acroyear | Lucas, Campbell, Zeus, Arthur, and Wagner

Answering a question concerning Anakin's turn to the Dark Side not seeming "real" or realistic enough, particularly the cold-blooded way he would execute his orders, I wrote the following:

This is not a story of realism or high drama. This is a *myth*, and its not a myth being told like Robin Hood Prince of Thieves (which strives to give some potential realistic reason how the myth of Robin Hood might have come to be known), but a mythical story in its pure state. As such, its on par with the stories of the Greek gods or Arthurian cycle, which have very few things about them that would make sense if we tried to look at it as a realistic portrayal of human behaviour.

hence, "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away". by parallel, the Greeks never actually said *when* most of their myths actually took place.

The affair between Lancelot and Guenevere should never have led to a civil war the scale of which would destroy Arthur as T.H. White depicts in Once and Future King (compare a reality relationship, the falling out between Henry II and Elenor, where regardless of everything, they remained accepting of each other's roles to the end), yet we take it in stride because its still a depiction of a myth, even as its written by a modern novelist. Consider, too, how much better T.H. White's Arthur is to "First Knight" and other more recent movies, even with its less realistic portrayal of relationships and their effects.

Probably the most accurate comparison would be how Wagner depicts German myth in the Ring Cycle. The nature of the artform (Romantic era Opera) and expression (they're very well done, at that) allowed people to overlook the lack of "realism" in the characters and their actions (and for that matter, their "acting"). Exaggeration of extremes is not just accepted by its audience, its considered a necessary aspect of the art form.

So too, Lucas, where the artistry of its presentation, the whole picture, is meant to be what's important. Hence the term, "Space Opera" (and he referred to Star Wars that way decades ago). The actions of Anakin do not make sense in our heightened sense of "reality" world of the turn of the century. However, they are to my mind self-consistent within the mythology Lucas has created. Anakin Skywalker "ceased to be", as Yoda tells Obi-Wan, who decades later tells Luke when he explains himself in Episode 6 -- by ceasing to be, anything was possible.

We've gotten so used to action movies that are more real than reality (Blackhawk Down, or Saving Private Ryan, for example) that we have forgotten to stop taking "Opera" so seriously.