Introduction and Setting Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Introduction and Setting - Research Paper Example The movie or film series Star Wars is not at all an exception. Created by George Lucas on May 25th, 1977, the film was released by the 20th Century Fox to become a global phenomenon. The events that take place in Star Wars do so in a fictional galaxy, with the actors being humanoids or alien creatures and the area of residence and operation being the Galactic Empire. Force is among the prominent elements in the movie and acts as an all-present energy that knits the galaxy together, and can be tapped by those with the ability to do so. Through the force, the characters in Star Wars are able to realize the effecting of clairvoyance, mind control, telekinesis and precognition, among other supernatural activities. This force is seen to be amoral, in the sensed that while it can be used for good ends, it harbors a dark side that can instill hatred, malice and aggression when pursued. As far as the main characters are concerned and how they use the force, there are Jedi and Sith who use th e force for good (to save the universe) and evil (to own and control the universe), respectively. There are several ways in which Star Wars is heavily laden with mythological, spiritual and religious symbols, as has been previously mentioned and shall be divulged upon forthwith. Analyzing Mythological, Spiritual and religious Symbolism in Star Wars’ Synopsis The manner in which symbolism plays out in Star Wars is so fundamental that it does not just merely fortuitously correlate with some remote aspects and characters of the movie, but it also forms a complex weave which threads the entire trilogy together to form a complete and colorful synopsis. Specifically, in Star Wars, Luke Skywalker is compelled to fight the temptations emanating from the Dark Side, as a way of succoring humanity from the enslaving grip of the evil emperor, Dark Vader, together with other evil actors such as Java the Hutt. At the same time, there abound Biblical and spiritual mysteries littered through out the plot in Star Wars. This brings about a heavy sense of parallelism between the trilogy and Biblical accounts. In Star Wars, Darth Vader extends an olive branch to Luke Skywalker to the effect that upon accepting this olive branch, Skywalker would get to co-rule the galaxy with Vader, his father. This is seen in the Empire Strikes Back. This clearly brings to mind, the scriptural narration that is found in the Gospel of St. Matthew where standing on an exceedingly high mountain with Jesus, showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, the glory therein and offered to hand them to Jesus, should Jesus have paid him homage. This brings about the spiritual value of the importance of having the virtue of having focus and spiritual piety that will help one discriminate short-term conveniences for long-term good. Just as Christ forsakes the offertories being extended to him to do carry out a divine purpose of saving the world and its fullness from the devil’s, sin’s and d eath’s enslaving grip, so does Skywalker who refuses the overtures of Dark Vader, in order to save the universe from falling to slavery. The same idea is repeated in Jedi resisting the use of the Force in a negative manner as does Sith. Biblical or Mythological Imagery The quotations and