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| ANAKIN AS A SLAVE? |
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| Randy Hutchinson wrote: "Okay, this latest rumor about Anakin being a slave is a little confusing. I mean yeah some of it makes sense but why does Anakin have such a nice room and why is the kitchen so nice and all that good stuff. To me it just is a little foggy. I think there might be some half truths to that. I don't want to speculate because I don't know what's going on but there's a really enormous piece missing." |
| Jom wrote: "I saw the "Anakin is a slave" stuff today. I guess I don't see the significance of this other than knowing why there are slave quarters. How this effects Anakin's disposition later on I have no idea. It is interesting to note that if Anakin goes off with Qui-Gon and all after the pod race as CK has told us, does he leave his mom as a slave? If not why didn't she go with him?" |
| Sameer Ketkar wrote: "In response to the news on TheForce.net about Watto being a slave driver and perhaps Anakin uses the "pod race" to win his freedom...I really don't think that Anakin uses the pod race to buy his own freedom. His mother wants him to race for his own freedom, but in the end, he could secretly negotiate with Watto for his MOTHER's freedom. It fits the mold of a noble character, and this might be what ObiWan first sees in the boy. So his mother is released and then there is a large attack on Tatooine, and ObiWan and QuiGonn use this as a diversion to rescue Anakin. This nobility would make it all the more ironic and sad when Anakin goes over to the Dark Side. One other thing, if Anakin was a slave in his youth, why would he hire slaves to work for the Empire when he is Vader (such as the Wookiee slaves)?" |
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| 'Qui-Gon'
wrote: "I
do not think that Anakin is a slave because what was said in starwars.com.
Here it is. "This kitchen(Anakin's Kitchen) should look a little familiar,
combining elements of rugged primitive construction with high technology,
much as did the desert homestead of Luke Skywalker's Uncle and Aunt
in Star Wars."
Here is something from starwars.com about Anakin's bedroom. "Young Anakin's bedroom, filled with all the spare technology that a young boy in the Star Wars universe could want." |
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| Deepthroat
wrote: "I
think a lot of the responses on this topic are making the mistake of equating
slavery with destitution. The defining characteristic of a slave
is a condition of abject servitude to another, not abject squalor.
Historically, slaves in many parts of the world were kept in relatively
good physical and material condition--after all, it makes little sense
from the slavemaster's point of view to diminish the value or productivity
of his property. This does not speak, of course, to the propensity
of slaveowners (particularly large-scale slaveowners) to use brutal methods
nor to the complete inhumanity of the condition of slavery--regardless
of how well the slave is treated or maintained.
More specifically with regard to the rumor itself, I think it makes great sense within what we already fairly certain of in ep.1. Sam Jackson said on the Conan O'Brien show that in the first movie "Darth Vader is eight years old and he's already pissed off." What might have led Jackson to make such an assessment? If Anakin and his mother are both slaves, then you wouldn't be surprised that Anakin is kind of pissed off. More importantly, the audience would still like him even as he displays an unpleasant disposition, since he's justified. The vfoundation for Anakin's eventual turn to the dark side can thus be explored without making Anakin an unlikable character. The slave angle might also explain the pod race, as noted by others, and the rumored fight with Seek (perhaps another child taunting Anakin because of his or his mother's slave status?). In any case, it would be a very interesting and different angle for Star Wars." |
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| Adam wrote: "I really don't know a whole lot about the topic. However George Lucas does seem to have a liking for making great heroes from lowly beginnings. Luke started out on a grubby moisture farm, and Han was a lowly smuggler who had to win his ship in a sabac game. I think it would be pretty ironic for Anakin to be born a slave, only to marry a princess and eventually become the Dark Lord of Sith." |
"If you read Star Wars on pg. 76 or 77 Obi-Wan says "Owen thought your father should have stayed here and minded his farming" so if Anakin is a slave and goes to Naboo and becomes a Jedi etc. he never comes back to Tatooine and if he does he does not farm so Anakin's job as a slave is obviously to farm and repair things, showing the source of his machanical skills." |
"In responce to my own mail it has became apparent that I am missing one piece of information: Owen Lars. I have came up with three possibilities: 1. Obi- wan told Owen about Anakin when he gave him Luke and Owen responded to Obi- wan's story with the comment he should have stayed here and minded his farming. 2. Obi-wan sees Owen on Tatooine after he rescues Anakin and Owen advises Anakin to stay. 3. Obi-wan finds out that he has a brother named Owen when he frees him and Anakin from slavery and Owen, knowing nothing more than to farm from his slave life, advising Anakin to stay with him (probaly to boost his farming)." |
"I saw a GL quote on TFN which implied that we would seeing the prequels would change our understanding of ep 4-6. The discussions that about that topic centered on the way certain 'throw away' lines could be re-interpreted, but I have another idea.
Currently, most people believe that the Old Republic was a galactic utopia,
and that the Empire seized power
What if the Old Republic was really a feudal society where nobility/landowners
ruled over serfs/slaves? What if
How would we re-evaluate the Emperor and Vader and the destruction of the
Jedi if we saw Senator Palpatine lead a
Of course Palpatine would be manipulating the entire situation, much like
Hitler or Castro of Lenin Napoleon, to
Think about it." |
"As to Anakin being a slave, it would dramatize his tale being that he later becomes the slave of Palpatine. And also what kind of slave work does Anakin do? He apparantly is very bright at mechanical stuff, maybe he repairs things? And as to the opinion that Qui Gon lets his family be slaves, he MIGHT not be Anakin's father. Maybe he meets Anakin and then frees him. Any thoughts?" |
| Grub
wrote:
"To Ben Birdsey: Not Stalin, but Lenin. If Anakin is a slave and the Old Republic is a corrupt feudal society, then the first war depicted in the new movies is World War I. Palpatine's rise to power is World War II -- as the ashes of the old world smolder, people starve and crave order and harmony. They turn to a ruthless dictator for salvation. Could the Mon Calamari be a free people, never under the thrall of either the Republic or the Empire? A nation built on commerce and liberty? Only after the Rebel's success at the Battle of Yavin (re: Battle of Britain) do they throw their full support behind the Alliance, eventually swinging the momentum of the fight. Then the third trilogy is a look at how the alliance must form a new world order, one which respects the traditions of its constituent peoples, and attempts to foster peace and prosperity through trade." |
"Actually the thought of Anakin starting out life as a slave makes perfect sense if you think about it. It would certainly answer why Yoda says to Obi-Wan in ESB that Luke has "so much anger in him. LIKE HIS FATHER." Samual Jackson also alluded to the fact that Anakin starts out his jedi training as a angry young man. Then
comes the irony. He gets himself free to learn the ways of the
It may even end up making Darth Vader a more sympathetic character." |
| Simone
wrote:
"I don't think that Anakin being a slave is out of the question. I also think that his having nice things doesn't really have anything to do with it. As someone pointed out earlier, being a slave does not mean being poor. Also, slave owners would want to keep them happy and productive. I read on theforce.net that Anakin and Shmi Skywalker are supposedly Watto's favorite slaves. That would account for their nicer accomodations. Plus I think Lucas would have them start off as slaves. There's a whole bunch of reasons why, but most of them have already been stated, and I don't want to be redundant." |