PT An analysis of Anakin's turn

For what it's worth, my own interpretation was always that Anakin's fall was only ever driven by one thing: power. Both the having of power, and the gaining of more. Now this sounds very simplistic but I think it's more complex and interesting than it sounds.

To begin with: the having of power. Anakin was born and raised a slave. A relatively well treated slave as they go but a slave nonetheless. He never had power in any real sense. Watto allowed him to race and to indulge in his taste for mechanics but if he'd ever decided not to... that would be that. No more racing, no more mechanics. And Anakin certainly was old enough to understand that by the time we met him. His initial desire was always to return and free his mother from slavery. From being a slave, he goes to become a Jedi. To a slave boy, this sounds like the ultimate freedom: Jedi can do what they want, when they want and no-one can stop them. Except of course... they cannot. Rightly or wrongly there is a code that Jedi must follow and rules they must obey, including Anakin. He feels no freer than he ever did. His own personal power is growing stronger and greater almost daily, he feels like he could win the war singlehanded (and quite possibly he actually could) but the rules straitjacket and limit him. Even more grating is that with the possible exceptions of a very few (Windu and Yoda, but for how long?) he is MORE powerful than they are, in terms of sheer power. He can do what they couldn't EVER do even if it wasn't against the code. So to Anakin with his pride and inferiority/superiority complex these rules are basically designed to drag him down to everyone else's level. But what Palpatine is basically promising him, albeit wrapped up in lies, half truths and propaganda, is freedom. He's telling him ''I will let you do whatever you want, whenever you want to do it.'' And to a slave like Anakin, that's probably the greatest prize in the galaxy.

This is all only made worse by his personal politics which are basically 'Might Makes Right.' Mostly due to a childhood of slavery and being bottom of the pit, he's convinced the rules are made by the being who can hit the hardest with the biggest stick, or they should be. Jedi should be in charge BECAUSE they are so powerful (diametrically opposed to the Jedi Council's view, and neither ever understood the other properly). He fundamentally does not understand democracy. He genuinely doesn't understand why little people without brains or strength or power SHOULD get a say in how things are run. (Whilst to Padme and Obi-Wan, his best friends and closest confidants, this goes entirely without saying, so much so they in turn don't realise he doesn't understand it.) Palpatine on the other hand is exactly what Anakin's idea of a politician SHOULD be: if he can't make something happen, he gets himself more power until he can. Anakin considers this right and proper. After his turn, he simply decides HE should be the one making the rules... and gaining the power to do so. Once he's Kenobi Fried Chicken he comes to think he's not powerful enough to replace Sidious so he will just make damn sure he's secure in position as SECOND most powerful being in existence... right up until he discovers Luke and the possibility of overcoming Sidious again.

Just my tuppence worth.

 

I have spoken about this on other threads, and think it is a pretty significant part of the turn scene.

I think it shows Mace has stopped looking outward at the big picture, is too focused on the moment. In AOTC he is the one to reassure Obi-Wan that Anakin is indeed the chosen one and that only Anakin can bring balance. Also, in a AOTC deleted scene that was replaced by the aforementioned one, Obi-Wan expresses his concern for Anakin but Mace states Obi-Wan should be confident Anakin will choose the right path.

In ROTS when Anakin reveals Sidious has been right in front of them the whole time, like you say - the situation really brings Mace to breaking point. Early in ROTS Palpatine tells Mace the point-of-view-truth that the Senate will continue to vote for the war to continue until Grievous is defeated, and the Separatists are gone. The Council follows this advice (Yoda- "The capture of general Grievous will end this war. Quickly and decisively we must proceed.")
I think there is a metaphor in the Jedi "sweeping the outlying systems" - they are on a wild goose chase looking outwards when the real threat is internal. Both within the Republic - Palpatine - and as Luke learns in the OT, within themselves.

Mace deciding Palpatine has to die on the spot is really a demonstration of the impulsiveness of the situation, he (understandably with what has transpired) wants things to be ended as quickly and easily as possible. He stops looking at what destiny and the will of the force would dictate he does - forgetting the burden can be on no one but Anakin - and decides that he must single-handedly do what is is best for everyone. He is focusing on Palpatine and himself - not fully sensing the turmoil in Anakin and forgets his own belief that the force's will should dictate a Jedi's action, not the other way around.

 

Just a typo it is too late to edit...

"forgets his own belief that the force's will should dictate a Jedi's action, not the other way around."

