November 17, 2022 | SALVATORE AMICO

Starwars III - Revenge of the Sith is the third installment in the prequel trilogy of the larger Star Wars saga. Directed by George Lucas, this movie continues the origin story of Darth Vader, known as Anakin Skywalker, before turning to the dark side and provides insight into the final days of the Jedi Order before Order 66 and the rise of the Galactic Empire from the original trilogy.

As mentioned above, the prequel trilogy takes place before the events of the original films in the Star Wars saga; these prequels serve as a narrative medium for informing the audience about the events that came into play before Emperor Palpatine, Darth Vader, and the Galactic Empire. To understand the narrative plot of this movie, having a small amount of background from the other two films will be immensely helpful. Thus, Star Wars Episode I - The Phantom Menace, the first installment in this series, takes place after the Jedi Order (from now on referred to as the Jedi) has ruled the galaxy for a thousand generations and generally kept peace and stability. The conflict finally starts to ensue when the Trade Federation, a prominent economic collective within the galaxy, creates a physical blockade above the planet Naboo in retaliation to the Galactic Republic trying to impose taxes on them. The Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic are two interlinked bodies, with the Republic serving as a legislative body and the Jedi Order as paramilitary guardians and executives overseeing the Republic's security. Consequently, the Jedi attempted to resolve this dispute by sending two Jedi representatives, Master Qui-Gon Jinn and Padawan (student) Obi-Wan Kenobi, to talk with the Trade Federation.

Essentially, the plot of this first installment is that two main characters, Kenobi and Jinn, trying to liberate the peaceful planet of Naboo and its queen, Padme Amidala, from Trade Federation occupiers (the droids) and finding Anakin Skywalker while on their journey. Jinn realizes that Skywalker, a boy raised in slavery who has a sensitivity to the force, (a mysterious power that allows users to have superhuman abilities), is a key to the Jedi prophecy that will balance the force and, from the view of the Jedi, rid the galaxy of evil forever. Additionally, while trying to free Naboo, Jinn and Kenobi run into the first Sith (evil force user) that the Jedi have seen during their peaceful rule over the galaxy. Darth Maul, the Sith mentioned above, plots with Lord Sidious (Palpatine) to take over the Galactic Republic and destroy the Jedi Order by distracting the Jedi and Republic with conflict and a long war. While this war will take place in the next two movies, Palpatine pretends to be an ordinary politician in the Republic and ascends to power where he can misguide the Republic and Jedi to bring about their ruin. The first episode concludes with Jinn and Kenobi helping to liberate Naboo from the Trade Federation. However, the Jedi do not rule the day unscathed, and Jinn is killed in a duel by Darth Maul. Maul is later mortally wounded by Kenobi during the battle, and Kenobi is left as the sole person to look after Skywalker as he is trained in the ways of the force and the Jedi. Palpatine, the Emperor of the Sith, gains favor in the Galactic Republic and is appointed Chancellor after the former one is ousted due to a vote of no confidence during the Naboo conflict.

The next movie, Star Wars Episode II - Attack of the Clones, skips forward ten years in the prequel timeline. Kenobi is now a Jedi Knight, and Skywalker is now an adult and has been further trained by the Jedi. The Jedi Council is focusing on snuffing out the remaining Sith in the galaxy before they can cause further conflict. The Sith have also reorganized during this 10-year leap, and Palpatine is still leading his two-faced lifestyle of being the Republic's Chancellor and leader of the Sith. Thus, to keep himself from being the only Sith, Palpatine trains an ex-Jedi, Count Dooku, to replace the wounded Maul. Beyond being another Sith, Dooku is also the leader of the Separatist Alliance, a newly formed puppet group of star systems and intergalactic business tycoons designed to keep the Republic in a constant state of conflict and distraction. Most importantly, during these ten years, Palpatine has essentially been grooming Skywalker while he was growing up with the Jedi. By doing this and getting close to Skywalker, Palpatine will more easily manipulate Skywalker's mind and coerce him to the dark side during his final plan to destroy the Jedi.

