"Only a Sith Deals in Absolutes"

Obi-Wan - Only a Sith Deals in Absolutes.


Yet we have a Light and Dark Side?


Obi-Wan: Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is evil!

Anakin: From my point of view, the Jedi are evil!

Obi-Wan: Well, then you are lost!

Seems kind of "absolute."

 

That exchange always seemed kind of...bothersome to me. It's as if Obi-Wan's not sure if maybe Anakin is evil even after watching footage of him slaughtering children and his fellow jedi. But once Anakin starts "dealing in absolutes," look out! All bets are off!

 

I hate that line more than I hate Jar Jar Binks.

 

Look at the context. Only a Sith deals in an absolute like "If you're not with me, you're my enemy." He's not saying the Jedi don't believe in any absolutes and never use them(the phrase 'Only a Sith deals in absolutes' is an absolute itself afterall.)

 

For that argument to make sense, he'd have to have said: "Only a Sith deals only in absolutes." Obi-Wan is clearly blind to the irony of his statement, indicating that he has as much to learn as the person he's confronting.

 

There's no irony there. The Jedi still deal in absolutes in the Original Trilogy even after Qui-Gon's training.

 

You just don't get it, do you?

 

That every main character in the Saga deals in absolutes? So other than the Sith they'd all be hypocrites including the fanbase's "Jedi Golden Boy" Qui-Gon Jinn?

 

Read my first post again. S-L-O-W-L-Y, this time . . .

 

That Obi-Wan is wrong in saying "Only a Sith deals in absolutes." which shows that he's just as mistaken as Anakin?

 

Yes, that one.

To which, you responded: "There's no irony there."

By which, you are wrong.

 

No, the Jedi don't deal in absolutes like the one to which the statement was a counter point. It didn't take place in a vacuum.

"If you're not with me, you're my enemy."

"Only a Sith deals in absolutes."

 

*sigh*
The point is, Obi-Wan isn't supposed to look mistaken right there. It's his moment of supreme righteousness and he comes off looking dumb because of that stupid line.

 

How do you know?

 

Because it's an action/adventure movie and this point is right at the climax. The audience is not supposed to be reflecting on how the jedi possibly have been going about things the wrong way--they're supposed to be clearly identifying with Obi-Wan as the righteous hero and Anakin as the apotheosis of evil. It's not a scene with much nuance, nor is it meant to be.

 

"Only a Sith deals in absolutes although I do relize the irony this statement may generate because it sounds like I am in fact also dealing in absolutes when I say it which would make me a big ol' Jedi hypocrite however I'm pretty sure all I am doing is defending myself against you and your new organization(The Sith) so it is rather important that I make quick comments in order to summarize or else I may take way too long, put people to sleep, and otherwise wind up taking a lightsaber to the face because I was going on and on instead of getting ready to defend myself."

--What Obi Wan should have said so people would not overract and play "Gotcha Obi! You're a hypocrite and I'm smart for having caught you!"

 

Is that why Obi-Wan's sudden appearance causes Anakin to lash out at Padme, why Obi-Wan draws his lightsaber first, provoking Anakin into combat, why Obi-Wan declares that he's failed Anakin, and why Obi-Wan leaves Anakin to burn to death, while Sidious is shown coming to his rescue? I guess the fact that these are "action/adventure" movies must also explain why George Lucas went back and made a prequel trilogy about a good person turning to evil, and why he included names like "Padme" and had such characters making statements like, "There's good in him, I know there's still [good in him]."

 

Put down the crack pipe, man. What are you on about?

 

Good answer. Though I think if it is true, wouldn't Obi-wan be implying that the Jedi are wishy-washy in many areas?

 

There is this fanboy out there who is the Internet Content Manager for Lucas Online. And here is what he says about the dialogue and the scene:

The following is from the Q&A portion of Star Wars Insider, Issue 88:

Ask the Master: Q&A
by Pablo Hidalgo

A Lesson in Absolutes

"After watching Episode III for what seems like the 100th time I've run across a little problem. Right before the Obi-Wan/Anakin fight, Obi-wan says 'Only a Sith deals in absolutes.' My problem: Isn't one of the most popular Star Wars quotes from Yoda, 'Do or do not. There is no try,' an absolute? Am I the only one who noticed this?"
---John Henderson, via Internet

"You're definitely not; in fact, this is one of the most intensely dissected lines in Episode III, from fans wondering about its inherent contradiction to bloggers who think they're sniffing out a political statement in those words. The contradiction is no mistake; think of what Palpatine was saying to Anakin earlier. He was describing the Jedi as narrow-minded and dogmatic, and there's plenty of evidence in the previous Episodes to support his statement. The Jedi Code is often portrayed as prohibitive, and is filled with absolute rules that can't be broken.

When Anakin proclaims all who oppose him as his enemy, he's not being very Jedi-like. That is a declarative worthy of a Sith, and Obi-Wan himself outraged at what has become of his former pupil, calls him out on it. But the fact that Obi-Wan does so in a manner that hints at Jedi hypocrisy illustrates that he doesn't understand--or cannot understand--what has befallen Anakin. This also illustrates a common source of confusion in fiction: Characters aren't infallible and may in fact be unreliable. Just because a character says somthing doesn't make it true."---Pablo Hidalgo

 

Thank you for your continued perceptive, scholarly approach to the saga, the_immolated_one. The line clearly demonstrates the gulf in understanding between Anakin and Obi-Wan, which is allegorically illustrated by the unseen irony in Obi-Wan's statement.

 

No problem, Cryogenic.
Of course, you, me, and many of our fellow tf.n members never needed Star Wars Insider's unambiguous explanation of the dialogue.

 

Yeah, yeah, I get all that. It's looking into the line waaaaay too deeply, in my opinion. Just an example of people trying to extract every possible trace of meaning from every moment of the films. Sometimes they just mean what they say.

 

Are you kidding me? People don't post while smoking crack. What are they typing with, their knees?

 

Pablo's statements as far as I know aren't canon. The depiction of the Jedi as being just as bad as the Sith though undercuts the entire Saga as last time I checked they're supposed to be the heroes. If the Jedi are just as bad as the genocidal fascist Sith there's no tragedy in their fall nor heroism in their struggle, which of course is completely contradicted by the films which depict the Jedi as heroic and noble though flawed.