Nissa Fuller

Final Paper
FYS: Star Wars

Darth Vader. The name could almost make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up in

fear. The man who holds the power of the Force in both hands seems to be unstoppable and

fearless. However, like all beings, there is an origin story because no one pops up from thin air.

Although, with this character who is shrouded in black, looking ever so mysterious, it is kind of

hard to imagine how he came about. How did he become this way? Was he always this way, this

evil? Proposing that the answer to these questions are no, then who is responsible for creating

this person who we have all learned to fear? The Jedi Council. Through a faulty system, the Jedi

Council caused the tragic transformation of Anakin Skywalker to the infamous Darth Vader,

losing him to the dark side. With this in mind, hopefully, you will see a new side to Anakin

Skywalker and perhaps a soft spot.

First of all, it is important to understand what the Jedi Council stands for, in other words,

their Code. The Jedi Code is a set of rules that guide the Jedi in ways like not submitting to

feelings of anger, having attachments, and not killing unarmed challengers("Jedi Code," n.d.).

The purpose of a code or creed is to give direction to a person or group of people, simply put a

way of life. However, it seems that the focus of the Jedi Code is around emotions and how to

approach them or rather how not to approach them at all. Throughout both trilogies, Obi-Wan

Kenobi and Yoda both are quick to remind Anakin Skywalker and the audience the importance

of ridding oneself of “passionate” emotions. This could be because of the fear the Jedi carry of

having their emotions exploited and so getting the best of them(Bey, 2015). Although this may

be a good point, the way that the Jedi enforced this rule by simply ignoring a person’s very
obvious emotional state or by giving dismissive advice is one of the strongest reasons of Anakin

falling to the Dark Side.

Since the beginning, Anakin Skywalker was dubbed the Chosen One by Jedi Master,

Qui-Gon Jinn who believed that young Anakin could bring balance to the Force(Bey, 2015). This

Jedi Master could tell that Anakin was powerful with the Force and how he could trust his

instincts and knew what to do much better than any other Jedi(Bey, 2015). Anakin was given a

tremendous amount of praise from both Qui-Gon and his soon-to-be wife, Padme Amidala for

being so gifted that is understandable how he would be a bit arrogant as he got older. At the same

time, it is obvious to anyone how much respect and admiration Anakin has for his Master and the

Jedi Council. As a child, who was brought up by his mother to be selfless, this is seen when

Anakin tells Qui-gon and Padme that his “ Mom says the biggest problem in the universe is no

one helps each other” and also when he brings them to his home to seek shelter away from the

storm(Darling, 2015). Anakin, when we first see him, is a brave little kid who is not afraid to

lend a helping hand when needed. This is something that he recognizes in the Jedi and why he

admires them and even why he wants to train to be one: to help others(Darling, 2015)`. However,

as Anakin got older and was now being trained under Jedi Master Obi-wan Kenobi, his talents

were often stifled by his fellow Jedi. Anakin’s skills were often put down and was told that he

was not in tune and over time Anakin understandably was getting frustrated(Bey, 2015). In the

Attack of the Clones, Anakin confides in Padme about his Master Obi-wan saying that his master

manages not to see how he as grown up(Lucas, 2002). Before Anakin enters into an emotional

rant about his master he gives him high praise stating that Obi-wan is as wise as Master Yoda

and as powerful as Master Windu(Bey, 2015). Still, Anakin holds him in high respect even when

he feels held back by his master(Bey, 2015). Nonetheless, this does not stop Anakin from telling
Padme that he is ready for the trials but his master believes him to be too unpredictable, how

overly critical Master Obi-wan is to him and just how unfair it all is(Lucas, 2002). All of this

must have been extremely frustrating to Anakin as he knows how gifted he is but at every turn is

put down by the older Jedi, who do not seem to believe in his abilities.