 

Fixed for ya

 

Thanx man

 

Oh my how some of you just don't get it! This is the one issue I am always willing to be combative with anyone who brings it up. Anakin felt BETRAYED by Padme that he thought he brought Obi Wan to kill him, Padme the woman he sacrificed and did everything in his power to make sure she is safe and alright, to have Obi Wan on the starship to meet Anakin to him was the ultimate stab in the back and the pushed him over the edge towards her, everything he did for her was in vein, a complete betrayal. Their was no time for Padme to explain to Anakin that she didn't know that Obi Wan came on the starship that he snuck on without her knowledge and even though she disagreed with what his intentions were their was no way she would have sent him to kill him that she still loves him

 

That's the point. The dark side will cause one to stop caring about others and instead focus only on themselves. If not for the fact that he did that, he would have killed his own son. Vader even warns Luke to stop fighting him or he will kill him.

VADER: "Your are beaten. It is useless to resist. Don't let yourself be destroyed as Obi-wan."


VADER: "Don't make me destroy you."

And of course, as HevyDevy posted last year, Luke was on the verge of killing his own father after repeatedly saying that he won't do it.

 

Just reading this thread for the first time HevyDevy. Your thoughts in the original post touch on arguments that I have made previously regarding Anakin's turn -- and you shed some light on a few details and connections that I missed.

You mention the Jedi Council originally rejecting him, but I think that this rejection deserves a bit more focus as it really lays the groundwork for Anakin's conflicted loyalties.

When Qui-Gon tells Obi-Wan that he needs to go back into Mos Espa, Obi-Wan tells him that he senses that they're picking up another "pathetic lifeform." Qui-Gon tells the Jedi Council about Anakin and they are immediately suspicious, before they even meet him. When Qui-Gon brings Anakin before the council, they reject him rather quickly (not to mention coldly). Obi-Wan tells Qui-Gon that the boy is dangerous -- everyone on the council senses it, why can't he?

Ultimately, Obi-Wan decides to train Anakin because it was Qui-Gon's dying wish, not because he believed in Anakin. It was an obligation. Ten years later, we see that while Anakin and Obi-Wan have developed a strong bond, there is a lingering sense of resentment on Anakin's part towards the Jedi -- and on the part of the Jedi towards Anakin. The Jedi never wanted Anakin there in the first place, and he knew it.

TPM goes out of its way to really drive this point home, as the Jedi Council's rejection of Anakin is mentioned no fewer than four times (1: their initial skepticism and dismissive attitude when Qui-Gon tells them about Anakin; 2: when they say that he will not be trained; 3: when Obi-Wan tells Qui-Gon that the council senses that he's dangerous; 4: when Yoda tells Obi-Wan that he does not agree with him taking on Anakin as an apprentice).

And while Anakin's relationship with the Jedi has always had this undercurrent of resentment and distrust, we get the impression that Palpatine has displayed unconditional acceptance in his relationship with Anakin. Unfortunately we only get the one scene with the two of them in AOTC, but it is enough to imply that Palpatine gives Anakin the acceptance, encouragement, and praise that he doesn't get from the Jedi. The Jedi are holding him back, because they don't trust him, but Palpatine recognizes that Anakin is gifted.

In other words, it is Palpatine who steps in to fill the role left vacant by Qui-Gon's death.

So by the time of ROTS, Anakin feels like the Jedi never really wanted him in the first place, that they don't trust him, and that they are hiding things from him. Whereas Palpatine is one of the few people who has actually been honest with Anakin (or so he believes, obviously). And this holds true right up until that pivotal moment. Palpatine reveals the truth to Anakin and then once again displays trust in Anakin by placing his fate in Anakin's hands. And what does Mace do? He tells Anakin to stay behind and once again demonstrates that he does not trust him -- and the fact that he does not want Anakin there to witness what happens also suggests that he's not being entirely honest about what he's going to do when he gets there.

All of this is going through Anakin's head when he arrives in Palpatine's office. Virtually everything shown regarding Anakin's relationship with the Jedi in TPM and AOTC is setting up this precise moment. It seems like some people are evaluating Anakin's turn based on their own ideals of what a Jedi Knight is, rather than what was actually shown and told about Anakin's relationship with the Jedi in the previous two films.

 

Yes. The people you're describing are people who seem to notice landmarks separated by some distance on a map, but to whom the notion of a journey -- how one gets from one landmark to another; and what makes those landmarks to begin with; or explains, even in some rudimentary sense, how they got there -- is an alien concept.

