Rhetorical Critique of Star Wars - Essay Example

May Star Wars Episodes IV, V, VI Introduction The Star Wars movies incorporate Richard Weaver’s value theories. The research centers on the three episodes of the Star Wars movie series. The series include Episode VI, Episode V, and Episode VI. The rhetorical themes of the Star Wars episodes are works of quality visual art. Star Wars According to Weaver, the god terms represent the current government political system (Duffy, 1993). The current god-based political system is democracy. The other god terms include progress of the community or the nation. A third god term is science. Science spearheads the research and development of products or services that improve the life of the community. Further, the devil value described by Weaver pertains to all opposites to the god terms. The evil terms includes communism. Communism is the opposite of democracy. Next, the rebel or those who fight against the established government and its policies, laws, morals, ethics, and other standards are classified as devil-related. Evil or the devil focuses on preventing the god-like acts from cropping up, continuing, and prospering (Duffy, 1993). Luke Skywalker, God Value. Luke Skywalker espouses God value. Luke Skywalker has been consistent throughout the three movies. In Episode 4, Luke Skywalker imitates a God character, obedience or doing good acts. Luke Skywalker obeys his foster father’s instructions to prioritize the harvest of the crops over enrolling in school. Luke Skywalker obey’s Obi Wan Kenobi’s instructions to fight for what is right, the Jedi way of life (Brode, 2012). Sermonic language. In episode 4, episode 5 and episode 6, Obi Wan Kenobi’s sermon focuses on Luke Skywalker’s destiny (Lucas, 2012). Obi Wan Kenobi persuades Skywalker that Skywalker is the only person who is destined to stop Darth Vader’s attacks on the rebel base and its people. Episode 5 shows Yoda training Skywalker to be a better Jedi fighter. In Episode 6, Darth Vader continually sermons Skywalker that Vader cannot change from being bad to being good (Glut, 2011). Argument of cause-affect. The story shows Skywalker trying his best to convince his father to convert to a good person. In Episode 5, Skywalker learns that Darth Vader is his father (Glut, 2011). In Episode 6, Skywalker tries his best to convert his father to change to the good side. Skywalker’s refusal to kill his father triggered the conversion of Darth Vader from being an evil person to being a good person. Argument of authority. The three episodes show the importance of authority. The government forces will use force to eliminate all groups that rebel against the established authority. Skywalker and Han Solo obey the rebel leaders’ authority to crush the evil government forces. The three episodes show the importance of force to ensure everyone obeys the rules, policies, and provisions of the established government’s political leaders (Brode, 2012). The rhetoric is good. The three episodes show the importance of the force of good. The slogan of the movie evolves on letting the force of good be with the rebel group. The story shows that everyone, even the evil Darth Vader, has a good hearth. Skywalker tries to change his father back to his former good self. Episode 6 shows Darth Vader killing his emperor to protect his son, Skywalker, from the deadly attacks of the evil emperor (Glut, 2011). Message of audience specific. The three episodes send a vibrating clear message to the movie audiences. The three episodes’ messages show that Skywalker must adapt to the changing events. Skywalker’s finding his entire foster farm family dead forces Skywalker to be a fighter. The audience will learn that one must adapt to different situations in order to survive. Skywalker adapted Yoda’s Jedi training to defeat Darth Vader (Glut, 2011). Yoda. God Value. Yoda shows the importance of God value. Episode V and VI, Yoda trains Skywalker, the person with God characteristics, to defeat the better trained Darth Vader. Yoda insists that Skywalker has the god or good personality of the Jedi knights. Episode V and Episode VI shows Yoda improving the sword mastery of Skywalker. Star Wars Episode 5 and Star Wars Episode 6 show Yoda successfully making Skywalker a better sword person (Brode, 2012). Evil value. Yoda embodies society’s hatred for evil. Obi Wan Kenobi sends Skywalker to train under Yoda. Yoda explains that “force” of the Jedi to Skywalker must