Moreover, the Jedi Code is what causes such conflict within Anakin because this is all he

has to keep him on the straight and narrow(Everything GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III -

Revenge of The Sith!, 2016). Many times throughout Revenge of the Sith, Anakin says, “It’s not

the Jedi way.”(Lucas, 2005), meaning that what was being done and the decisions being made

were not what the Jedi were about. For instance, Chancellor Palpatine wanted Anakin to be

placed on the council and the Jedi Council compiled but only as an effort to get closer to figuring

out the Chancellor’s motives(Lucas, 2005). While Anakin was placed on the Council he was

denied the rank of Master because it was felt that he was not ready or perhaps he could not be

trusted because of his relationship with Chancellor Palpatine(Bey, 2015). As well as the act of

having Anakin spy on the Chancellor put Anakin’s conscience at risk because he felt that it went

against the Jedi Code("Jedi Code," n.d.). Now, how can Anakin trust and put faith in those who

do not reciprocate this same feeling? Although, what causes Anakin to stray away from the Jedi

permanently would be learning that there is no true difference between the Jedi and the

Sith(Everything GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of The Sith!, 2016). This

pivotal moment is Anakin Skywalker’s life happens at the beginning of the film and towards the

end of the film. In the beginning, Chancellor Palpatine is kidnapped and Anakin is sent to the

rescue but on the way, he meets a Jedi turned Sith named Count Dooku(Bey, 2015). They spar

for a good minute and ultimately Dooku has lost with no arms and on his knees in surrender(Bey,

2015). With a little forceful encouragement, Anakin beheads Count Dooku and tells Palpatine
that it was not the “Jedi way” believing that he should have stood trial(Bey, 2015). If we were to

think about the Jedi Code or the way Anakin says it: the Jedi way, it is wrong to kill those who

are unarmed and defenseless("Jedi Code," n.d.). As we all know Anakin is no stranger to

killing( avenged his mother by murdering a whole village of sand people(Lucas, 2002)) but this

way of life that he has given up his childhood for is all he has so he must uphold it.

Comparatively, towards the end of the movie, Anakin is placed back in a similar situation where

his Code is being violated. With Chancellor Palpatine being exposed as Darth Sidious, which

may have been due to his own manipulations, Anakin has a hard choice to make between saving

Sidious and thus saving his wife or being true to his Code. In this moment, Master Windu has

Darth Sidious at his mercy and says the same exact words that Palpatine/Sidious said to Anakin

after killing Count Dooku, “ He is too dangerous to be kept alive.”(Lucas, 2005). Anakin is

telling Master Windu that it is not the Jedi way, against the Code! Even still, Anakin is trying to

preserve the system and the way of life that has seemingly done nothing but hold him back and

neglect him. However, when Windu goes for the final blow Anakin realizes and see the how

much the Jedi has lost their way as Windu is acting out of anger of never wanting the Sith to

return(Bey, 2015). Anakin can see this as clear as day and night so what should he do? How

could he continue to follow the Code if those whom he has admired break it at every turn? So,

how much different are the Jedi and the Sith other than a certain point of view(Everything

GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of The Sith!, 2016)?

Honestly, the most agonizing thing to experience was watching the Jedi Council’s

stupidity with handling situations that they ultimately made worse. To repeat, the suppression of

emotions within the Jedi Order was something that did not seem like the smart thing to do,

especially when involving Anakin. When he first started to have those visions of Padme
suffering he went straight to Yoda (Jedi Council) seeking guidance but he could not be totally

honest because of the Jedi Code(Everything GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of

The Sith!, 2016). He was breaking rules left and right by being with Padme and forming such a

strong attachment to her("Jedi Code," n.d.). What does Yoda do? He basically tells Anakin to

deal with it because death is inevitable, which in some people’s eyes is not wrong. However, this

was a bit too harsh for a guy who has a history of the death of those close to him and not being

able to save them or stop it. If these Jedi Masters and Grandmasters are so in tune with the force,

how could they not feel the inner turmoil within Skywalker? And if they did, why not do

something about it? That idea is what is so troubling about the Jedi when dealing with Anakin:

knowing. For one thing, if the Jedi Order had suspicions about Chancellor Palpatine why let

