Thursday, October 6, 2011

Darth Vader Complex

One of the most interesting characters in movies is Darth Vader, who was once known as Anakin Skywalker. Darth Vader's life goes in a circle from good towards evil, then back towards good again. Anakin starts off as a confident little boy in episode one, and he is declared the chosen one because the force is so strong with him. When he was a boy, Yoda was against having Anakin trained because he thought his future was clouded. He also sensed a great deal of confusion and fear in the young boy. Both of these characteristics led up to him becoming Darth Vader. Obi Wan insisted on training him anyway, which did not work out too well. Anakin became arrogant, angry and impulsive, and did not listen to Obi Wan. Also, he got married to Padme, and marriage is against the Jedi Order at the time. Anakin's inability to listen and do what he was told screwed him royally. He was a conflicted man throughout his life with more power than he could handle. He is an incredibly complex character, who cannot control his anger. In Episode VI, "Return of the Jedi", Anakin's son Luke says to the emperor that his overconfidence is his weakness. That is Anakin's big problem throughout the saga. In addition, he has no patience at all. Lack of patience is always a problem, and it kicks Anakin's ass throughout his life. Also, he craves recognition and power, and therefore, is twisted by the emperor into believing that the Jedi are out to get him. Anakin's story is one of a troubled teen, who could have used therapy to overcome his problems. Instead his problems consume him. Like I said, he has zero patience and claims that Obi Wan is holding him back. He gets very angry about this in Episode II, "Attack of the Clones". Now, as I understand it, Jedi are not supposed to initiate an attack. Anakin goes in and attacks Count Doku anyway, and loses three forths of his arm. Also, a tribe kills his mother, and as a result he kills every single one of them. The injuries he sustains as the result of his bad karma are so bad that he needs the famous breathing advice to stay alive. Until the end of Episode V, "The Empire Strikes Back" Vader has a tremendous lust for power. The dark side is all about power. When he meets his son in "The Empire Strikes Back", there is a shift in his feelings of anger and hatred because he has feelings of love for his sin. His son ends up being his path back to the good side. That path is short lived, because he dies minutes after he turns back to the good side. In "Return of the Jedi", Anakin is redeemed, and sacrifices his life for Luke, because he cannot stand seeing Luke in pain at the end of Return of the Jedi. The emperor was striking Luke with force lightning, and sort of toying with him. He wanted to torture him a bit before he killed him. Vader grabs the emperor and throws him to his death, but as he is doing that, the emperor's force lightning destroys his breathing device, and protection which was keeping him able to walk. He cannot breath, and he cannot walk when Luke tries to carry him to safety. He dies very quickly after Luke takes the mask off. In death, he is redeemed and learns his lesson.

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