 

As much as I mock and make fun of this character for being nothing but a murderous psychopath with no redeeming qualities, I've actually decided to be a bit sincere for a moment. I really get the sense that George Lucas just really didn’t know how to handle the arc of Anakin Skywalker, which results in him feeling less like a character who naturally grows and develops over the course of the movies (regardless of whether that growth and development is positive or negative), and more like a pinball that just wildly bounces all over the place. The first time we see him as a little kid, he’s a genuinely sweet and kind-hearted child. I personally thought that he was kind of annoying and too much of a stock ’90s movie character, but I really didn’t wanna punch him in the face or anything. After it was over, he just elicited a sense of vague disinterest from me. “Meh. I guess he’ll eventually become Darth Vader. Whatever.”

In ATTACK OF THE CLONES, I really despised him. Pretty much all of my claims regarding him being this horrible person who was rotten to the core from the very beginning and who never had any redeeming qualities in the first place stem from this movie. At some point offscreen in between movies, he apparently became this really obnoxious brat, because he’s a completely different character from the sweet kid in the last movie. All he does throughout the first half of the movie is whine, complain and treat everyone around him like garbage. And that’s him at his most likable in this movie. I actually remember sitting in the theater and assuming that he’d already turned to the dark side and become Darth Vader at about the halfway point, when he murdered a bunch of kids in cold blood. It took me about 20 minutes to realize that he was still supposed to be a good guy and that George Lucas actually wanted me to root for this creep. I already had a pretty strong dislike of him prior to that, but it wasn’t until that realization hit me that I truly began to loathe and despise Anakin Skywalker. I was thinking to myself, “No no no no no no no no no no! No! You just murdered a bunch of kids, you creep! I’m not having any of this crap where you’re smooching with your girlfriend and she declares her undying love for you! She should just punch you in the face and ditch you, which is better than you deserve! I really hope these arena monsters rip you apart limb from limb and you suffer an extremely slow painful agonizing death! You’re a horrible person and George Lucas must’ve completely gone insane at some point in the last 15 years if he actually expects me to have any sympathy for you at this point!”

Then we get to REVENGE OF THE SITH, which I immediately realized was hoping we’d just forgotten all about the last movie where Joffrey- I mean, Anakin- was portrayed as this psychotic, temperamental child-murdering creep with absolutely zero positive qualities. Because for about the first hour or so of SITH, he’s a completely different character than he was the last time we saw him, which means that, yet again, he undergoes a complete personality shift offscreen in between movies. He actually comes across as a decent guy at times, and there were even a few scenes where I wasn’t actively rooting for him to be punched in the face. We saw him actually treating Obi-Wan Kenobi with basic human dignity and respect, rather than just being an obnoxious little ****head towards him. There are actually even scenes where he’s not narcissistically obsessed with making himself feel good, and screw everyone else. He actually even manages to contain his own fears and worries in order to comfort his wife and be supportive of her in one scene early on. Then at the halfway point he just reverts back to being the same obnoxious tool he was in ATTACK OF THE CLONES and I find myself asking, “Wait. How is this any different from the last movie? He is no worse now, after ‘officially’ turning to the dark side and becoming Darth Vader, than he was in CLONES. Some fall from grace is you’ve concocted here, George. I really don’t see how this is remotely tragic.”

So as I said, he feels more like a pinball to me.

 

In a moment, it'll turn out your "sincerity" isn't that far away from your "trolling".

Okay so here's my quote from the other thread:


"Anyone watching, say, even Clones, can easily tell that Anakin is depicted as sometimes a douche, and sometimes a good guy, and that their dynamic/relationship with Obiwan is depicted as sometimes amicable and sometimes strained - probably 50/50 of either.
This isn't rocket surgery - it takes a complete zealot to overlook that and go out of their way to claim HE HAD NOT A SINGLE REDEEMABLE QUALITY; ANYWHERE AT ANY POINT."

So I guess you still meant that seriously, except only applied to 1 movie out of 2 (because we all know you weren't talking about Lloyd - though look at him now lol) - well, as it happens it's still nonsense.

That's HALF of what he does, give or take.

Actually at his most likeable is when he doesn't whinte, complain, and treats people well - which makes up half of the movie

While it's undoubtedly true that it appears as a more dramatic, serious turning point when it happens, before it's actually swiftly brushed off for the final act (notice the jarring change of mood when he's grieving over Shmi one second, and then Padme finds a loop hole to save Obiwan and he suddenly smirks and everything's cheery again?) - you're seriously undermining your point here by referring to it as "a bunch of kids".

