The Politics Of Star Wars: What do we learn?

attack of the clones should have received major attention as a rarity in content a mainstream american blockbuster with an intensely political focus the film deliberately raises and comments on a number of contemporary and timeless political issues and most notably provides a scathing indictment of the toxic combination of greed and political ambition clones furthermore as the fifth installment of the star wars saga is also an epic commentary on american and international politics and economics

past as well as present and on the rise and fall of political empires in general as an ongoing cyclical process in human history based on human greed appetite aggressiveness hatred and fear the first made star wars film 1977's a new hope it's plot based on an alliance of rebel freedom fighters taking on and defeating an evil empire presenting an archetypal political situation rebellion against tyranny a new hope also worked in part with america's self-image as a freedom-loving nation which origi

nally established itself by rebelling as an alliance of colonies against an oppressive british empire and critics pointed out the strongly american archetypes of the rebel heroes luke skywalker a frontier farm boy yearning for adventure and han solo a space age western genre loner adventurer with his handy blaster and his preference for a straight fight to all this sneaking around 20th century american and world politics were also invoked by new hope's imperial stormtroopers the forces of the na

zi-associated evil empire and by the film space battle finale involving imperial against alliance fighter pilots and modeled on earlier cinematic depictions of world war ii aerial dogfights clones however despite its continuation from 1999's the phantom menace the story of the mythological journey from boyhood to maturity of a new hero anakin skywalker is first and foremost a political and politically critical film even overtly so in its dialogue from jedi knight obi-wan kenobi's distrust of pol

iticians expressed near the start of the film senators say obi-wan focused not on political democracy but on pleasing those who fund their campaigns to anakin and amidala's discussions on romantic naboo of democracy and dictatorship to the deals the hidden obi-wan towards the film's end he is being worked out on the planet geonosis between the intergalactic banking clan the trade federation the commerce guild the corporate alliance and the separatists intent on war against the republic signing t

his treaty will bring you profits beyond your wildest imagination complete free trade the dialogue with its contemporary political and business terminology could not be clearer as to the film's political and economic focus most obviously of course clones is thoroughly political in its narrative after the opening call telling of unrest in the republic senate the existence of a political separatist movement and debate over the creation of an army of the republic the film begins with the attempted

political assassination of the anti-war senator amid ella it moves into political discussions between amid allah and anakin and into obi-wan's discovery of a vast clone army ordered by someone unknown for the use of the republic and it ends with the abandoning of attempts at diplomatic negotiations between the republic and the separatists a major battle and preparations for a full-scale galactic civil war these political matters are not merely plot devices but are given thematic meaning for the

general narrative arc of the film as summarized in an early dialogue line by the current queen of naboo the day we stop believing democracy can work is the day we lose it is of a political democracy the republic gradually turning into a wartime emergency power state which will have become the dictatorship of the empire by the time of the chronologically later original star wars trilogy the republic falls from within not to attack from without with the danger here to the state as a whole is an un

recognized dark side of emotionalism in general and especially of anger love patriotism hatred and fear in the republic at large capitalized upon by ambitious or greedy leaders in order to manipulate events to their own political and economic advantage clones makes clear that the trade federation introduced in menace is a key element of the second made trilogy as a whole representing the economic and political greed and ambition the dark side unrestrained appetite of the political and business c

lasses above all that in clones is leading towards the death of democracy the republic and the rise of political dictatorship the empire as obi-wan kenobi learns towards the film's end as he overhears the separatist count deku talking with trade federation representatives and other business leaders on the planet geonosis a planet visually associated with hell in its red colouring steam vents demon-like insect inhabitants and underground underworld assembly lines of potentially lethal mechanical

devices the trade federation will give its economic backing including military support to whatever politician will promise it unfolded profits so will other such commercial organizations and the surest way to power for a calculating politician like dooku a former jedi knight and political idealist as he is described near the film's beginning is to cater to and to manipulate the corporate interests gathered around him on geonosis the film's ending makes clear both lucas's political economic criti

que and anti-war stance as we see the corporate sponsored dooku go from one hell setting geonosis to another the blade runner-like industrial quarter of coruscant to a siren's song on the soundtrack to report to sidious that the desired war has now begun as planned responds sidious and as the democratic republic's chancellor palpatine oversees from a balcony the massing of a vast army of stormtroopers and war machines to the ominous music of the imperial march from the empire strikes back other

symbolism both visual and narrative adds to lucas's political criticism in clones that the newly aggressive jedi along with many of the republic's well-meaning political leaders are losing from the film start the ability to perceive accurately the political world around them i.e to recognize hidden political appetite in others or in themselves is signaled in the opening sequence by the clouds covering the republican and jedi capital of coruscant the dark side clouds everything yoda subsequently

comments warren clones is depicted as a tool supported by profit-seeking big business by means of which manipulative political leaders can achieve power and dominance over naive greedy and or fearful leaders and their followers nations like individuals can be tempted towards the dark side through ignorance greed appetite and an emotionalism which significantly includes aggressiveness and fear political idealism gone wrong and political ambition palpatine are in clones equally dangerous to democr

acy the latter uses the former and both lead to war which supported by greed favors political dictatorship