Tuesday, May 31, 2005
The Redemption of Anakin Skywalker
Shelly and I saw Revenge of the Sith on Saturday, and I thought it was by far the best of the prequels. I was pleasantly surprised that it made Anakin's confusion and turn to the dark side believable (if abrupt). He made the wrong choices, of course, and he knew he was making the wrong choices at the time he made them, but I understood why he made them. Most of my questions and concerns about the Star Wars universe were resolved (the biggest lingering one: How does Leia remember her mother??).
But today I'm going to talk about my biggest concern about Star Wars. It's actually a moment from Return of the Jedi: the redemption of Anakin Skywalker.
I've never bought it. Supposedly, the whole point of the six-film saga (even more so, since the advent of the prequels) was the rise and fall and redemption of Anakin. He starts out as an innocent boy full of potential, grows up with a lot of angst, develops into a powerful Jedi, succumbs to power and fear, ravages the universe as a super-evil dark lord, but in the end comes back to good, thanks to the love and concern of his heroic son. I'll accept it all except the last part.
Now, I admit it's been a few years since I last saw Return of the Jedi (should we be calling it Episode VI?). But I don't remember Luke ever telling Vader, "Turn to the light side, father!" It's the other way around. Vader is out to convert Luke. Luke is simply trying to resist Vader and destroy the Empire that he's a part of. When Luke learns Vader is his father, he cares more about him, but he never really feels the need to bring him back to the "light side." (Incidentally, I don't believe the term "light side" is ever used in any of the six films. Why not? If the "dark side" is bad, what do we call that which is good?)
So when they're there having their final light saber duel, I honestly believe they're both trying to kill each other. Neither one really wants to, but both of them realize the threat the other represents to their higher goals (much like Obi-Wan during the final duel in Episode III). When Luke cuts off Anakin's hand, he ain't kidding. (What's the total number of hands cut off in the Star Wars saga? I count eleven, including Anakin's left arm.)
Enter the Emperor. He starts zapping Luke, and Vader steps back to let him do the dirty deed, since he's now disabled. Luke cries out for his daddy, and eventually Vader picks his master up (sans one hand, mind you) and throws him into the bottomless pit.
That act is the one that supposedly constitutes Anakin's reconversion to good.
The evil man kills his evil master, therefore he is good.
The father refuses to watch his son killed before his eyes, therefore the millions upon millions of murders he committed (remember Alderaan!) are cancelled out.
My response: Huh?
I don't believe it. The prequels establish that there is some good in Anakin, but we don't see a glimmer of it from the time Palpatine gives him a new name, for the next three and a half movies. We never see Darth Vader conflicted between good and evil like we see Anakin conflicted in Episode III. He's evil incarnate. I just don't believe that in the sixty seconds or so while Luke's teeth are glowing Anakin sat back and suddenly considered his position in life and decided that maybe he has been wrong for the last thirty years or whatever. Yes, his decision to turn bad was a bit sudden when it happened, but at least it was preceded by moral angst. His second abrupt conversion had no such prequel.
And further, the supposedly "good" act that brought him back was a murder. Even when you're killing a really, really bad person, murder is still murder. Murder is bad. It wasn't self-defense--Palpatine never had any intention of killing Vader. It did save Luke's life, but how do we know Anakin didn't see his big chance to get rid of the one guy in the universe who had power over him, and then hopefully rule the Empire with Luke as his new apprentice? Wasn't Anakin's whole fall predicated on a lust for power (Episode I: "I'm going to be the most powerful Jedi ever!")? Didn't Palpatine himself foresee his own death at the hands of his apprentice (Episode III, to Yoda: "He will be more powerful than you or I," coupled with the implication that when he became powerful enough, he killed his own Sith master)? Doesn't that make Anakin more evil, not more good?
Okay, you say that Anakin's act was a righteous self-sacrifice, because he had to kill himself in order to save his son. I answer that it wasn't predictable that the Emperor's lightning would stray far enough and be powerful enough to short circuit his life-support suit. (And if that's all it took to kill Vader, why didn't the Rebels come after him with cattle prods instead of light sabers and blasters?) And even if he knew he would die in the process, I still don't see how taking a figurative bullet for Luke redeems him from decades of killing, oppression, and evil.
Then there's the blue ghost thing. Yoda in Episode III implies that the blue ghost thing is a skill that takes great training to learn. Even assuming that Anakin spent time training to become one with the Force when he wasn't blowing up planets, he just doesn't deserve to hang out with Obi-Wan and Yoda in the afterlife. (Plus, he didn't disappear when he died.)