First of all it's not "in cold blood", it's in HOT blood - secondly the movie doesn't even establish whether those kids were innocent or not, it leaves it "ambiguous" (as in, neglects to establish something rather important to the story).

If you're gonna go around and make it sound as if he just lost it, flew to some village and slaughtered a bunch of innocent children, you've already lost your point.

Well apparently you're very emotional about this, and aren't able to analyze the movie rationally.

Here it is again.

Alright so - how difficult is it then to realize that the character is simply rebooted two times inbetween the movies, and you should therefore maybe treat them as separate entities by default?
Instead of, you know:

However - while his character is rebooted, it's mostly in terms of mannerisms (i.e. from college jock to "noble fantasy hero"), and not being a shy / socially awkward / hapless dork type (which he is, on an unrelated note, only in approximately 1/2 of Clones, give or take) - because:

ALL OF THESE DESCRIPTIONS ALREADY APPLY TO CLONES.

So you were expecting him to be better than he was in Clones after turning evil?

Anyway, in the previous one he murders a village of aliens that look like monsters, and for all we know, were all participating in the violence - that's how it was delivered, at the very least.

In this one, he clearly, unambiguously kills INNOCENTS - however, this is actually done in the belief of doing necessary evil, and later when he attacks Padme it's out of paranoia mainly.
So this is a narrative inconsistency, whereas the Tusken bit made it look as if he'd turn evil by becoming unhinged and angry, now it's by indoctrination and delusion, and THEN becoming unhinged, in a different way, in that context.

But that's just another reason why you should ditch the direct comparisons like "OMG HE KILLED KIDS IN BOTH MOVIES" and opt for treating the two movies as separate entities that aren't all that consistent with each other.

Seeing your posts in these 2 threads, you don't appear to be someone who can be reasonable about this subject - and since this subject is rather simple and straightforward, I'd say I've pretty much exhausted it with this post, though some details can always be gone into obviously.

So you take it from here - but I predict that next time you make a post about this somewhere, you're still gonna do the whole "no redeeming qualities at all" routine, so whatever.

 

You’re right, Hawt for Rey. In CLONES, he only killed dem Injun kids. I mean, they ain’t even human anyway. I go out and slaughter a bunch of Injun kids on a bi-weekly basis. It’s a good way to blow off steam…and if I can’t find any Injuns, I go out and kill Mexicans.

Whereas in SITH, he crossed a line. He killed cherubic Aryan white kids. For shame!

 

Yep, you can't be reasoned with - as predicted.

 

Ugh. OK, let's go over this again.

Anakin's actions at the Tusken village were a result of his mother dying in his arms and going into bloodthirsty, murderous rage at the fact that, after years of training, he still couldn't save her. He immediately regretted what he did. He seemed legitimately distraught by his actions and from what we can gather at the beginning of ROTS, it seems that he has done everything in his power to end the war with the CIS. To bring peace as soon as possible. To atone for what he did by becoming a good Jedi Knight. The Emperor used those values as leverage to manipulate him.

The reason why his slaying of the Jedi younglings is "worse" is due to the fact that he is willingly doing it as a justifiable action. What Hawt for Rey said was totally appropriate. Unlike what occurred on Tatooine, that wasn't a crime of passion. What he did during Order 66 was cold-blooded murder. Something he felt was doing for a because it was necessary to accomplish his lofty goals. That is when he became truly evil.

Of course, unless you have a political agenda, this would be obvious to anyone but for an absolute genius like you who has the woeful task of preaching to the unwashed masses, I suppose it isn't.

Hey, maybe Lucasfilm can release a special edition of AOTC that has some "cherubic Aryan white" Tusken kids for Anakin to kill so that things even out for you.

That is exactly what people are doing.

Not to mention that he genuinely believes that the films are communicating that he is suddenly more evil in ROTS because he's killing white children. Because that's how morality works.

 

Just want to say this is not a dig at the Prequel's which I love, but I will admit i did not like how Anikan fell so quickly to the darkside.
The whole thing for me could have been longer and more emotional.
So moving on:
How would you have done it, what would have been the factors and Motives for him falling to the Darkside, and how long would it all have taken?

