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ROTS, Capitalist Escapism or Work of Political Warning?

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George Lucas' newest movie "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith" is a triumph of capitalist exploitation, forcing the fans of the Star Wars franchise to buy an overpriced ticket just to get a glimpse of their favorite characters onscreen, not to mention toy lightsabers, action figures, and other objects of capitalist worship, and collecting over $340 million to date, thus violating the sacred rule that an artist must live in poverty or be supported by the State to create his or her art. It is also a work of pure escapism, not based in the real world, but a "galaxy far away" and is thus worthless as entertainment. However, is it a politically conscious piece of cinema relevant to our Struggle?~

While it may appear that the answer is an obvious "No," the case seems to be far more complicated than that. While it may not be made according to the conventions of Socialist Realism, "Star Wars: ROTS" is a politically motivated work, according to our comrades from the Progressive Labor Party. In an article in the Challenge titled "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: ‘Dark Side' or Red Side?", they have stated the following:

"Star Wars, Revenge Of The Sith", while telling the story of Anakin Skywalker's fall and the subsequent birth of Darth Vader, is the most overtly political of all the Star Wars movies...At first, the Jedi support the Democratic government, but then realize the Democracy has been usurped by a Sith Lord. The Sith represent the "Dark Side" of the force. The Sith are those who embrace the path of power and destruction in the hopes of being the supreme ruler in the galaxy, and the Jedi order has been their bitter enemy for thousands of years.

The Jedi order has chosen sides in a war in which both sides are manipulated by a Sith Lord. (How many times has the communist movement chosen sides with a lesser-evil boss in a war, only to be betrayed by the bourgeoisie when it no longer needs our help?)

Before the Sith betray and massacre the Jedi, they realize they must take direct control of the Senate. They conclude that you cannot passively guide society to a better social development (as many phony leftists and liberals think), but that the best solution is to revolt for direct acquisition of the state and means of production. If the Jedi order had taken direct control of the Senate and started steering the galaxy towards a selfless society based on Jedi principles, how long would it have been before the liberal separatists, and future Rebel Alliance, attacked and murdered them?

Jedi idealism was rooted in the belief that they could steer and guide society from their holy temple. The Jedi's absolute belief in their own indestructibility led to their own grave. They didn't actively seek to transform all of society, but only sought out the special few who were deserving of the Jedi training. This concept, that only a few "select special people" can ever hope to control society, is also a rotten form of bourgeois idealism that leads to selfishness and an eventual betrayal of a revolutionary movement.

The Jedi also say that fear, anger and attachment lead to the Dark Side. Communists know that unfocused anger, attachment to greed, selfishness and fear are ruling-class tools. Revolutionary anger and a selfless desire to serve the working class are necessary for a Communist to actively drive society to Communist Revolution. The Jedi never actively serve anybody but the ruling class. They support the liberal democratic rulers ("I am for the Republic and democracy" as Obi-Wan told Anakin as they fought each other) and act as police to protect what they perceive as "order," but this order in the galaxy is based on crime lords and slavery (Anakin was actually once a slave, and his mother was sold into marriage on the planet Tatooine).

All that Anakin lived for was turning to ash when he believed that he couldn't control everything around him, like the death of his mother or the death of his wife Padme. As he embraced the greed and selfishness inside of him, quantity moved to quality within him. The positive was negated, and he became evil. He rationalized his betrayals, his murders and his fall. Anakin's cries of anguish and loss were music to The Emperor's ears. The bosses absolutely love to buy the souls of revolutionaries, so we must guard against the "dark side," capitalist selfish ideology, the bosses' most dangerous weapon.

The entire article of our wise Comrades may be found
here

As you have seen, "Star Wars: ROTS" is a clear work of warning to aspiring revolutionaries and as such must be a required viewing for all politically-minded individuals

Note: Yes, that is a real article from a real communist party. Believe it or not.

Elsworth Toohey
Holy Sh*t... that is a real article?

Wow...



 
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