Philosophy and the Force

“The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the Galaxy together.”

• Obi-Wan Kenobi, A New Hope (1977)

 

“Qi is the vital force that gives life to all forms of the Universe. It is a vibrating component of existence, continuous flow of life at the molecular, atomic, and sub-atomic levels.”

• Dr. Tatyana Danylova explaining qi in Taoism

 

For decades, audiences around the world have been captivated by the mystical Force imagined by George Lucas in his Star Wars universe. Obi-Wan’s famous line about the Force in 1977’s A New Hope gives us an introduction to the all-encompassing nature of this mythical energy. Its power is alluring and impressive, but perhaps more important is the philosophical value surrounding the Force and how it relates to philosophies of our own world. Many Star Wars viewers like myself are mesmerized by the Force, even to the point where some claim it as their own belief system. In fact, 177,000 people declared Jediism as their religion in a 2011 census of England and Wales (BBC News). However, the charity commission in charge of this survey deemed that Jediism was not a legitimate system of belief. They claimed that there was insufficient evidence that “moral improvement” and a “necessary spiritual or non-secular element” were a part of Jedi teachings (BBC News). Although some of the people surveyed allegedly were atheists and chose Jediism as a tongue-in-cheek response to religion being added to the census, many others do see Jediism as an appealing belief system. In fact, there is even a church of Jediism founded in the UK (BBC News). 

Why then would the Force be so influential among fans and in pop-culture if it lacks what it takes to be a real belief system? Some viewers revere the philosophy of the Star Wars films while there is also “a substantial contingent of people who believe there is very little profundity to be found beyond all the special effects and computer-generated imagery” (McDonald 2). What I will explore in this paper is how the Force and the teachings of the Jedi who wield it relate to religious traditions and philosophies throughout the world and its history. By relating the Force to real-life religions and philosophies, we can better understand its broader messages. This will also help us explore the validity of the 2011 census’ claim that “moral improvement” is not central to the study of the Jedi and the Force. What I will try to prove is that Jediism and the Star Wars narrative do include evidence of legitimate moral and philosophical value. 

To begin our understanding of the force, we will first analyze the philosophy of Taoism, which grew out of various religious and philosophical traditions in ancient China. The Tao signifies ‘the way,’ and emphasizes finding balance and harmony with nature and living things. Taoism is governed by energy called 气, or qi, which gives life to all beings. As explained in Taoist teachings, “Qi is a grand vital force that permeates the whole Cosmos, in fact, it is the Cosmos itself” (Danylova 2). The idea of qi tells us that Taoism is focused on connecting with that which connects the universe. Avid Star Wars fans should immediately see how similar the principle of qi is to that of the Force. Whereas qi in Taoism represents the “continuous flow of life at the molecular, atomic, and sub-atomic levels” (Danylova 2), the Force connects and flows through all life forms in a similar fashion. Like Obi-Wan describes to Luke in A New Hope, the Force is “an energy field created by all living things…that surrounds us and penetrates us” and “binds the galaxy together” (A New Hope 34:40). Jedi Masters such as Yoda describe feeling the force working in and around them. Similarly to qi in Taoism, the Force is everlasting and connects things together. 

A symbol ubiquitous in Taoism and well-recognized today is the taijitu, or yin-yang symbol. The dark side, or yin, and light side, or yang, represent dualisms in nature such as the day and night and the coexistence of both sides. The swirl of the yin-yang also shows how nature is always changing. Yin and yang are not stagnant but instead can transform into each other. This is also shown in the symbol itself: within the yin, there is a dot of the yang, and within the yang, there is a dot of the yin. If we look at the dualism of the light and dark sides of the Force in Star Wars through this lens, we understand that in one Force-user there is neither pure light or pure darkness. Though Luke aligns with the light side, there is always the looming possibility of him turning to the dark. Similarly, though Vader has been corrupted by the dark side, he still has light within him. As Anakin turns to the dark side and is then redeemed back to the light in Return of the Jedi, we understand that the light and dark sides of the Force coexist within each entity. As nothing is purely light nor dark, there is the possibility to change alignments and transform.

One other important similarity between the Jedi and followers of Taoism is that both believe that when people die, they become one with their respective forces and live on through it forever. There is a tale of a Taoist man who engages in merriment after the death of his wife, which causes disdain among the man’s friends. The man, Zhuangzi, “regards his late wife as simply a fleeting form assumed by 气” (Irwin 200). This is because Zhuangzi sees death not as an end, but a transformation as his wife becomes one with the energy of life. The Jedi similarly become one with the Force upon their death, with some even being able to manifest themselves as Force spirits and interact with the physical world (“Force Spirits,” Wookieepedia). Like Zhuangzi sees his wife’s death as a reunion with nature, Obi-Wan says that he will only become more powerful upon his death at the hands of Vader (A New Hope 1:30:50) as he will become one with the Force. 

