen is the last name of the famous novelist Jane Austen. Her female characters were often strong and independent, two qualities that Kate obviously possesses. With Austen’s heroines, true love often came with arduous struggles and numerous misunderstandings, but in the end, they always lived happily ever after.

Though she is not legally a part of the Shephard family, she was engaged to Jack and was raising his nephew, Aaron, and is now currently back on the island to find Jack’s sister, Claire. She first forged a major connection by delivering Aaron, a baby that may have a bigger purpose than we know. It was through actions like these that we learned to understand the person that Kate truly was, not the criminal, but the kind-hearted and giving woman who stood by her fellow survivors, and became the right hand man and support to their leader, Jack. Kate’s mother and father, bound in an abusive relationship, never gave Kate the support and love she needed; they never were able to show her what true love really was. But through the Shephard family, Kate found a purpose, a life; she found love. Will Kate be able to find Claire? Will she have a child of her own? Amongst these questions there is one constant; she will be there to help Jack find his destiny and purpose and fight beside him until the bitter end.

Claire Littleton

Meaning of the name: clear, bright (first name); small town (last name)

Unbeknownst to Jack until after he finally was able to bury his father, both figuratively and literally, a sister surfaced that he never knew existed, and yet knew all the same. Claire, unaware of her own father’s last name, never makes the connection, and is lost in the jungle, following the man she vowed never to see again and someone who may be dangerous to her own safety, Christian. Once regarded as someone good and pure, now she is something almost ghost like; unconcerned for her own child and calm and content with her new situation. Will she ever be reunited with her son? Will she ever find out that Jack is her brother? Is she alive? Or did she die in that explosion and become something else all together?

Aaron Littleton

Meaning of the name: mountain, shining light, messenger (first name); small town (last name)
In the Bible, he was the brother of Moses and often spoke for him when he was unable to.

There is still much to be learned about Aaron. When Claire was pregnant with him, a psychic warned Claire that her son must be raised by her and only her, so that he may be enriched by her goodness. In the event that she was unable to care for him, horrible things would happen. He spoke of another couple, one in LA, who could raise the child, one that may have very well been Jack and Kate. This is where the mystery begins. Born on the island, Aaron was later left by his mother and adopted by Kate. Jack, both his uncle and his father in many respects, was told that he was not meant to raise him….but could Charlie have been talking of another? In the end, it didn’t matter; Jack left, riddled by insecurity and doubt. Surprisingly Claire, appearing to Kate in a dream, pleaded with her never to bring “him” back. Was Claire talking about Aaron? Will Aaron be an important piece in the puzzle in the end? Or was he just an unfortunate child; a witness to this sad events?

Additional note: Jacob is the great-great-grandfather of Aaron in the Bible. Coincidence? Or Fate?