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Jung's shadow over the saga ...

Discussion in 'Star Wars Saga In-Depth' started by TheOzhaggis, Jun 13, 2003.

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  1. TheOzhaggis

    TheOzhaggis Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 1, 2000
    Yes, I'm starting another thread about Jung. This one has a little more substance ...

    My purpose here is to give a very (painfully) simple overview of how Jung?s theory of personality applies to Star Wars. The relevance of Jung is in the fact that Lucas was inspired by the work of Joseph Campbell (who Lucas called ?my Yoda?), who in turn was inspired by Carl Jung.

    Consciousness
    Consciousness is simply those things we are aware of at any given moment. Everything else is unconscious. The unconscious is everything that you know, but are not thinking about at this very moment. It is everything that your body senses, but are not aware of. It is everything you do, but don?t realise you are doing. It is everything you want, but don?t realise you do.

    Repression
    In modern society, we tend to conform to what is expected of us. We are taught what is acceptable, and what is not, from an early age. And so we repress those thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that are not considered appropriate. But they do not disappear. They remain with us, in our unconscious. We keep them hidden, but we can not destroy them.

    Our mistake is to believe that all those characteristics that we are supposed to have ?grown out of? since being children are no longer present in adults. In reality, we have simply pushed them all into the unconscious. And rather than withering away, they grow like a weed in a forgotten corner of the garden.

    The Persona and the Shadow

    The face that we present to the world, those aspects which we do not bury, Jung calls the persona. If our persona is too rigid, then we deny much of our personality. Those parts of our personality that we deny, which fester in the unconscious, Jung calls The Shadow. The shadow wants to do all the things that we don?t let ourselves do. The more restrictive the society, the larger the shadow. It is everything that we are not allowed to be. It is the natural, instinctive part of us. It is who we blame when we say, ?I wasn?t myself.? In dreams, it appears as someone with unpleasant qualities, or someone we dislike.

    Facing the Shadow

    But we must learn to live with our shadow. Trying to live as someone nobler than we are requires endless hypocrisy and deceit. And while some repression of the shadow is necessary in society, if it is totally repressed, it grows in strength until it overwhelms the rest of the personality and gains control.

    However, facing your shadow requires considerable moral strength, as well as some reorientation of your standards and ideas.

    Star Wars
    Star Wars: Attack of the Clones demonstrates Jung?s concept of the shadow perfectly. The Jedi conform to what is expected of them. They are taught from a very young age what is acceptable, and what is not. They repress the thoughts, feelings, and behaviours not considered appropriate for a Jedi. But no amount of discipline can make them disappear. And as Anakin demonstrates, trying to live up to the ideal of a Jedi code often imposes too much strain, and often ends in tragedy.

    The result of Anakin repressing his shadow is personified in the Sith. Just as the noble Jedi believed that Anakin?s thoughts and feelings were repressed, so too they believed that the Sith had been repressed. But they were wrong. Anakin?s shadow, like the Sith, was simply hiding. And while hidden, its strength grew, as it waited patiently for its moment to arrive. And when its moment arrived, it took over his personality, just as the Sith took over the galaxy.

    Anakin?s rage after his mother?s death demonstrates the overwhelming of the personality by an unacknowledged shadow. The Jedi present a persona of peace and tranquillity. But they achieve this persona by repressing their anger, their attachment, etc. And this creates a dangerous shadow that remains dormant, lurking in the darkness. And when it emerges, it overwhelms Anakin and unleashes a homicidal rage.

    And so it is with the Sith. The Jedi, arrogantly believing that the Sith are extinct, refu
     
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