Yes, I believe in repentance. But I don't believe that Anakin Skywalker repented. There's just no indication that he did anything other than kill his master to save his son. To me, the end of Episode VI has always been unsatisfying (seriously--I remember not understanding why people said that Vader turned good when I saw it in the theater in 1983), and when you add the prequels to make Anakin, not Luke, the main protagonist of the story, it becomes even more unsatisfying. Anakin's rise lasts two and a half movies. His fall lasts for nearly three and a half movies. His ultimate redemption happens in the last five minutes of the last movie. I don't buy it.
But today I'm going to talk about my biggest concern about Star Wars. It's actually a moment from Return of the Jedi: the redemption of Anakin Skywalker.
I've never bought it. Supposedly, the whole point of the six-film saga (even more so, since the advent of the prequels) was the rise and fall and redemption of Anakin. He starts out as an innocent boy full of potential, grows up with a lot of angst, develops into a powerful Jedi, succumbs to power and fear, ravages the universe as a super-evil dark lord, but in the end comes back to good, thanks to the love and concern of his heroic son. I'll accept it all except the last part.
Now, I admit it's been a few years since I last saw Return of the Jedi (should we be calling it Episode VI?). But I don't remember Luke ever telling Vader, "Turn to the light side, father!" It's the other way around. Vader is out to convert Luke. Luke is simply trying to resist Vader and destroy the Empire that he's a part of. When Luke learns Vader is his father, he cares more about him, but he never really feels the need to bring him back to the "light side." (Incidentally, I don't believe the term "light side" is ever used in any of the six films. Why not? If the "dark side" is bad, what do we call that which is good?)
So when they're there having their final light saber duel, I honestly believe they're both trying to kill each other. Neither one really wants to, but both of them realize the threat the other represents to their higher goals (much like Obi-Wan during the final duel in Episode III). When Luke cuts off Anakin's hand, he ain't kidding. (What's the total number of hands cut off in the Star Wars saga? I count eleven, including Anakin's left arm.)
Enter the Emperor. He starts zapping Luke, and Vader steps back to let him do the dirty deed, since he's now disabled. Luke cries out for his daddy, and eventually Vader picks his master up (sans one hand, mind you) and throws him into the bottomless pit.
That act is the one that supposedly constitutes Anakin's reconversion to good.
The evil man kills his evil master, therefore he is good.
The father refuses to watch his son killed before his eyes, therefore the millions upon millions of murders he committed (remember Alderaan!) are cancelled out.
My response: Huh?
I don't believe it. The prequels establish that there is some good in Anakin, but we don't see a glimmer of it from the time Palpatine gives him a new name, for the next three and a half movies. We never see Darth Vader conflicted between good and evil like we see Anakin conflicted in Episode III. He's evil incarnate. I just don't believe that in the sixty seconds or so while Luke's teeth are glowing Anakin sat back and suddenly considered his position in life and decided that maybe he has been wrong for the last thirty years or whatever. Yes, his decision to turn bad was a bit sudden when it happened, but at least it was preceded by moral angst. His second abrupt conversion had no such prequel.
And further, the supposedly "good" act that brought him back was a murder. Even when you're killing a really, really bad person, murder is still murder. Murder is bad. It wasn't self-defense--Palpatine never had any intention of killing Vader. It did save Luke's life, but how do we know Anakin didn't see his big chance to get rid of the one guy in the universe who had power over him, and then hopefully rule the Empire with Luke as his new apprentice? Wasn't Anakin's whole fall predicated on a lust for power (Episode I: "I'm going to be the most powerful Jedi ever!")? Didn't Palpatine himself foresee his own death at the hands of his apprentice (Episode III, to Yoda: "He will be more powerful than you or I," coupled with the implication that when he became powerful enough, he killed his own Sith master)? Doesn't that make Anakin more evil, not more good?
Okay, you say that Anakin's act was a righteous self-sacrifice, because he had to kill himself in order to save his son. I answer that it wasn't predictable that the Emperor's lightning would stray far enough and be powerful enough to short circuit his life-support suit. (And if that's all it took to kill Vader, why didn't the Rebels come after him with cattle prods instead of light sabers and blasters?) And even if he knew he would die in the process, I still don't see how taking a figurative bullet for Luke redeems him from decades of killing, oppression, and evil.
Then there's the blue ghost thing. Yoda in Episode III implies that the blue ghost thing is a skill that takes great training to learn. Even assuming that Anakin spent time training to become one with the Force when he wasn't blowing up planets, he just doesn't deserve to hang out with Obi-Wan and Yoda in the afterlife. (Plus, he didn't disappear when he died.)
Yes, I believe in repentance. But I don't believe that Anakin Skywalker repented. There's just no indication that he did anything other than kill his master to save his son. To me, the end of Episode VI has always been unsatisfying (seriously--I remember not understanding why people said that Vader turned good when I saw it in the theater in 1983), and when you add the prequels to make Anakin, not Luke, the main protagonist of the story, it becomes even more unsatisfying. Anakin's rise lasts two and a half movies. His fall lasts for nearly three and a half movies. His ultimate redemption happens in the last five minutes of the last movie. I don't buy it.
