Star Wars’ Machiavellian End to Democracy

For years I have been conflicted about the Star Wars prequels, episodes I through III.

Let’s put the obvious casting mishaps and Jar Jar Binks euphemisms aside and try to look at these films from a different perspective.

Shortly after Revenge of the Sith came out, I bought the best Star Wars book I could find – Darth Plagueis.

Briefly, it has the most incredible plots within plots, conspiracies, and intricacies of a 1,000 year design (where have you heard that before?) that would put Machiavelli, Sun Tzu and the Klingons to shame.

The crux of the themes in this book center on how the Sith came to dominate every aspect of galactic life to the point where they were able to slowly weaken the power of the Jedi and erode the efficacy of the Senate – both of which had traditionally been the keepers of peace and stability.

The ability of the Senate to think for itself is systematically undermined through fear, intimidation and jockeying for position and favor with Chancellor Palpatine who in the shadows orchestrates the greatest power play in … galactic history.

The Jedi bicker amongst themselves; more and more Senators become disillusioned as trade violations, cosmic conflict and chaos slowly become the norm.

System after system leave the Galactic Senate and join forces to combat what they say is a corrupted, impotent governing body.

George Lucas perhaps scored his best success in the prequel trilogy by writing this defeat of realpolitik and the grinding down of Senate resolve.

This, of course, is not an original story. We have seen the Senate manipulated in Ancient Rome, throughout English history, and in the build up to the 1991 Iraq War. Just create a crisis, use figurines to depict a bogeyman and you’ve got them wrapped around your Sith finger.

I strongly urge political science curricula to include this as a teaching example of what our human history has all been about.

Reichstag, stormtroopers, helmets … Star Wars – yes, and the prequels – have living relevance to events around us.

So, put aside your critiques of Jar Jar and bemoaning of the stillborn romance between Hayden Christiansen and Natalie Portman in their roles and celebrate the genius that is George Lucas.

The prequels may not measure up to the original trilogy, sure, and J.J Abrams may produce a slew if billion dollar blockbusters. But the message in the prequels is all about the travesty and triumph of the human experience.

His enduring legacy will stretch for a long time from now in a galaxy close, close to our hearts.

Firas Al-Atraqshi
Managing Director