(What follows will be the last in a short series of entries that will effectively close out my blog for good.)


In peering into the love between Anakin and Padme, and the consequences that would have upon his very soul, I decided to re-examine one of the most crucial aspects of Anakin's descent: fear. Debate will no doubt rage over whether the love Anakin felt for Padme was truly selfless or perhaps more possessive in nature. What cannot be of doubt is the fear that would drive Anakin towards a desperate choice and a power that was more than tempting. In my last entry I did not wish to give the impression that I doubted Anakin's care for his wife, what I strove to point out was his intense desire to keep her with him. The fear of losing her was so strong; a fear that found its beginnings in the fate of Shimi Skywalker... a moment that would scar the young Jedi forever. Fear, as demonstrated throughout the Galaxy, was a powerful tool of the Sith and would bring about the rise of a terrible new order.

From the very first moments as Anakin stood before the Jedi Council, the fear that dwelled within him was clear. Throughout his training could it have been possible for Anakin to shed this fear from himself? Could he overcome the dark emotions that his mother's death had awoken? In looking at the love Anakin felt for his wife I raised a question that is central to understanding his fears. Was his love for Padme selfless? Or was it indeed selfish? (Again this does not equate that he did not care for her. He did) Those of us who have experienced the loss of someone we love understand the pain, but yet we also understand that it is entirely beyond our ability to control. Anakin it seems was not able to accept that reality, and was desperate to prevent the loss of his wife at whatever cost it might take. By taking the path that he did, by twisting his soul through the Darkside of the Force, Anakin Skywalker fulfilled the nightmare that had haunted him... his wife was lost, no matter what he had done to prevent it.

Yoda had tried, and failed, to warn Anakin about the danger that such a fear could lead to. Anakin was not prepared to face the painful reality that sometimes we cannot stop the ones we love from dying. He instead let his fear guide him, down a path of dark promises that would do nothing but tear his soul and enslave his will. He desired a power that would allow him the ultimate control, the ability to keep his wife with him forever... a power fueled by the relentless nature of his own fears. (and in my opinion, his own selfish desire to keep her with him... to hold on forever.)

It should also be noted that perhaps the very function of the Sith was to dominate and control. This fact alone was against the nature of the Force, for neither side (darkness nor light) was intended to dominate the other. The Sith's desire for domination and control would place the delicate balance of the Force into danger. And control was what Anakin wanted most. The mere existence of the power that Palpatine spoke of would have been in contridiction to the Force, for only through selflessness and sacrifice (the emotions of compassion and love) could immortality be attained. Remember, it was a Jedi and not a Sith that discovered this true path.


The Greatest Weapon of the Sith


Indeed fear had become their greatest weapon, the tool by which they could bend the Galaxy to their will. Anakin Skywalker and his darkest fears were perfect for manipulation by a Sith Lord devious enough to manage the task. Had Anakin known the consequences of his actions, that he would indeed bring his haunting vision into startling reality, would his choices have been different? Would he be able to overcome his mistrust of the Jedi, his belief in their betrayal and his own desire for more power? For as much as these moments worked upon Anakin and slowly turned him away from the Lightside of the Force, it was his fear of losing Padme that became more than he could withstand. Desperate to stop what he could not, to do for his wife that which he could not do for his own mother... he gave his very soul into the hands of a ruthless Sith Lord. The power he wanted was the power to control, to keep the ones he cared about with him-no matter how selfish such an action might be. One can see traces of this in his later life, as he assumed the fearsome visage of Darth Vader. His fierce reaction to failure around him was perhaps born of his own intense desire to have the power of control. It is interesting to imagine what Anakin might have done if he could have seen beyond the vision of that nightmare, and seen the way in which his own actions would bring about its realization. Darth Vader then might never have found a place or a name in the Galaxy, but it was not to be.