 

The reality of the situation is far, far worse: That Lucas genuinely wants us - the audience - to believe that he is suddenly more evil in ROTS because OMG HE PLEDGED HIMSELF TO SIDIOUS, AND HE'S DARTH VADER NOW!!!

..........slow clap

edit:

Except this decision of his is due to character idiocy...you cannot argue that he has really thought this through. The man kills everyone EXCEPT the one person he should have killed. But he needed to be stupid in order for the plot to happen the way it did.

 

The reason why he's more evil at that point is that he shows no remorse for his actions like he did on Tatooine. I honestly don't know why you're ignoring that.

"The one person he should have killed"? Are you talking about Palpatine? The man who made him unsure of the Council's intentions, used his worst fears against him and filled a role that Qui-Gon Jinn had left empty upon his death (for his own advantages)? With all of those things in mind, I'm not surprised that he didn't kill him. It's nowhere near as cut and dry as you're making it out to be.

As jakobitis89 said, his (albeit understandable) fear of losing power after his mother's death was the perfect thing for Palpatine to exploit.

 

If one must call what you allude to "remorse", then may I offer in response: the tear he sheds on Mustafar (?).

Be that as it may, Lucas still seems to give more weight to Anakin's 'Sith pledge' than any so-called 'lack of remorse'.

It is cut and dry. Yes, I am talking about Palpatine. And yes, he was manipulated by this man. But the same man reveals himself for what he is to Anakin, that he was basically behind it all, INCLUDING the attempts on Padme's life. But, after knowing all of that , Anakin still decides to go along with him.

 

Should've been fleshed out more. Less sudden & rushed. What do you think?

 

Ooh, I'm not sure I've ever really seen a thread specifically for musing on how Anakin's fallike could have been improved (but I could be wrong-- admins?). I've seen it critiqued plenty of times, though.

In response to what the OP said about Anakin's fall being quick-- though I do agree that it was too fast, I think what was fast wasn't his fall, but how quickly he submitted and came to realize what forces were at work. He should have been oblivious to the Dark Side for just a skosh longer, and that would have made his fall seem longer.

For me personally, I agree that it should have been longer, in a sense. Not that it wasn't to begin with (several months long, I would presume); but I think that also it would have been a more effective fall if he hadn't said it outright that he was submitting to the Dark Side. It would have been really cool if Sidious had manipulated Anakin to start doing bad things before Sidious revealed himself and Anakin submitted to him, so that we saw Anakin really thinking that he was doing bad things in the name of something he thought to be good, and before he comes to the realization that he's passed the point of no return (which he realizes on Mustafar after slaying the Trade Feds). Anakin's point of no return probably should have happened after he'd been sizzled to a crisp, as Sidious comes to him to take him to a medcenter; it makes sense to me as well that Anakin would still be oblivious to the fact that he's fallen when Obi-Wan confronts him on Mustafar. I think that would have been a much more heartbreaking fall, and would have made a lot of sense (in my opinion). And imagine how much more the Obi-Wan vs. Anakin duel would hurt emotionally if Anakin still believed at that point that he was a good person fighting for something good.

 

@Hawt for Rey

I totally disagree.
In the film, Anakin makes a point of saying that he didn't just kill them men, but the women and children too.
If they were all "Monsters" and all equally evil and horrible, why bother with this distinction?
And also note that Anakin uses HUMAN terms, like women and children. Not females or cubs.

I think Lucas did intend this to be a very dark act, that Anakin had crossed a line and it was not a minor thing.

I can agree that it is hot blood but that the film has to establish that the children were innocent before it becomes wrong to slaughter them all?
Really?
So innocent until proven guilty does not apply to Tuskens?

I think in most if not all films or stories, the killing of children is seen as a wrong and they don't have to show the children being innocent in order for it to be wrong.

The argument that the Tuskens are an evil race of monsters/orcs/demons that all deserve to die just so that Anakin actions are not as bad as they appear. This is not an argument I care for.
For one, this type of argument have been used many times in our worlds history to make one group of humans seem subhuman in order to justify doing any number of horrible things to them.
Second, I don't think Lucas intended for the scene to be seen like this. That what Anakin did was pretty minor because he just killed a bunch of evil aliens.
Lucas has referenced the film, the Searchers and I think it possible he did so here. So the Tuskens could be seen as an analogue of native Americans.