The film follows two different plots; Skywalker's romance story and Kenobi's discovery of the clone army. After an assassination attempt on Galatic Senator Padme Amidala's life, she is placed under the guard of Kenobi and Skywalker on the planet Coruscant. Coruscant is the capital planet of the Republic and Jedi Council. Later, another attempt is made on her life by Zam Wesell, an assassin hired by the bounty hunter, later revealed to be Jango Fett. The Jedi Council orders Kenobi to track down Jango Fett and instructs Skywalker to continue guarding Padme on a different planet, her home world of Naboo. At this point, the plot splits; Anakin spends a fair amount of the plot falling in love with Padme, who reciprocates despite the Jedi banning attachment as one of their fundamental rules. Attachments can lead a Jedi to the dark side; this instance shows one of the many character flaws that leads Anakin to become Vader. The two marry secretly and keep their relationship hidden from everyone else out of fear of retribution from the Jedi Council.

Meanwhile, Kenobi travels to a remote planet named Kamino, where he discovers a secret army of human clones is being manufactured for the Republic. Kenobi finds out the clones are all copies of the bounty hunter Jango Fett; however, he and the Jedi do not find out that these clones are genetically programmed via synthetic chips to execute the Jedi by command of the Sith until the next movie. Kenobi finds Jango Fett on Kamino and chases him off-world to the droid factory of the Separatist Alliance on Geonosis. Additionally, Kenobi finds Dooku hiding out on this planet and is captured while reporting the location of the droid factory to the Jedi. Anakin and Padme get news of Kenobi's capture and fly to Geonosis to aid him; however, they are also captured by Dooku and the Separatists. While captured, all three are sentenced to execution. Before their pending death, Chancellor Palpatine convinces the Galactic Republic to give him emergency war powers; the Chancellor then reveals the Clone Army to the Republic and authorizes their first mission to work with the Jedi to free the three captured main characters on Geonosis. The clones and Jedi rescue the heroes in distress, who later attempt to seize Dooku on the planet but fail to stop his escape after a duel and start the first battle of many in The Clone Wars.

Revenge of the Sith serves as the third and final installment in the prequel series outlining the origin story of Darth Vader and utilizes the story outlined above to show why the foundations of the Jedi crumbled to the dark side and the motivations that led Anakin Skywalker to become Darth Vader. The last installment begins at the end of the Clone Wars and, to the dismay of many, skips over most of the battles, and character-building implied to have happened during that period. An animated series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, later remedied the lack of context provided within the films. Nevertheless, the film opens showing a critical battle between the Galactic Republic and Separatist Alliance; the Separatists have taken advantage of a weakness and are waging a campaign over the capital of the Jedi Order, Coruscant.

Off-screen, Chancellor Palpatine is kidnapped by the Separatists, and the Jedi task Skywalker and Kenobi to rescue him while the Jedi Council routes the Sepeartist Army from their capital. Palpatine allowed himself to be kidnapped since he controls both sides in this war; this situation is a test to see the power of Skywalker. Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi have grown immensely close since the onset of the Clone Wars and support each other while flying through space in their fighter craft to save Chancellor Palpatine. Along with help from the Republic Clone Army, the two Jedi break through the defenses of the Separatists and crash their ships into the loading bay of the capital ship, which houses the kidnapped Palpatine. While fighting through squads of Separatist droids, the two Jedi finally locate Palpatine on this ship and attempt to free him from his imprisonment. However, while trying to free him, Skywalker and Kenobi are confronted by Count Dooku, who predicts their escape plan and arrival on the ship. An epic lightsaber duel ensues, and Anakin is forced to fight Dooku alone for most of the battle after his master, Kenobi, is wounded. Dooku purposely taunts Anakin during the rest of the battle to bring out emotions such as fear, anger, and hatred; a practice that often leads to the dark side and is forbidden by the Jedi.

