(no subject)
LOST contains one of the most diverse cast of characters since the serial drama first made its appearance on television: multiple classes, races, religions, genders, and even political ideologies are represented by people who are as varied in their appearances as their beliefs. The backstory to LOST also facilitates a setting for this hodge-podge of characters to interact intimately and challenge one anothers' beliefs: all are survivors of a plane crash who know nothing of eachothers unique histories and pasts. The character Sayid Jarrah, an ex-Iraqi Republican Guard soldier of Flight 815, was purposefully created by the directors of LOST to subvert the negative Iraqi portrayal in American television, which stems from the United States political history, including 9/11. The attitudes about Iraqis in the United States have been shaped by past historical events which allow media to perpetuate propaganda, especially the notion that all Middle-Easterners are terrorists who desire to destroy America. I assert that LOST debases this ideal by presenting Sayid as multi-faceted: containing qualities of both a typified American hero and of the demonized Iraqi terrorist, which are shown in a variety of flashbacks about his life. Thus, the viewer cannot immediately judge Sayid as good or bad, since he is presented as both. Instead, they must try to understand his character through the experiences he has undergone in his life, which facilitates the realization that human beings cannot be typified by one race, class, or idea in society, no matter how politically appealing it is.