@Kuro

While I can sort of agree with your overall view of Anakin, cute wonder kid in TPM, annoying in AotC and a bit better in RotS. I can not in any way say that he is as bad or loathsome as Joffrey.
I disliked Anakin in AotC and in RotS I wanted to smack him because he was so dumb.
But Joffrey? He is on another level. Same with Ramsey.
Both were so loathsome to me that I almost stopped reading the book because I detested them so much.
Anakin has some good qualities, those two does not.

But I do agree that Anakin's character arc goes all over the place and is not very consistent.
And I think that each film was a reaction to the previous.
TPM Anakin was too nice, now make him dark.
AotC Anakin was too dark, make him more likable.

Just my take.

Bye for now.
The Guarding Dark.

 

His fall starts in Episode I when:

• he leaves his mother,
• is assigned a master that in all likelihood wasn't ready to mentor the Chosen one,
• comes under the watchful eye of Palpatine/Sidious.

It continues in Episode II when:

• we see him taking liberties with interpreting the Jedi code,
• Palpatine smartly manipulates his feelings,
• his mother dies in his arms, resulting in him dipping into the dark side already,
• he falls in love and secretly marries his childhood crush.

Episode III tops it off with:

• dreams of Padme's death, fueling his deepest fears of losing another loved one,
• Palpatine tightening his web around him and manipulating him to the dark side by helping him kill Mace.

From that point on (Mace's death) he's no longer Anakin. Killing the Jedi, younglings and Separatist leaders was done by Darth Vader (remember Yoda's words? "Consumed he was" and all that). And then when Padme dies, he knows that there's really no going back anymore ... Until Luke comes along.

So yeah, Anakin's fall was perfectly fine in my eyes, but I guess some people wanted more. Which is funny to me because I rarely see complaints on Luke's near fall to the dark side in RotJ which would have happened in about 10 minutes. But even for Luke, the seeds were already planted in Episodes IV and V, but nowhere near what Anakin was going through.

It's pretty well established in RotJ how easy it is to fall to the dark side, but I really believe that this message is lost to a lot of people for one simple reason: Luke doesn't fall and Anakin does. If Luke had fallen to the dark side, it would have happened MUCH quicker than Anakin's fall.

 

I agree with this as well. It could have been a lot more stable and focused. Generally, I take this kind of criticism over @Kuro's brand of criticism which can essentially be summed up with "B...but guys!!! THERE'S RACISM GOIN' ON!"

 

When you go out and kill those Injuns or Mexicans, have they just brutally tortured and murdered your innocent mother in front of your eyes?

 

Yes, because that is the point. Anakin makes a conscious decision to join Palpatine and turn his back on everyone and everything that had mattered to him, in the name of power. Lucas doesn't say what Anakin did to the Tusken Raiders wasn't an act of evil. What he is saying is that this action is what starts him on the path to being Darth Vader. The Tusken slaughter was an act of blind rage that came and went. Walking into the Jedi Temple and then going into the Separatist war room was a deliberate and calculated action. He makes a choice to become evil and to do evil, versus making a poor decision to lash out and then try not to do evil again.

Anakin did think about this. That's the point of the ruminations scene. He's made his choice to do whatever it takes to stop Mace from killing Palpatine, so that he can save Padme by pumping him for information. He's putting himself and his needs ahead of everyone else. The moment he chooses to stop Mace with his Lightsaber, is the moment that he has made the choice real. Once that deed is done and he knows that he cannot go backwards, only forwards, does he make the choice to join Palpatine.

That's why it is one of those gray moments in the film. He chooses to kill the Tuskens because he is so angry and hateful at what happened, that he lashes out. But at the same time, his rage is so great and his pain runs so deep that he doesn't stop at the men, but carries it forward towards the women and children. Only when they are all dead and there's no one left to vent his anger towards, does he stop and comes out of his rage. On the one hand, it seems right and on the other hand, it is terribly wrong. When he confesses his crime, he is both horrified by his actions and yet he also feels justified in them. Palpatine only makes it worse by telling him that such actions are normal and that lashing out is expected.

That's the issue. This kind of behavior is learned. Kidnapping and torture doesn't just occur on a whim and is something that has probably gone on for years before and for years after that incident. In Anakin's mind, he can justify it as preventing a future tragedy. This in turn sets the stage for why he kills the Younglings and later the Inquisitors are sent after a Force sensitive baby. One day, those children will become Jedi and come after them. It is why the Skywalker twins were hidden from the Sith when they were born.

In real life, we try to prevent that kind of learned behavior from being passed on and followed through. The whole kidnapping and torture bit.