The Problem With Jedi (Spoilers?)
As I've watched Star Wars over the years, there has been a consistent feeling like something was.... wrong.
No it's not the good vs evil overarching story, nor is it the fact that it makes absolutely no sense for Qui-Gon Jinn to die from a single stab wound while Darth Maul survives being split in half and falling down the same chasm as Qui-Gon; and while I am equally baffled by the fact that they essentially just copied the death of Qui-Gon for Han's death (I mean seriously, it's a light saber, it'd hurt like hell and probably cause some serious issues in the future, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have time... the wound is cauterized right? Right?), there is something even more strange that the Jedi themselves seem to be confusingly stupid about: self control.
In almost every movie I feel like they talk about bringing some kind of balance to the force. The more I think about it the less it makes any sense. What balance? The balance between the light and dark? The balance between the good and bad? Does the balance mean there is an equal amount of light/good as there is dark/bad? Is it the balance of the people or the balance of those capable of wielding the force? I'm sure if I read up about some of this stuff it would make sense... somewhere, but that's the thing. When you have a universe made up of a million different ideas then cross off a chunk of them because you feel like it, it makes me question what is real and what is theory. (I mean, let's be real here, this is all theory, it's a made up universe with a made up people, with made up situations, but the fictional universe exists in some form and principles need to be established in order to make it realistic.)
One of the things I struggle with the most is Yoda. I mean, he's like the epitome of what a Jedi is, right? I think I always assumed Yoda was the Jedi. That's more than likely because Luke really only had two people teaching him the ways of the force, Obi-Wan and Yoda, and Obi-Wan didn't last very long in that movie.... Even in the "first" three movies, Yoda is the one people seem to go to for advice, approval, and permission. Despite this, I can't help but feel like Yoda, and everyone else, was missing something essential to this "balance." They had no emotional balance.
Think about it, the biggest problem they had with Anakin was the fact that they sensed fear in him. So... wait, they don't want to train him because he, as a child, has fear in him? That makes no sense. What child doesn't fear something? Thankfully he had someone who understood there was hope, as Weird Al tells us in the best possible way, "And Qui-Gon said, "Now listen here / Just stick it in your pointy ear / I still will teach this boy." See to me that's the whole point, if someone is lacking something and is willing to work to overcome it, you teach them how to overcome it.
How else do you find balance? Most people when they step onto a balance beam need to wiggle a little in order to find their balance. You'll go right and left, forward and backwards, and maybe a little everywhere, but as long as you're determined to become balanced (meaning you work for it and practice) you can be balanced. The Jedi turned away someone they believed might be the "Chosen One" because they sensed something in him. Instead of helping him grow, learn, and overcome, they decided not to risk it at all (until Qui-Gon of course).
Hypothetically had they taught Anakin loyalty to the Jedi through compassionate discipline, would that have changed anything? See it's thinking about where things might have gone that I start becoming torn on the potential outcome. Would he have still fallen in love with Padme? Would he have overcome, avoided, or embraced the feelings? I obviously can't say, but here is what I always end up thinking every time I watch a Star Wars movie:
No it's not the good vs evil overarching story, nor is it the fact that it makes absolutely no sense for Qui-Gon Jinn to die from a single stab wound while Darth Maul survives being split in half and falling down the same chasm as Qui-Gon; and while I am equally baffled by the fact that they essentially just copied the death of Qui-Gon for Han's death (I mean seriously, it's a light saber, it'd hurt like hell and probably cause some serious issues in the future, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have time... the wound is cauterized right? Right?), there is something even more strange that the Jedi themselves seem to be confusingly stupid about: self control.