Anakin get so close to him in the first place and then proceed to turn Anakin against someone he

considered a friend? Knowing that Anakin was very attached to his emotions it almost seems

idiotic to let them get close. Had the Jedi Council handled Anakin and his emotions correctly

when Palpatine tried to manipulate him, his bond with the Jedi would not have been so easily

destroyed. Conversely, the ignorance of the Dark Side allowed both the Jedi and Anakin to be

manipulated(Everything GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of The Sith!, 2016). It is

often better to know what your enemies know and what they are about because when you do not,

it leaves you constantly guessing what their next move could be. This was the condition of the

Jedi Council.

Due to all these circumstances, Anakin Skywalker chooses the Dark Side of the Force.

However, it could be said that Anakin had pure intentions when making this decision because if

we were to bring it back all Anakin wanted to do was save his wife. He wanted to redeem

himself for not being able to save his mother. Anakin’s sole desire is to help those in need so it
should not be a surprise of why he is so hell-bent on saving Padme from death. However, just as

the Jedi feared, his passionate feelings were exploited by those around him. This is truly the fault

of the Council for failing to handle the emotions that were bubbling inside of Anakin. So, who

exploited these emotions? None other than Chancellor Palpatine also known as Darth Sidious.

This is where the Council failed the most because while they were pushing Anakin away another

was welcoming him with open arms: Darth Sidious. It was almost too painful to see how evil and

yet how clever he was when manipulating Anakin and the Council. For instance, putting Anakin

on the Jedi Council knowing that it would cause suspicion and lead to mistrust between Anakin

and the Council(Ratcliffe, 2015) and then when he was asked to spy on the Chancellor it put

doubt in Anakin’s mind about the Council. With the rising mistrust between them,

Palpatine/Sidious started to give Anakin everything the Jedi were not. Palpatine/Sidious

showered Anakin with all the praise he could muster, telling him how talented he was and how

he has so much potential inside of him(Darling, 2015). This was something that Anakin craved

deeply: approval and recognition. Perhaps most importantly, Sidious told Anakin about the Dark

Side and their ability to do something the Jedi could not: save people from dying(Bey, 2015).

This was like waving a piece of yarn in front of a cat, Anakin could not simply forget about this

temptation. After all, this was the thing haunting his mind and now someone held the answer.

Now, fast forward to the end of the film where Anakin is still struggling with his duties of being

a Jedi and saving the person he loves, it is understandable why he chose the Dark Side. Why

choose to stay with a group of people who have betrayed everything they stand for and who hold

you back and do not trust you when you could finally be recognized as the powerful Jedi that you

are and most importantly save the ones you love from dying? It seems like an easy choice.
 All in all, it is clear why Anakin chose the dark side and where the fault lies: the Jedi

Council. Due to the numerous mistakes of the Council, it is no wonder as to why Anakin would

choose the life of his wife over those who he believed to have strayed from “the good side of the

Force”. In a way, the Council gave Skywalker no choice but to turn over to the dark side because

of the faulty system that was in place and was continuously broken by no one other than

themselves. Unfortunately, it ended in someone’s demise and pure heart to be drowned in

darkness.

References

Bey, A. (2015, July 14). The Lost Path of the Jedi | The Artifice. Retrieved from https://the-

artifice.com/the-lost-path-of-the-jedi/

Darling, N. (2015, December 24). Star Wars: The Creation of Vader. Retrieved from

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/thinking-about-kids/201512/star-wars-the-creation-

vader
Everything GREAT About Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of The Sith! [Video file]. (2016,

December 9). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KSbwAJT8RE

Jedi Code. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jedi_Code

Lucas, G. (Director). (2002). Star wars: Episode ii - Attack of the clones [Motion picture].

Lucas, G. (Director). (2005). Star wars: Episode iii - Revenge of the sith [Motion picture].

Ratcliffe, A. (2015, March 24). 6 of Palpatine's Key Manipulations | StarWars.com. Retrieved

from http://www.starwars.com/news/6-of-palpatines-key-manipulations