People say that Raiders of the Lost Ark plot doesn't make a difference if Indiana Jones was, or wasn't in the movie. The outcome of the story is still exactly the same as everyone dies in the end. What are some thoughts?

People say that Raiders of the Lost Ark plot doesn't make a difference if Indiana Jones was, or wasn't in the movie. The outcome of the story is still exactly the same as everyone dies in the end. What are some thoughts?

The Nazis wouldn’t have died if Indy hadn’t intervened.

All right, you wanna get nuts? Let’s get nuts.

If Indiana wasn’t involved, it’s not certain that the Nazis would have located Marion, the medallion and ultimately, the Ark of the Covenant.

They followed Indy to her bar in Nepal. Which means one of two things:

1. They didn’t know to look for Marion and were simply following him because of his connection to Abner Ravenwood.
2. They knew to look for her but didn’t know where she was. Remember, this is 1936. She’s in a remote location in Nepal. Not easy to find.

Since Indiana got the medallion, the Nazis were digging in the wrong place.

The Nazis only had one side of the medallion because it was burnt on Major Toht’s hand. They didn’t have the information on the other side of the medallion and were hence digging in the wrong place.

But let’s assume over time they would have eventually located the Well of Souls and retrieved the Ark of the Covenant.

Without Indy’s involvement, the Ark would have gone to Germany, lost forever.

The Ark was supposed to be taken on the plane. But Indy and Marion blew up that plane, accidental as it may have been.

Then, it was going to be boarded on a ship, but Indy derailed that plan as well. The Nazis ultimately caught up with Indy and the Ark in a submarine.

Sometime during this, Belloq’s curiosity takes over and he decides its best to open the Ark before taking it to Germany. Now, we know what happens next.

They open the Ark, everyone dies. End of story. Right? Wrong

Say Indy wasn’t on that island. The island is a Nazi base as is made clear in the movie. They would have retrieved the Ark and taken it to Germany.

Without his involvement, the Ark ends up in Germany, whichever way you slice it.

Now, you may say that had he not intervened in any capacity, the Ark would have been taken to Hitler and likely opened in front of him and he would have been killed.

Right? No, that’s another nope.

You see, if we are to assume that Indiana takes no part in the story and that the Nazis somehow find Marion and the medallion, then the world is in trouble.

The medallion is the key. And if the Nazis had it they wouldn’t have been killed.

It’s because of the medallion that Indy knows to keep his eyes closed at the end.[1]

Remember the part where Indy and Salah take the medallion to an Imam to translate the markings?

Well, in a scene that was ultimately deleted, the Imam translates another set of markings that state these rules:

1. If you touch the Ark, you die.
2. If you look at the Ark when it is opened, you die.

In the movie, the Nazis didn’t know this because they didn’t have the side of the medallion the warning was on.

If Indy hadn’t intervened, and if we assume that they would have eventually located Marion, they would have killed her and retrieved the medallion.

They would have had the markings translated, and would hence know not to look into it.

And thus, without Indiana Jones, Marion would be dead and the most powerful artefact in the history of the world would be in the possession of Adolf Hitler, who would know not to look into it, but would have found a way to harness its power.

Dr. Henry Jones Jr. saved the world.

Picture Source Wikipedia

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