Consequently, Anakin can only subdue Dooku by giving in to his repressed emotions and brutally ends the battle by lobbing off Dooku's hands with his lightsaber. With the defeated Sith at his mercy and his master unconscious from the battle, Anakin is manipulated by the Palpatine, due to his previous close mentorship and bond, to show no mercy and decapitate the helpless Sith for the utilitarian good of the galaxy, as paraphrased by Palpatine. Anakin frees Palpatine, who then tries to convince him to leave Kenobi to die on the ship; however, Anakin is not convinced by the Chancellor and carries his master on his back to escape the Separatist ship. Nevertheless, before the Jedi can escape from the ship, they are captured and confronted by General Grievous, one of the leaders of the Separatist droid army. Grevious takes their weapons for his collection of lightsabers, and after some taunting between Grievous and the Jedi, the Jedi steal back their lightsabers from Grevious. The General is caught off guard while the Jedi overthrow the droids piloting the ship; however, Grievous is still able to escape, and the heroes are forced to crash the ship on Coruscant after killing all the droid crew. This sequence is one of many within this film that showcases Anakin making decisions directly against his teachings and the Jedi Council due to his warped view of utilitarianism created by Palpatine and his resentment for the strict, often unfair, rules of the Jedi Council.

After the three return to their regular duties on Coruscant, Anakin's wife, Padme, reveals to him that she is pregnant with his child. Palpatine also senses this news through the force and subsequently fills Anakin's head with nightmares about Padme dying in childbirth to manipulate him further into desperation and the dark side. Additionally, Palpatine becomes even closer to Anakin by affirming his distrust of the Jedi Council and appointing Anakin as his representative to oversee the happenings of the Council. The promotion pleases Anakin for a short while; however, the Council cuts his achievement short and only allows Anakin to serve as a member of the Council. All others on the Council are given the rank of Jedi Master, causing Anakin to feel betrayed and belittled by the same people he felt had never trusted him since his introduction to the Jedi Order. After this scene, Obi-Wan is tasked with hunting down and killing General Grievous.

Thus, this mission separates Anakin from his master once again. Obi-Wan affirms that Anakin is still a great Jedi, wishes him well before departing, and highlights the true brotherhood between the two during the Clone Wars and prequel series. However, this scene will be the last conversation between the two before Anakin's inevitable turn to the dark side. Obi-Wan departs for the planet Utapau, where Grievous is hiding out with the Separatist Leaders, and eventually defeats him in battle; however, something much more sinister happens between Anakin and Palpatine while this fight takes place. Specifically, during a senate hearing in the Galactic Republic, Palpatine talks privately with Anakin and reveals that he knows powers exclusive to the dark side that could prevent Anakin's wife, Padme, from dying as prophesied in Anakin's dreams.

Shortly after this exchange, Anakin figures out that Palpatine is the evil Sith behind the Clone Wars and all the events leading up to it. Anakin threatens to kill Palpatine after confronting him in his office; however, he decides to follow the Jedi's teachings instead and report his findings to the Jedi Council. Mace Windu, one of the head Jedi of the Council who has never trusted Anakin, takes this reported information and confronts Palpatine while instructing Anakin to await his return and not intervene in the confrontation. After a grueling battle between Windu and Palpatine, Windu bests the Sith Lord in battle and decides to strike him down with his lightsaber to prevent the Sith from controlling the galaxy and destroying the Jedi Order. However, before Windu can kill Palpatine, Anakin storms into the confrontation against Windu's orders and confronts the Jedi, arguing that Palpatine should be arrested and that killing the Sith without a trial is not the Jedi way. Windu ignores Anakin and attempts again to cut down Palpatine but is stopped when Anakin severs his hand with his lightsaber. Consequently, Palpatine seizes on the opportunity and kills Windu with a flurry of force lightning. Anakin then submits to Palpatine, begging for the Sith Lord to save Padme from death, and is knighted as Darth Vader by him and instructed to help exterminate the Jedi on Coruscant with the Clones.