Comments:
I may be wrong, but I don't remember anyone ever saying that Anakin would turn good-- it only said that he would bring balance to the force. He is "The Chosen One", but that doesn't imply good. It just means that through his act of killing his master and bringing about his own death, the Sith are destroyed and the force is again "balanced", whatever that means.
As to your point about Luke, it must have been a while since you've seen the original trilogy. Luke is convinced there is good in his father and begins a quest to "save" him. You'll have to watch again...
As to your point about Luke, it must have been a while since you've seen the original trilogy. Luke is convinced there is good in his father and begins a quest to "save" him. You'll have to watch again...
Your points are both good ones, Anonymous. It's true that the prophecies about Anakin are merely that he will "bring balance to the Force," which is finally clearly interpreted in Episode III to mean "destroy all the Sith." And that's just what he does, killing Palpatine and himself in one deft move. You're right that the prophecies don't state that he will be good.
But my point is that the discussion about it, and the position George Lucas takes is that Anakin DOES become good. Why else would he hang out with the uber-good Yoda and Obi-Wan as blue ghosts? Palpatine isn't there. I accept that Anakin brings balance to the Force, but I do not accept that he becomes good at the end.
As to Luke's quest, yes it has been a while since I saw the original trilogy. You're right that Luke does want to "save" his father. He's not as blatant about his proselytizing as Vader is, but I now recall that he does indeed believe in the good in Anakin.
Still, I don't think that has much bearing on the main point of my post. Even if Luke was trying to get Anakin to become good again, I don't believe he succeeded. I would believe it if it seemed that Anakin considered converting before Luke was dying at Palpatine's hands, and if Anakin expressed some sort of remorse for his evil past. There's none of that, so I don't buy it.
But my point is that the discussion about it, and the position George Lucas takes is that Anakin DOES become good. Why else would he hang out with the uber-good Yoda and Obi-Wan as blue ghosts? Palpatine isn't there. I accept that Anakin brings balance to the Force, but I do not accept that he becomes good at the end.
As to Luke's quest, yes it has been a while since I saw the original trilogy. You're right that Luke does want to "save" his father. He's not as blatant about his proselytizing as Vader is, but I now recall that he does indeed believe in the good in Anakin.
Still, I don't think that has much bearing on the main point of my post. Even if Luke was trying to get Anakin to become good again, I don't believe he succeeded. I would believe it if it seemed that Anakin considered converting before Luke was dying at Palpatine's hands, and if Anakin expressed some sort of remorse for his evil past. There's none of that, so I don't buy it.
I think that you have to take a look at the reasons that Anakin went to the dark side (too abruptly, if you ask me)in the first place. Supposedly, it was to save the wife he loved more than his "calling" as a Jedi. Anakin was always in conflict with the emotionless/conectionless lifestyle of the Jedi-- they wouldn't let him express emotions like love, but the dark side was based on emotions like hate and anger. I think that he chose the dark side mostly because he couldn't control any of his emotions, be they good or bad.
That being the case, perhaps in the end he figures out how to channel those emotions as he saves his son. Not that this one act makes up for his being a super-wicked bad guy, but perhaps it's enough of a start to get to "blue-guy" status in the after-life.
That being the case, perhaps in the end he figures out how to channel those emotions as he saves his son. Not that this one act makes up for his being a super-wicked bad guy, but perhaps it's enough of a start to get to "blue-guy" status in the after-life.
Go back and watch the first trilogy. Envision Hayden Christiansen as Anakin within the Vader Suit. Note the meaningful glances, the pauses, the silent emotion.
When Vader cuts off Luke's hand in Empire, he sees the connection (just like Palpatine's last apprentice, Dooku, did to me.) There are always only two Sith. That is NOT lost on either the Emperor or Vader/Anakin. When Anakin takes Luke to Palpatine, he has to know that he is risking his own life. Perhaps he is ready to do it, or at least risk it in the hope he can persuade Luke to treason later.
The entire first trilogy is transformed with added depth of meaning. Your memory is betraying you. During the entire sword fight between Luke and Vader, Luke pleads with his Father to 'let go of your hate. There is still good in you. I CAN FEEL THE CONFLICT WITHIN YOU'!!!
I am puzzled that perhaps Vader attempted a feint with Luke the same way Palpatine staged his conflict with Windu.
When Vader cuts off Luke's hand in Empire, he sees the connection (just like Palpatine's last apprentice, Dooku, did to me.) There are always only two Sith. That is NOT lost on either the Emperor or Vader/Anakin. When Anakin takes Luke to Palpatine, he has to know that he is risking his own life. Perhaps he is ready to do it, or at least risk it in the hope he can persuade Luke to treason later.