Another philosophical parallel is that of Stoicism, which was founded in Athens around 300 B.C.E. The Stoics emphasized restraint from emotions and desires in a search of a higher degree of rationality. As explained in The Ultimate Star Wars and Philosophy,  “Just as they protect the galaxy, Jedi are also called upon to keep the peace within themselves by aligning their wills to the Force. This requires self-restraint, abstinence from worldly pleasures” (Irwin 20). The Jedi adopted an unindulgent lifestyle, and although they “were not necessarily celibate, they were not allowed to marry or have familiar attachments” (McDonald 126). The Jedi and Stoics accept a hard life rather than an easy one. This is echoed in The Empire Strikes Back, as Yoda urges Luke not to leave his training on Dagobah by telling him, “If you choose the quick and easy path, as Vader did, you will become an agent of evil” (Empire Strikes Back 1:24:17). It is easy to be tempted by the dark side, but it takes restraint to stay with the light. While the Sith are consumed by anger and hatred, the Jedi, like Stoics, do not let themselves be controlled by their emotions. This is solidified when Yoda says his famous quote in The Phantom Menace: “Fear is the path to the dark side…fear leads to anger…anger leads to hate…hate leads to suffering” (The Phantom Menace). Anakin’s character is a clear narrative example of this process, as his fear of losing Padme leads him down the path described by Yoda. 

Beyond fear, anger, hate, and eventual suffering, we see that skewed conceptions of power also lead to the dark side. The Stoic philosopher Epictetus expresses his belief that “true power lies in the capacity to adapt oneself to circumstances by making proper judgments of what’s in a person’s control” (Irwin 21). Controlling only what is in your control requires acceptance of your own limitations and role in the world around you. Stoics do not try to defy their circumstances and attempt to live in accordance with nature, much like Taoists try to live in harmony with the Tao, or natural order. Christian ideology also follows a similar narrative, as Christian writer Augustine asserts of mankind that “It is calamitous for him to act according to his own will, and not to obey the will of his Creator” (City of God, XIV, 12). He believes that longing for exaltation, or pride, is the ultimate root of mankind’s sin and that we must follow the will of God. The Jedi similarly try to align their wills to the Force, whereas the Sith bend the Force to their own wills. For instance, because the Sith cannot form a Force-bond with the kyber crystals that power lightsabers as the Jedi do, they must bleed the crystals and force them to submit (“Sith Lightsabers,” Wookieepedia). This is why Sith lightsabers have their famous red blades. While the Jedi work in harmony with the Force, the Sith use it as a tool for their own gain and to amass power.

The Sith’s transgression of natural order offers enticing power, such as the supposed ability to cheat death. In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine tells Anakin the story of Darth Plagueis the Wise, who was supposedly able to keep those he cared about from dying by using the power of the dark side (Revenge of the Sith). This story is meant to beguile Anakin, who is afraid of losing Padme as he envisions her dying in childbirth. It is of course this fear that leads Anakin to the dark side, but it is also his unwillingness to accept what is not in his control. While Zhuangzi accepts his wife’s death as a part of and reunion with nature, Anakin will do anything, no matter how destructive, to save his wife. The Sith are constantly seeking immortality, but they ultimately fail because they cannot become one with the Force as the Jedi can. They cannot become Force spirits because this requires “the release of self, not the exaltation of self” (ROTS Novelization citation). As Augustine says that exaltation is a failure to recognize that nothing is superior to God, the Sith fail to realize that they can never be more powerful than the Force itself. This is why an attempt to cheat its will is futile. The only way to maintain consciousness after death is to be one with the whole that is the Force.