With one of the strongest former Jedi at his side and the Galactic Republic in complete disarray from the Clone Wars, Palpatine puts the crux of his plan into action. Most importantly, the Sith Lord orders the entire clone army to execute Order 66, a secret clone protocol that overrides their free will and forces the soldiers to hunt down and execute all Jedi as traitors of the Republic. Palpatine references Windu's attempt to subdue him as the Jedi trying to start a coup against the Galactic Republic. Consequently, most of the Jedi are killed by their fellow Clone soldiers. Anakin works on Coruscant with the Clone Army to exterminate any remaining Jedi in the capital, specifically at the Jedi Temple. Anakin is shown murdering a group of children in Jedi training which was recorded by security cameras and later watched by Kenobi and Yoda. Master Yoda was essentially a background character within the prequels and only had a few scenes within this movie and the previous installment, Episode II. The two Jedi are all that remains of the Council and seek out Anakin and Palpatine separately to try and salvage the Republic from the control of the Sith.

Before confronting Anakin, Obi-Wan goes to see Padme to get information on Darth Vader's whereabouts and informs her that her husband has turned to the dark side. He simultaneously insinuates he knew about their romance the whole time. Padme is shocked and in disbelief that her husband could do such horrible things to the Republic. He accompanies Obi-Wan to Vader's last whereabouts on the planet Mustafar where Vader had killed the Separatest leaders and removed any actors that could challenge Palpatine's rule of the galaxy. After arriving on the hellish lava planet, Padme runs off the ship to meet Vader and plead with him to turn away from the dark side. However, Vader believes that Padme is a pawn trying to manipulate him after seeing Obi-Wan exit their ship and Vader strangles his wife. Vader stops choking Padme before killing her and engages in one of the most extended lightsaber duals in cinema history with his former master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

This fight coincides with Yoda confronting and attempting to subdue Palpatine on Coruscant, and the two fierce battles switch back and forth until each of their conclusions. Despite Yoda's best efforts, he cannot defeat the Sith Lord and must go into exile on the planet Dagobah. However, Obi-Wan successfully defeats Vader and ends the battle by chopping off his arms and legs in an emotional sequence. Vader is left to die and burns near a lava pit while screaming pure hatred towards Obi-Wan as he leaves the planet full of regret and despair after having to dismember his quasi-brother. Additionally, Palpatine salvages the barely living Vader and puts him indefinitely on life support via the iconic black metal suit seen in the original trilogy. Thus, the stage is set for the final events to take place before the original trilogy; Padme gives birth to twins, Leia Organa and Luke Skywalker, and later dies from heartbreak. The two children are separated and taken into hiding so they can later start the future rebellion. At the same time, Palpatine establishes the Galactic Empire and becomes the Emperor of the galaxy with his part-machine apprentice, Darth Vader.

Finally, with all of this narrative context in mind, the roles of utilitarianism within this sci-fi Greek tragedy becomes clear. Utilitarianism as an ethical philosophy centers around a pain-pleasure analysis and applying said logic in everyday life when facing general problems and ethical dilemmas. Moreover, ethicists like Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill expanded upon utilitarianism by arguing that individuals should consider the consequences of their actions concerning themselves and their direct community. For instance, when deciding how individuals should distribute food in their local community, a utilitarian like Mill would argue that we should act to create the most happiness by providing enough food to sate everyone in the community. By taking this course of action, an individual maximizes net happiness. Consequently, their actions also minimize displeasure among others in their community.

Various characters within the prequel trilogy take this utilitarian approach to their problems and the narrative; however, the practical application is most evidently utilized by Anakin Skywalker, especially in Revenge of the Sith. Specifically, three points within the narrative showcase the conflicted Jedi applying a flawed version of this ethics to his dilemmas; his final encounter with Count Dooku, his acceptance of Palpatine and the dark side, and his choice to attempt to strike down his former master at the end of the film.