The entire first trilogy is transformed with added depth of meaning. Your memory is betraying you. During the entire sword fight between Luke and Vader, Luke pleads with his Father to 'let go of your hate. There is still good in you. I CAN FEEL THE CONFLICT WITHIN YOU'!!!
I am puzzled that perhaps Vader attempted a feint with Luke the same way Palpatine staged his conflict with Windu.
I think I've got at least two different Anonymous commenters (cool!).
In response to Anonymous 2 (7:08pm), you just stated the precise theory that I disagree with. You posit that perhaps Anakin finally learns to control his emotions during Palpatine's attack on Luke, and therefore is able to rise to the status of blue ghost-worthy Jedi, and is good. I don't buy it. Palpatine is only zapping Luke for a very short time, and it's really hard for me to believe that a person can so quickly change such a fundamental personality trait (whether it be evilness or lack of emotional control). In fact, Anakin's attack on Palpatine might be more evidence that he HASN'T yet learned to control his emotions. He cares about Luke, and doesn't want to see him fried--the response is emotional. But that doesn't make him a good person.
As to Anonymous 3 (4:39pm), I like your ideas. You're very astute to point out that Palpatine and Anakin (if not Luke, too) know that there can only be two Sith at a time. Therefore, when Anakin brings Luke to Palpatine, at least one of the three must die. Maybe Anakin suspects it'll be him. But I bet he doesn't WANT it to be him.
Rather, I think these ideas support the theory I proposed that Vader killed Palpatine in order to become the Master Sith, not in order to become a good Jedi. He brings Luke to Palpatine, gets into a fight with him, feigns weakness by letting Luke cut off his (mechanical, and therefore easily replacable) hand, and then rises up against Palpatine when he is focusing on Luke. That makes Anakin EVIL. He wants to be the Master Sith.
If Anakin brought Luke to Palpatine with the intention of killing Palpatine and joining Luke on the light side, why didn't he just tell Luke and the two of them gang up on him? I accept the fact that Luke was indeed trying to convert Anakin, and Anakin even knows that there IS good inside him (he tells Luke, "Tell your sister you were right"). But his actions are more consistent with evil intentions than good intentions.
And even if you choose to interpret his killing of Palpatine as a good act, I still don't buy it, simply because there was no indication that Vader was conflicted between good and evil, notwithstanding his knowledge that there is still good in him, and notwithstanding Luke's attempts to draw the good out of him. He's an evil dude.
I do look forward to re-viewing the original trilogy with the prequels in mind.
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In response to Anonymous 2 (7:08pm), you just stated the precise theory that I disagree with. You posit that perhaps Anakin finally learns to control his emotions during Palpatine's attack on Luke, and therefore is able to rise to the status of blue ghost-worthy Jedi, and is good. I don't buy it. Palpatine is only zapping Luke for a very short time, and it's really hard for me to believe that a person can so quickly change such a fundamental personality trait (whether it be evilness or lack of emotional control). In fact, Anakin's attack on Palpatine might be more evidence that he HASN'T yet learned to control his emotions. He cares about Luke, and doesn't want to see him fried--the response is emotional. But that doesn't make him a good person.
As to Anonymous 3 (4:39pm), I like your ideas. You're very astute to point out that Palpatine and Anakin (if not Luke, too) know that there can only be two Sith at a time. Therefore, when Anakin brings Luke to Palpatine, at least one of the three must die. Maybe Anakin suspects it'll be him. But I bet he doesn't WANT it to be him.
Rather, I think these ideas support the theory I proposed that Vader killed Palpatine in order to become the Master Sith, not in order to become a good Jedi. He brings Luke to Palpatine, gets into a fight with him, feigns weakness by letting Luke cut off his (mechanical, and therefore easily replacable) hand, and then rises up against Palpatine when he is focusing on Luke. That makes Anakin EVIL. He wants to be the Master Sith.
If Anakin brought Luke to Palpatine with the intention of killing Palpatine and joining Luke on the light side, why didn't he just tell Luke and the two of them gang up on him? I accept the fact that Luke was indeed trying to convert Anakin, and Anakin even knows that there IS good inside him (he tells Luke, "Tell your sister you were right"). But his actions are more consistent with evil intentions than good intentions.
And even if you choose to interpret his killing of Palpatine as a good act, I still don't buy it, simply because there was no indication that Vader was conflicted between good and evil, notwithstanding his knowledge that there is still good in him, and notwithstanding Luke's attempts to draw the good out of him. He's an evil dude.
I do look forward to re-viewing the original trilogy with the prequels in mind.