prevent all evil acts from continuing. Consequently, Skywalker uses Yoda’s training in Episode 5 and Episode 6 to overcome the previously stronger and better sword user, Darth Vader (Jones, 2010). Sermonic language. Yoda continually trains Skywalker to bring out his inborn Jedi Power. As a son of a former good Jedi knight, Yoda instills in Skywalker that Yoda’s sword training will help Skywalker defeat the dark forces. The dark forces are led by Darth Vader. Darth Vader is under the spell of the evil Emperor (Duffy, 1993). Argument of cause-affect. Yoda trains Skywalker to be a better sword fighter. Yoda teaches Skywalker the secrets of the Jedi sword fighting style. Consequently, Skywalker becomes a better sword fighter. As proof of Yoda’s effective sword training, Skywalker defeats Darth Vader in Episode 6. Likewise, Darth Vader admires Skywalker’s excellent sword fighting skills in Episode 5(Glut, 2011). Argument of similarity. Yoda emulates the importance of the Jedi force. In episode 5, Obi Wan Kenobi trains Skywalker to be a better Jedi sword fighter in Episode IV. Next, Yoda trains Skywalker to be a skilled sword fighter in Episode 5. Likewise, Yoda continues to train Skywalker on the advanced Jedi sword fighting techniques in Episode 6(Brode, 2012). Argument of authority. Yoda places importance on obeying authority. Yoda states in Episode 5 and Episode 6 that Skywalker must continue the tradition of the Jedi authority. The authority indicates Skywalker must do his best to eliminate evil in society. To do so, Skywalker joins the rebel forces in order to generate enough support and numbers to overthrow the evil emperor’s government (Brode, 2012). Emphasis of rhetoric. Yoda places importance on the rhetoric of the Jedi goodness. Yoda’s constant reference to go with the force shows Skywalker is not alone in his fight to restore democracy. Yoda consistently reminds Skywalker that Yoda, Obi Wan Kenobi and other Jedi Knights will help Skywalker win over the evil forces of the Emperor (Lucas, 2012). Message of audience specific. Yoda’s message to the audience is clear. Yoda shows that Skywalker will not be able to defeat the better skilled Darth Vader. Yoda persuades Skywalker to seriously learn the Jedi sword fighting lessons. In Episode 5, Yoda is able to improve Skywalker’s sword fighting capacity by using intermediate sword fighting lessons. In Episode 6, Yoda implements advanced sword fighting techniques during Skywalker’s rebel training (Glut, 2011). Darth Vader Evil value. Darth Vader shows that he is a truly bad person. He leads the government forces as they search and destroy the rebel bases, as shown in Darth Vader’s actions in Episode IV, V, and VI (Jones, 2010). To ensure that evil is unopposed, the Darth Vader must eliminate all forces that are against the current evil government leadership. The current evil government of the Emperor classifies itself as the dark side. The dark side signifies the evil side or the bad side (Brode, 2012). Sermonic language. Darth Vader continually issues sermons, Episode IV, Episode V, Episode VI, to Skywalker to shift to the Dark side or evil side. Darth Vader persuades Skywalker that the only way is the dark side or evil way. Darth Vader warns his son, Luke Skywalker that he will be killed by Darth Vader if he does not obey his father, Darth Vader’s persistent request to pledge loyalty to the evil emperor’s government (Brode, 2012). Argument of cause-affect. Darth Vader uses logic to warn Skywalker. Darth Vader insists that Skywalker’s shifting his loyalty to the evil emperor will bring more benefits for Skywalker compared to Skywalker’s current loyalty to the Princess Leia rebel government. In Episode IV, Episode V, and Episode Vl, Darth Vader persuades Skywalker to take his rightful place as one of the loyal followers of the Evil emperor. As proof, Darth Vader explains to Skywalker that Darth Vader’s original name is Anakin Skywalker (Glut, 2011). Argument of similarity. All three episodes espouse Darth Vader as an evil person. In Episode IV, Episode V, and Episode VI, Darth Vader leads the government forces. The government forces are focused on destroying all resistance against the evil government. Consequently, Episode IV shows Princess Leia’s planet being obliterated by the government’s disintegration gun. In Episode V, Darth Vader leads the horse like machines to attack the discovered rebel base. In Episode VI, Darth Vader leads the government forces