Happy Christmas to All!

George Lucas attempted to show audiences that his character Darth Vader was not as evil as he may have appeared in the original Star Wars trilogy of movies. Instead, Vader was motivated by a tremendous fear of loss. Certainly, Padme Amidala replacing his mother, first by separation and later by her death, created an unhealthy attachment on the part of young Anakin Skywalker towards the child queen. One could assuredly write a psychoanalytic analysis on this trauma. However, the reason that I bring this is up is that Anakin’s/Darth Vader’s fear of loss derives from his love, perhaps obsessively adolescent love, for Padme. I believe that Anakin’s/Darth Vader’s love for Padme demonstrates that even the cyborg Vader maintained enough human affection that he could return as Anakin with the greatest gift: self-sacrifice.

Y and I wish everyone a very happy Christmas!

Published by Jason W. Ellis

I am an Associate Professor of English at the New York City College of Technology, CUNY whose teaching includes composition and technical communication, and research focuses on science fiction, neuroscience, and digital technology. Also, I direct the B.S. in Professional and Technical Writing Program and coordinate the City Tech Science Fiction Collection, which holds more than 600 linear feet of magazines, anthologies, novels, and research publications.