To further explore the philosophy behind the Star Wars narrative and the Force, we will look to its creator. In 2010 and 2012 interviews of George Lucas, we are told his view of the force as well as his own personal philosophy in life. By examining Lucas’ dialogue, I will show that much of the Force’s moral and philosophical core comes from Lucas’ own belief. In his 2010 interview, Lucas describes the force as such: “You’ve got the dark side and the light side: one is selfish, one is selfless” (Lucas 0:55). The idea that the dark side represents selfishness is implied in aspects of the Star Wars narrative but never directly spelled out. He also views Anakin as selfish as he says that “you’re allowed to love people, but you’re not allowed to possess them” (Lucas 2:53) when speaking of his relationship with Padme. Essentially, it is possession and selfishness, and the fear of loss, that lead to the dark side. He goes on in his 2012 interview to talk about how he personally is against the selfishness in the world and describes his worldview as, “The world is split into two halves: the selfish part and the giving, compassionate part” (Lucas 11:31). Essentially, his creation of the force mirrors his own viewing of the world. The light and dark sides of the force present a warning against selfishness and urge the viewer to practice compassion. Lucas also asserts the positive impact Star Wars has had on viewers, as he says that there were hundreds of cases in which children in hospitals were given early access to original trilogy films because they weren’t expected to live up to the film’s release. Miraculously, the children lived much longer than expected, and Lucas attributes this to them being inspired and given hope by the Star Wars story.

Lucas’ interviews are instrumental in understanding the morality shown by the Force and help us understand more deeply what Lucas intended. Now, then, we should look more closely into how some of these ideas play out in the films. Principally, how is selfishness shown to lead to the Dark Side? Lucas using the term ‘possession’ to describe Anakin’s relationship with Padme is important because it immediately implies Anakin’s selfishness. We understand, as has been discussed above, that one of the driving forces that leads Anakin to the Dark Side is his fear of losing Padme. What he is really afraid of, though, is the impact losing Padme will have on himself. This plays out in Revenge of the Sith, where we see that Anakin’s love dwindles for Padme as it becomes more about preserving her to satisfy his own desire. When Padme confronts Anakin on Mustafar, she says to him, “Anakin, all I want is your love,” to which he responds, “Love won’t save you, Padme. Only my new powers can do that” (Revenge of the Sith). Right after this, Padme says that he is a good person and implores him not to continue on his dark path. Padme doesn’t care about Anakin’s power or abilities, but the love and goodness he showed her that are now dwindling. Anakin can’t seem to understand this, as he continues with his plans to gain power and take over the world, and that he’s doing it all for her. Essentially, Anakin ignores what Padme really wants and circumvents morality in an attempt to further his own desires (Padme being one of these).

So far we have explored the differing ideologies of the Jedi who follow the light side of the Force and the Sith who follow the dark. Throughout the Star Wars narrative and from Lucas’ own perspective, it seems apparent that the Jedi are both wiser and more virtuous than the Sith. But why must the dark side exist? Much like the Jedi, 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling imagined the world as “pulsing with living energy, animated by a vital and dynamic force that surges through each and every thing” (Irwin 203). This dynamic force he called God, or the divine will. On the other hand, he believed that there must also be a primal will or dark side. Though this dark side is not necessarily evil, it represents “the egocentric will and its cravings” (Irwin 205) in the human psyche. This primal will is similar to Freud’s conception of the id, which is the impulsive and unconscious portion of the human psyche that responds to urges and desires (Mcleod). However, without this primal instinct, there would be no drive to reproduce, survive, or build civilization. If resisting temptation is virtuous, then without temptation this virtue disappears. Without the dark, there is no light. Schelling’s view of the primal will imagines it as the dark ground of being that lies under the air of light. If we view the Force in the way that Schelling views the will, the dark side is dangerous only when it fails to submit to the light above it. 

Now that we have shown how the Force is related to many religious and philosophical traditions throughout history, we must return to the 2011 census. The two main reasons they claimed that Jediism is not sufficient as a religion was that it lacked a spiritual element and moral improvement. Firstly, Jediism clearly contains spirituality in their connection to something greater than the self by becoming one with the Force. The Jedi align themselves to and commune with the Force like a Christian would with God. Furthermore, Jedi philosophy also emphasizes patience and meditation. In terms of moral improvement, the way of the Jedi emphasizes freedom from desires and quick pleasures and encourages selflessness. Like most religious texts, the story of the Jedi and Sith in the Star Wars narrative teaches the individual how to be virtuous while warning of potential downfall.