as they track and attack the spaceship of the rebel government (Glut, 2011). Argument of authority. Darth Vader espouses that Skywalker should pledge his loyalty to the evil emperor’s government. Darth Vader oversees the government forces attack on the rebel troops. The government forces’ attacks occurred in Episode IV, Episode V, and Episode Vl. In Episode IV, Darth Vader orders the killing of Princess Leia for not telling where the rebel base was located. In Episode V, Darth Vader orders an attack on the rebel base using horse like soldier transport vehicles. In Episode VI, Darth Vader orders the government facility to seek and annihilate the rebel base (Lucas, 2012). In turn, Darth Evader shows he is subservient to authority. In Episode VI, Episode V, and Episode VI, Darth Evader obeys all the instructions of the emperor. For saving his life, Darth Vader is indebted to the Emperor. Consequently, Darth Value pledges total obedience to the emperor’s orders (Lucas, 2012). Emphasis of rhetoric. Darth Vader offers a very strong rhetoric. Darth Vader insists that people must learn to adapt to a given situation in order to survive. Similarly, Darth Vader explains to Skywalker that Skywalker’s true loyalty to the emperor will bring many countless benefits to Skywalker. Within Episode IV, Episode V, and Episode VI, Darth Vader tries to create fear in the heart of Skywalker that he will better off staying with the dark side, under the leadership of the evil emperor (Lucas, 2012). Message of audience specific. The specific message to the movie audience is clear. The audience will learn that Darth Vader will do everything in his power to remain in power. The threats from the rebel government include there is a strong probability that the current evil government may be overthrown. This fear of losing his job challenges Darth Vader to do everything in his power to kill all rebel forces (Brode, 2012). Further, the audience can relate the above message to their own real life situations. Government leaders prefer subordinates who are loyal to the current leadership. The government goes out of its way to eliminate all challenges to the current government. The government leaders will normally can and will use its military power to eradicate any rebel group from destabilizing the current government setup (Glut, 2011). Sith Lord or emperor. Evil value. The Sith Lord is the embodiment of evil. The evil Lord or emperor will use all might to crush any opposition to his government leadership. The emperor sends his soldiers to find the rebel base during the Episode IV, Episode V, and Episode VI movies. The Sith lord or emperor uses his powers to crush any opposition. In Episode V and Episode VI, the Sith lord or emperor seriously oversees the government forces’ search for the rebel base (Brode, 2012). Sermonic language. In Episode VI, the Sith lord or emperor convinces Skywalker to shift his loyalty to the emperor. The Sith lord or emperor warns Skywalker that refusal to pledge his loyalty to the emperor will equate to immediate death. However, Skywalker refuses to pledge his loyalty to the Sith lord or emperor. Instead, Skywalker throws down his sword and prefers to die at the hands of the Sith lord or emperor than to pledge loyalty. In response, Darth Vader rescues his son from death. Darth Vader throws the evil emperor to his death. This clearly shows that evil will not always triumph. In Episode VI, Darth Vader had shifted to good side by killing the evil emperor (Brode, 2012). Argument of cause-affect. The Sith lord or emperor warns the people that they will be punished for not pledging loyalty to the Sith lord or emperor. The emperor orders the attack on the rebel bases in order to stop all criticisms of his evil government. In Episode VI, Episode V, and Episode VI, The rebels do everything in their power to counter the attacks of the Sith Lord or emperor’s advancing army (Mason, 2009). Argument of Similarity. There are similarities between Darth Vader and the Sith Lord or emperor. In the Episode VI, Episode V, and Episode VI, both persons strive to hold on to their current power. They will do everything in their power to prevent others from replacing the two evil government leaders. In Episode VI and Episode V, both persons were able to retain their current position (Brode, 2012). Message of audience specific. The message of the Sith lord or emperor to the audience is simple. The Sith lord wants to remain in power. To