First and foremost, the film presents a challenging ethical situation that even puzzles individuals from outside and possibly a more objective stance. Excluding that Anakin was somewhat coerced into killing Count Dooku by Palpatine, Anakin still had to make a utility calculation when killing the Sith, who had wrought war and misery on the galaxy since Attack of the Clones. Deciding to execute Dooku when he had the chance certainly provided immediate relief to the galaxy from his rule compared to holding him in detention in a trial. Moreover, by not killing him, Anakin likely realized that Dooku could escape prison even if convicted by the Galactic Republic and would continue to inflict damage on the galaxy without remorse or possibly rehabilitate his behavior. However, Anakin still somewhat miscalculated the utility in this situation since this execution brought him immensely closer to the dark side and the clutches of the evil Sith Lord Palpatine himself. Thus, the decision to kill Count Dooku was certainly not instinctive and required Anakin to consider a utility cost-benefit analysis before removing his hesitation and complying with the wishes of Palpatine.

Secondly, and arguably the most significant turning point in Anakin's character, Anakin relies on utilitarianism when deciding to save the Jedi Order or those close to him, specifically Padme, when determining to either help Mace Windu or Palpatine during their struggle. Moreover, when deciding to help Windu or Palpatine, Anakin had to seriously engage in a utility calculation to see which course of action would help the galaxy and the people around him the most. Beyond being a personal struggle, Anakin honestly could not tell whether the Jedi or Sith would bring balance and peace to the galaxy after years of war and terror due to the desires of both sides. Namely, Anakin had seen through the prequels that the Jedi had become corrupt and embellished in war-mongering against the Separatists that compromised the livelihoods of millions of species. Similarly, the Sith helped aid and abet the war by constantly fighting against the Republic and having an oppressive rule over any people within Separatist control. As a result, when looking to provide peace and adequate justice to the galaxy, Anakin truly was conflicted at the moment and had to conduct a utility analysis to decide his course of action. Although he was biased by Palpatine's promise to protect his wife if he turned to the dark side, Anakin seriously had to consider other factors before choosing to help Palpatine plunge the galaxy into imperial rule. The impact of this decision is evident, and Anakin even applies this logic later in the film to justify his turn to the dark side of his former master, Obi-Wan.

Finally, even in his deranged state after his turn to the dark side, Anakin applies one of his final utility analyses as a fully humanoid being when confronting and trying to kill his former master Obi-Wan on Mustafar. (Note, after this point, he becomes a cold, murderous machine, as seen in most of the original trilogy). After taking his turn to the dark side, being knighted as Darth Vader, and murdering the children of the Jedi Temple, Anakin is forced to confront his former master and take his final journey to fully embracing the dark side. Most importantly, Anakin does not immediately attack his master on sight in this scene; instead, the newly knighted Sith has to undergo some serious mental justifications that he communicates to Obi-Wan after nearly force choking Padme to death. Therefore, even when seemingly irrational and consumed by the dark side, Anakin (now Vader) must seriously contemplate the benefit of attacking his master to create his new evil galactic empire versus returning to the light side of the force. Although Anakin made the wrong choice by condemning himself to the dark side, he sincerely believed that striking down his former master would allow him to create a galaxy where he could live free from persecution with his wife, and other followers had become disillusioned with the Galactic Republic.

The Star Wars prequel trilogy has various other examples of utilitarianism; however, Anakin Skywalker is the embodiment of the crux of utilitarian ethics in the series. Most of his essential choices throughout Revenge of the Sith are motivated by a cocktail of utility and impassioned emotion, which, unfortunately, are often misguided by his subjective views and lead to the downfall of democracy within the galaxy. Nevertheless, this movie and the series serve as a deep and intrinsic case study of utilitarianism in modern media and showcase the consequences of misusing ethical consequentialism to further the goals of bad actors.

References

Star Wars Episode I - The Phantom Menace. Directed by George Lucas, 1999. 20th Century Fox, 1999.

Star Wars Episode II - Attack of the Clones. ---. 2002. 20th Century Fox, 2002.

Star Wars Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. ---. 2005. 20th Century Fox, 2005.

University of Texas at Austin. "Utilitarianism." Ethics Unwrapped, 25 May 2022, ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/utilitarianism. Accessed 23 Oct. 2022.

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