In almost every movie I feel like they talk about bringing some kind of balance to the force. The more I think about it the less it makes any sense. What balance? The balance between the light and dark? The balance between the good and bad? Does the balance mean there is an equal amount of light/good as there is dark/bad? Is it the balance of the people or the balance of those capable of wielding the force? I'm sure if I read up about some of this stuff it would make sense... somewhere, but that's the thing. When you have a universe made up of a million different ideas then cross off a chunk of them because you feel like it, it makes me question what is real and what is theory. (I mean, let's be real here, this is all theory, it's a made up universe with a made up people, with made up situations, but the fictional universe exists in some form and principles need to be established in order to make it realistic.)
One of the things I struggle with the most is Yoda. I mean, he's like the epitome of what a Jedi is, right? I think I always assumed Yoda was the Jedi. That's more than likely because Luke really only had two people teaching him the ways of the force, Obi-Wan and Yoda, and Obi-Wan didn't last very long in that movie.... Even in the "first" three movies, Yoda is the one people seem to go to for advice, approval, and permission. Despite this, I can't help but feel like Yoda, and everyone else, was missing something essential to this "balance." They had no emotional balance.
Think about it, the biggest problem they had with Anakin was the fact that they sensed fear in him. So... wait, they don't want to train him because he, as a child, has fear in him? That makes no sense. What child doesn't fear something? Thankfully he had someone who understood there was hope, as Weird Al tells us in the best possible way, "And Qui-Gon said, "Now listen here / Just stick it in your pointy ear / I still will teach this boy." See to me that's the whole point, if someone is lacking something and is willing to work to overcome it, you teach them how to overcome it.
How else do you find balance? Most people when they step onto a balance beam need to wiggle a little in order to find their balance. You'll go right and left, forward and backwards, and maybe a little everywhere, but as long as you're determined to become balanced (meaning you work for it and practice) you can be balanced. The Jedi turned away someone they believed might be the "Chosen One" because they sensed something in him. Instead of helping him grow, learn, and overcome, they decided not to risk it at all (until Qui-Gon of course).
Hypothetically had they taught Anakin loyalty to the Jedi through compassionate discipline, would that have changed anything? See it's thinking about where things might have gone that I start becoming torn on the potential outcome. Would he have still fallen in love with Padme? Would he have overcome, avoided, or embraced the feelings? I obviously can't say, but here is what I always end up thinking every time I watch a Star Wars movie:
- It's super awkward to kiss your sibling you didn't know was your sibling, only because you found out it was your sibling.
- If they would have allowed Anakin to embrace what he was feeling under the discipline he already had and had been strengthening, things could have, and should have, been different.
Here is why I believe it:
Each and every one of us has feelings we are incapable of overcoming the moment we feel them. When something surprises us, we jump; when something is funny, we smile; when someone pisses us off, we see a little red; it's part of being human. As we train ourselves to control those things, we don't allow those emotions to bother us. Fear will always be a part of our lives, but when we have faith and hope, we are able to better control those fears.
So knowing that Anakin had fears, why didn't they teach him to hope? Why didn't they teach him to overcome the vengeful side of his personality? Forcing him to cover up or contain the emotions did not teach him to control them, and instead created a space for him to feel trapped when he thought he would lose everything. I feel very sure the medical system during that time was capable of helping take care of a difficult delivery. Even hope in that would have been better than the desperate hope he received from Palpatine. Helping Anakin understand that no matter how much someone might desire to, no one can control the future, or maybe they should have helped him understand his visions. There are a million things that could have been different but they lacked the principle of self control.
Self control isn't gained by not experiencing something. Self control is a constant battle with yourself, understanding, at the very least, the principles of the emotions or impulses you're going to feel. If you've never encountered something and no one has taught you how to handle it other than "it's forbidden," you're going to be more likely to succumb to that thing. If you do not practice self control, you cannot master it. Avoiding something is not mastering it (unless you're mastering avoiding).
To me, this is the problem with Jedi, their inability to teach actual self control and their own lack of true self control.
I dunno, I'm not obsessed with Star Wars, so I'm definitely not the right person to consult on all things Star Wars. Who knows, maybe everything I've watched and I know is wrong. The evidence just doesn't point that way yet...
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