Use the Force, Joshu!

So I was reading the David Brin rant on Attack of the Clones that /. linked to, and his comments on The Phantom Menace that are linked in turn.

I enjoyed both movies, though Brin is completely right that the stories just don't make sense in a lot of ways. But I had I realization after watching TPM that AOTC only reinforced.

First, I think Brin missed one point, or possible out for Lucas. There is a prophecy that one will come who will bring balance to the Force. The prophecy is true, but it isn't Anakin who fulfills it; it's Luke. Maybe this is already obvious to everyone.

But the really interesting thing, to me, is the false dichotomy of the Light and Dark Sides of the Force. Brin makes the good point that both Luke and Obi-Wan are able to defeat their nemeses only after getting angry, which is explicitly against everything they've been taught. Anger is a tool of the Dark Side, and to give into it is to become evil... but it seems to deliver results for the good guys with no long-term consequences.

What I'm waiting for is for one of the characters to have a revelation about the Human Side of the Force. The Force, we are told, is part of nature; it flows from all of Creation, living things and inanimate objects alike. In an SF retcon way, you could say that the Force is the quantum fabric of space-time, and that sufficiently enlightened beings can commune with it. So how could something natural, like the human emotions we have, be against the Force?

The correct answer, the Zen answer, the Discordian answer, the Human Side answer, is that it's not. The Principia Discordia teaches that one should embrace the creative aspects of both order and disorder, and disdain the destructive sides of both; don't buy into the order vs. disorder head-trip.

Similarly, one should embrace and accept human emotions, including anger at injustice. One should not be controlled by the anger, but a Jedi should recognize that every anger can be constructive and destructive. Embrace the constructive aspects: anger can be channelled to right wrongs and fight that injustice. But disdain the destructive aspects: anger can also cause one to lose one's judgment, and do things that one will regret later.

Luke realizes this, if subconsciously; I hope, I think, that Lucas never makes Episodes VII-IX because I can pretend that Luke's realization brings a new era of harmony to the galaxy: that he truly does bring balance to the Force.