Ben Solo and the tragedy in the great lie of Darth Vader’s darkness

As a seasoned Star Wars enthusiast who has witnessed the rise and fall of various Sith Lords, I can confidently say that Kylo Ren’s journey is one that echoes the dark past but strives for a brighter future. Having grown up immersed in the saga, I remember the moment when I first disagreed with a Star Wars narrative – it was when Luke Skywalker knelt before the Emperor in ‘Dark Empire’. It felt like a betrayal to his father’s memory and the Jedi Order.

Regardless of the intensity of my love for Star Wars (which I believe shines through in my work), I make an effort to show consideration towards others’ interpretations, whether they concern known facts or upcoming revelations.

In 2019, an exception worth mentioning occurred at the FanX convention in Salt Lake City, where I participated in a panel discussing The Rise of Skywalker. During this panel, they pondered if Ben Solo might one day stop obeying Darth Vader and escape the Dark Side. At that moment, I stepped up to the audience microphone and declared, “Anakin Skywalker perished in the light; whoever has been guiding Ben Solo towards the dark side, it is not his grandfather.” As it turns out, my prediction was accurate.

Looking back with some hindsight, let’s examine the one who inherited Vader’s darkness at present.

“I will finish what you started.”

I recall the moment when I initially disagreed with something in the Star Wars universe. I stumbled upon “Dark Empire” at a comic shop and came across Luke Skywalker kneeling before the Emperor, uttering, “Yes. My father’s destiny is my own.” The caption stated, “There is no other way.” I continued reading to understand how it unfolded, also because it provided context for a book I had recently finished: “Jedi Search” by Kevin J. Anderson, where Luke says the same thing.

During the previous year of violent strife, Luke had been whisked away to the resurrected Emperor’s stronghold in the galactic core, and there he had allowed himself to learn the dark side. He had become the Emperor’s chief lieutenant, just like his father, Darth Vader. The struggle had been great within him, and only with the help, and the friendship and the love of Leia and Han had he been able to break free…

With all due respect to Tom Veitch, Cam Kennedy, Todd Klein, and Dave Dorman, I felt bone-deep that Luke’s father, who died a Jedi, would not have wanted him to take up the family mantle on the dark side. This is why I felt the same when Kylo Ren implored his grandfather to show him “the power of the darkness” in Episode VII: The Force Awakens. The helmet he addresses is twisted and empty, just like the promises of the dark side.

In a different phrase, Joseph Goebbels, a renowned propagandist in Nazi Germany, stated that “A lie told once remains a lie, but a lie told repeatedly becomes accepted as truth.” It’s difficult to pass judgment on Ben Solo for his actions, considering we don’t have all the details. However, it’s worth noting that in Claudia Gray’s book Bloodline, Leia had not yet informed Ben about his heritage. She was trying to find the right moment to explain why they had kept this information from him. By the time of Kristin Baver’s Skywalker: A Family At War, it’s clear that Ben felt disheartened upon learning about his identity as Darth Vader’s grandson.

Just as Anakin Skywalker started his descent into the dark side, triggered by pain and betrayal, so it is said that Ben Solo followed a similar path, turning against the Jedi who he perceived had deceived him for their own purposes. If the tales in The Last Jedi are accurate, this initial act of evil was devastating, and subsequent choices towards darkness seemed easier to make. Kylo Ren may find himself resonating with Darth Vader’s statement that “it is too late” for him to let go of his anger. He does not fully accept Vader’s assertion, however.

If we accept the idea that “repetition makes a lie feel like truth,” it can be argued that the lie is in suggesting Darth Vader played any part in shaping his own destiny. Similarly, just as Rey’s story is distinct from her Palpatine heritage, Ben Solo is rightfully the one who should inherit the powerful Skywalker legacy.

It is in dismissing the lies that he is able to return to the light.

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2024-10-24 23:21