It seems that there is deeper meaning still behind Lucas’ use of the Force in Star Wars. We can begin by once again gleaning information from his 2012 interview. Lucas expresses his disdain for how people have misused religion in the past when he expresses, “religions have a place, but in the end, when they start saying things that are not positive or not compassionate or not caring…the inquisitions and all that…killing people in the name of God is wrong” (Lucas 5:22). If we look at the Force as an amalgamation of religious and philosophical tradition, perhaps Lucas is commenting on the very nature of belief systems themselves. That is to say that higher powers like God or the Force can be followed for bad ends just as well as for good ones, thus the Jedi and Sith. But even the Jedi, who Lucas creates as guardians of peace and order and purveyors of wisdom, also occasionally suffer from oversight. In Return of the Jedi, Obi-Wan and Yoda try to convince Luke on Dagobah that he must kill his father Darth Vader. Obi-Wan’s Force spirit tells Luke that when Anakin became Vader, “the good man who was your father was destroyed” (Return of the Jedi 46:19). Luke sees the good still in his father while Yoda and Obi-Wan see killing him as the only option. In a way, Obi-Wan and Yoda fail to see the light within Vader’s darkness like the seed of yang within the swirl of yin. 

So then, the Force teaches us the fallibility of mankind as well as the fallibility of religious dogma, but it also presents us with an enlightening view of the world. Firstly, I think that it shows us the importance of following something higher than the self rather than our own selfish wants and desires. Lucas argues that while following our desires offers temporary pleasure, it is the light side and submitting to the Force that offers everlasting joy. The Tao, Stoicism, and the Force also tell us that change is an integral part of nature that you should not fear or try to control. There is both yin and yang and light and dark in every being, and the struggle to find balance is perhaps within the individual rather than a conflict between external forces. Finally, rather than good or bad simply being the unchanging nature of any character in Star Wars, it is a result of the beliefs and philosophies we accept.

 

 

Works Cited

 

“Jedi Is Not a Religion, Charity Commission Rules.” BBC News, BBC, 19 Dec. 2016, https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-38368526 

This is a BBC News article that talks about the charity commission that decided that Jediism does not meet the requirements of a religion. It also briefly talks about what Jediism is in the films.

 

Irwin, William, et al. The Ultimate Star Wars and Philosophy: You Must Unlearn What You Have Learned. Wiley Blackwell, 2016.

This book explores many tropes and ideologies of Star Wars through the lens of philosophy. Though I mostly just used it for chapters concerning the Force, Jedi, or Sith, it covers a wide range of topics and incorporates many philosophical ideas.

 

McDonald, Paul F. The Star Wars Heresies: Interpreting the Themes, Symbols and Philosophies of Episodes I, II and III. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2013.

The Star Wars Heresies analyzes common themes and archetypes among the Star Wars prequel trilogy, looking through a critical and philosophical lens.

 

Danylova, Tatyana. “Born Out of Nothingness: A Few Words on Taoism.” Research Revolution, 1 Oct. 2014, DOI:10.17758/eares7.eap0819416.

This article explains Taoism in a fairly simple way, and it was especially useful to me for explaining qi energy and how it is imagined in Taoism.

 

Lucas, George. Star Wars: The Clone Wars conference presentation, 2010.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68dvgRT3Kx8

This video is of Lucas talking to the writers of the Clone Wars animated series in 2010. In it he explains his conception of the Force, and how he imagines the light and dark sides.

 

Lucas, George. Interview by Bill Bradley. Sirius XM Radio, 7 March, 2012.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DByPy8aEPw

This interview was useful because Lucas talks about his own view of the world as well as Star Wars and how they are related.

 

“Force Spirit.” Wookieepedia, The Star Wars Wiki. 

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Force_spirit

 

“Sith Lightsaber.” Wookieepedia, The Star Wars Wiki. 

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Sith_lightsaber

 

“Jedi.” Wookieepedia, The Star Wars Wiki. 

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jedi

 

Mcleod, Saul. “Id, Ego and Superego.” Id Ego Superego | Simply Psychology, Simply Psychology, 5 Feb. 2017, https://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html 

I used this article to briefly explain Freud’s idea of the id, but it also summarizes the ego and superego.

 

Thompson, George. “The Yin Yang: Meaning & Philosophy Explained | Tea Time Taoism, YouTube, 17 Dec. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJNEvjwipO0&list=PLn4qZn8i9G9kELhp-zXV7HKzgPWSpMbdJ&index=2 

This video was posted by a man studying at the Wudang Taoist Wellness Academy in China under the tutelage of Taoist Master Gu, who explains the yin-yang symbol in this video.

 

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Directed by George Lucas, Twentieth Century Fox, 1977.

 

Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. Directed by Irvin Kershner, Twentieth Century Fox, 1980.

 

Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Directed by Richard Marquand, Twentieth Century Fox, 1983.

 

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. Directed by George Lucas, 20th Century Fox, 1999.

 

Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. Directed by George Lucas, 20th Century Fox, 2005.