Star Wars and Psychology

United States
October 3, 2009 4:10am CST
A few evenings ago, some friends and I decided to watch one of the Star Wars films, Return of the Sith. This film got me thinking about a concept that is key to much of the hypnotherapy that I do, and is an excellent example of how not to lead one's life. Much of what makes the Star Wars story so alluring is the puzzling change that occurs in Anakin Skywalker. How is it that a man can turn from supremely good to the embodiment of evil? We're led to love Anakin the Jedi and hate the same man, only a few days later. It is both puzzling and troubling. What is even more puzzling (and perhaps troubling) is that, on the surface, it seems that Anakin's love for Padmae is what leads him, ultimately, to the dark side. This is an excellent example of the way that Jung claims that the human shadow works. The shadow, according to Jung, is a huge portion of our personality that we disown. We disavow it, and lock it away. Once it is locked away, it becomes destructive. We can see this in many ways: a person who denies something about themselves turns to self-destructive behaviors such as excessive drinking, or even worse, becomes violent. It is commonly accepted that many anti-social behaviors have their roots in a person's inner conflict. Anakin's inner conflict is severe. He lives like a Jedi, which is, more or less, a monastic life. So many of the other Jedi do this very well and Anakin fails. He fails the moment he starts to let his shadow express itself. What has been locked up for so long has grown vicious, and now consumes and destroys him. The image of Anakin locked into the hood of Darth Vader shows that he has really become consumed; he shadow has gotten loose; all that is good about him has been destroyed. There is a lesson to be learned from this; and it's a lesson that goes back thousands of years. There are parts of us that we, or society, don't like. We have instincts, desires and urges that are, in some ways, unacceptable. It is only natural that we should try to repress them by doing so we can be accepted by those around us. Unfortunately, when we oppress what we don't like about ourselves, it causes problems. It is the root of many neuroses and other problems in our lives. The solution to this problem seems simple and is a monumental task: we must strive to make ourselves whole. That means, when we feel an urge to do something unacceptable, we must step back and examine that urge. We have to figure out what is at the root of that urge, and we have to integrate it into our lives in a positive way. We must understand that we are good and that applies to everything about us. Something that has been shoved aside and allowed to become bitter and vicious is simply a natural part of us gone bad, and it is incumbent upon us to address that. In order to live good, healthy and happy lives, we have to embrace our dark side. If Anakin Skywalker (and the Jedi) were to embrace the Dark Side in a healthy way, they would be more powerful than ever. They would feel emotions love, anger, fear, and hate and all of those emotions would be in proper perspective. Additionally, they would have access to the power that all of these emotions affords their adversaries, the Sith. Keeping the ill effects of some human emotions at bay does not help the Jedi at all; it just leads to dramatic outbursts of those same emotions. The lesson here is simple and very important: embrace your dark side in a healthy way, and you will be happier and more powerful.
1 response
• United States
3 Oct 09
Brothertuck, you have brought up a very interesting topic! First, I love Star Wars and although I have watched it many times, I never really thought of it as you have depicted in your discussion. My thoughts on this is when Anakin was first brought to the Jedi Council for permission to be trained he was denied because he was "too old". So, my understanding is if a child is trained from birth "in the ways of the jedi" which is to say, no attachments, no excess of emotions, then the "dark" side would be contained. Thus any strong emotion will lead to eventually a dark side. Anakin's love for his mother (which is why force-sensitive children are taken from their mothers to be trained at a very early age)and her demise led to his vengeful outburst on the Sand people (no one was spared) and his confusion, at his age, to be trained to not have these emotional attachments also led to his confliction over Padmae. In effect by the age 9 (Anakin's age) he already had bonded with his mother and already had too strong emotions to be controlled. When you write of an urge to do something unacceptable, and the need to step back to examine the urge, more than likely, individuals do not step back. The stepping back occurs after the the urge has been fulfilled, such as excessive drinking, and then in retrospect more emotions of guilt, shame begin to add onto the situation. I agree by embracing these emotions but then letting them go is how one stays healthy. The later books of Star Wars, involving Jaycen Solo explores a concept of a jedi who truly wanted good for the whole and was willing to sacrifice people and things along the way to attain a "peace" for an entire galaxy, as he saw fit...(things like Absolute power corrupts absolutely and so forth, that whole series, I believe you would have much to analyze). Anakin's eventual downward spiral into the "dark side" began with the intention to make the galaxy safer, free of war for his Padmae and children, and his belief that Palpatine could do that allowed Anakin to be seduced to the dark side. (I realize as I re-read this, it is touching on quite a few different issues and not just the emotional health you originally wrote about, I tend to ramble!)
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Oct 09
I have never read any of the later books, I have read some of the comics that came out of the movies though. I would hate to start now because then I would have to go and buy all of the books to catch everything, but that's me. I can't even get in at the middle of a tv show, I need to find the earlier shows and seasons to make sure I know all about the characters. When I read or watch a story, I try to get myself into the work. I naturally analyze the characters. This has always been one of my favorite movies and as it is with any form of fiction, the characters are bigger then life, and have personalities and problems that have to shine through for them to use and solve in their travels through the story. If I can see myself there, either in there shoes or standing beside them, the movie has done it's job for me.
• United States
13 Oct 09
Thank you for the best response Brothertuck. I do understand what you mean about getting in the middle of a series and true it is quite an undertaking to start from the first book after the original trilogy, not to mention all the off-shoots. I had to do that and actually I read the later books and found out I wasn't up to speed and had to go back. Still it was worth it to read about Jacen Solo and morality, and actually after reading your discussion, it made me want to re-read the books! I completely agree with you in terms of movies and characters that present themselves larger than life but also with very human issues and certainly when one is able to identify with those emotions, the movie, book has done its job. Thanks again!