The Toxicity of the Jedi: How a Tradition of Arrogance, Emotional Ignorance, and Control Made Vader an Inevitability

*Spoilers*

As a lifetime fan of Star Wars, I can honestly say that Darth Vader has never done more for me than look cool and menacing.  In Rogue One, he was at his most awe inspiring in his power.  In the canon he was portrayed as this personification of fear without conveying that fear properly.  Everyone who saw him just gets scared, and we are meant to take that in stride.  

(Marvel Comics)  If you say so, buddy.

However, for the first time ever, I had a genuine “Oh f*ck, run!” moment involving ol’ Orphan Annie. 

(Rogue One) Like I assume the hallway full of troopers did when the light came on.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was a fun, occasionally frustrating game.  Glitches and poor mechanics were rage inducing, but overlooked in favor of incredibly beautiful sets and an insightful, moving story.  I digress…

EA Games Pictured: Good game, worst slides ever.

The important part here is that it raises an interesting point about whether the Jedi Order should be rebuilt or not.  Cere (a Jedi Master) says yes, Meren (a Nightsister) says no, and Cal (protagonist, and former Padawan during Order 66) is not so sure.  In the moments building up to a truly terrifying cameo,  the Second Sister (Inquisitor and former Padawan to Cere) redeems herself, explains her anger and feelings of being betrayed, and in doing so, perfectly highlights why the Jedi Order is inherently flawed.

In this essay I will explain, by analyzing the Jedi Code, why Anakin Skywalker’s transformation into Darth Vader was an inevitable conclusion because of the Jedi Path, and that Jedi brought about their own downfall.  Naturally, obvious parallels to toxic masculinity can be drawn throughout as well.

The Code is thus:

One of several thousand just like it.

There is no emotion, there is peace.  This first tenant is without a doubt the most damning indictment of Jedi culture.  Anakin, a six-year-old slave, is taken from his mother; by a Jedi who could have easily used his power to bring both along.  Why would Qui-gon separate a child from the only source of comfort in the galaxy?  Because Qui-gon was completely ignorant of that bond.  Throughout the films, Anakin is constantly told that emotion has no place among the Jedi, that attachment leads to the Dark Side.  Yoda preaches that fear, hate, anger, love, all lead the to the Dark Side.

From the perspective of Yoda, the lack of attachment almost makes sense.  It’s hard to develop meaningful relationships when you live to be 900 years old.  Everyone is transient.  From a culture that is taught from childhood that natural emotions are to be shunned, it only stands to reason that of course no one knows how to deal with fear or hate or anger.  Anakin goes on a killing spree while bereft, and further descends when struck by jealousy.  The Second Sister laments her actions, attempting to rationalize by telling Cere, “I held onto this anger for so long.”  It would be much more difficult to fall to the Dark Side if, instead of telling children don’t be angry, be at peace, they were taught how ubiquitous these feelings are and adequate coping mechanisms. 

(EA Games) And yet, did not mention sand once.  

“There is no emotion, there is peace,” demonstrates a fundamental emotional immaturity and a cyclical lack of empathy that perpetuates within the Order.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.  On the surface, this is a call to scholarship.  At its core, it reveals base arrogance.  There is a scene in Attack of the Clones where Obi-wan attempts to locate a planet, but the librarian tells him, “If an item does not appear in our records, it does not exist.”  In Revenge of the Sith, when Yoda and Mace Windu are discussing their difficulties with the Force as an unknown, instead of alerting anyone, they decide to keep the mystery to themselves.  So, in the absence of knowledge, there is only pride, apparently.  They are, in a very real sense, gate-keeping.

(SW: AotC) To be fair, that may just be a librarian being a librarian. 

There is no passion, there is serenity.  Creativity is bred of passion.  Serenity is acceptance of the status quo.  Stifling creativity and indoctrinating children into serenity keeps traditions alive.  This also furthers the idea that having passion about anything, intermixed with any emotion, will set one off the path.  You cannot create, you cannot love, and if you do either, the Jedi have no way of preventing you from taking them to extremes.  Good luck, Anakin.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.  The natural order of the universe is chaos.  The natural state of children is chaotic.  So, what better way to exert dominance over an uncaring universe than by imparting upon it the illusion of control.  In any toxic culture, there is an element of control, be it subtle or salient, control is how toxicity maintains itself.  Furthermore, teaching children from the outset that the universe can be bent to their will, by using their own subservience as an example, is sowing the seeds for future evil.

There is no death, there is the force.  While the most innocuous, this tenant is still subtly awful.  There is no death, you will live on forever in the force, so go out and treat everyone you meet with that same expendability.  Not only does it bestow false hope if, say, Anakin were to lose his mother, but life to a Jedi has no meaning if they can keep on living after they shuffle off their moral coil.  Not everyone gets to become a blue Force ghost, or a helpful whisper in a trench, death for most of the galaxy means death.  This is a strange kind of religious zealotry that lends itself to the purging, hateful apostasy only Darth Vader can bring.

(SW: AotC) "So, my mom's with the force now, right? What about the village I slaughtered?  NBD, amirite?"

While the Code, the Order, or the Culture in no way excuse Anakin Skywalker, they do provide a recognizable baseline for understanding his actions.  While it is important to remember that regardless of one’s upbringing, they are responsible for their own choices, it should be noted that the Jedi are equally responsible for their own destruction.

-1000 word essay?  Not gonna lie, this was actually kinda fun.