remain in power, the Sith lord must remove all hindrances. Hindrances include attacks from the rebel forces (Brode, 2012). Han Solo. God Value. Han Solo is the embodiment of god or good. Solo does his best to help the rebels win. Solo attacks the base in Episode VI to protect Skywalker. Solo helps the rebels repel the government attacks in Episode V and Episode VI. Solo was frozen in Episode V because of his desire to help the rebels win (Brode, 2012). Argument of cause-affect. Solo uses his space ship to help the rebels. Solo’s maximizing the spaceship machine guns help repel the government forces in all three episodes. Without the significant help of Solo, the rebels’ hope of winning the war was doubtful (Brode, 2012). Argument of authority. Han Solo uses his expertise to help the rebels win. Solo teaches Skywalker how to use the spaceship guns to attack the enemy spaceship. Han uses his strategic analytical skills to intrude and escape from the enemy’s base. Han’s authority on how to defeat the enemy forces convinces others to implement’s Solo’s attack and defense strategies (Brode, 2012). Emphasis of rhetoric. Hans emphasizes the importance of speed. Solo uses speed to escape from the approaching enemy attack spaceships. Hans uses speed to evade being detected by the enemy soldiers in all three episodes. Hans uses speed to defend the rebel base against approaching enemy attacks (Brode, 2012). Message of audience specific. Solo delivers a clear message to the audience. Solo is a business man. He will work in order to earn money. Solo wants to be paid to rescue Princess Leia. However, Solo is also a human being. As a human being, he can fall in love. Solo falls in love with Princess Leia. Solo impresses the audience that he is a results- oriented person (Brode, 2012). Princess Leia. God Value. Princess Leia has the God or Good value. She obeys her father’s instructions to help the rebel government succeed in all three episodes. Princess Leia does not do anything that will hurt or humiliate the people. Princess Leia does anything to overthrow the evil government of the Sith Lord or emperor (Brode, 2012). Argument of cause-affect. Princess Leia’s ingenuity helped repulse the government attacks. Princess Leia’s smuggled map helps destroy the enemy space base in Episode IV. Princess Leia is able to get the help of the Ewoks to destroy the shield of the enemy’s Space base in Episode VI. In Episode V, Princess Leia is able to help repulse the attacking enemy horse-shaped attack vehicles (Mason, 2009). Argument of authority.. Princess Leia shows authority. She is the daughter of the rebel base leader. Princess Leia is able to the rally the members of the Solo team to fight the advancing government soldiers. In Episode VI, Princess Leia awards Solo and Skywalker medals for helping destroy the enemy space ship. In Episode V and VI Princess Leia is able to lead the Skywalker team to defeat the enemy forces (Brode, 2012). Message of audience specific. The message to the audience is hope. Princess Leia brings hope that the current evil government will be removed. Princess Leia shows courage and leadership under unfavorable space war conditions. The Princess is able to strategically rescue the frozen Solo from the enemy in Episode VI (Brode, 2012) Music Cinematography Themes Imagery. The music and cinematography themes and imagery show the three episodes are classified as science fiction movies (Duffy, 1993). The three episodes include theme of bravery of the rebel members. The same episodes incorporate the theme of love between Han Solo and Princess Leia. The theme includes the theme of cooperation among different groups, including the Ewoks. The three episodes show an image that justice will always prevail over evil (Lucas, 2012). Conclusion Based on the above discussion, the Star Wars movies include Richard Weaver’s value theories. The research delves on the Stars Wars movies. The paper zeroes in on the Episode VI, Episode V, and Episode VI of the Star Wars movies. Evidently, the Weaver-based rhetorical themes qualify the above Star Wars episodes works of quality visual art. References: Brode, D. (2012). Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars. New York: Scarecrow Press. Duffy, B. (1993). The Politics of Rhetoric: Richard Weaver and the Conservative Tradition. New York: ABC CLIO Press. Glut, D. (2011). The Empire Strikes Back: Star Wars: Episode V. New York: Random House. Jones, B. (2010). Star Wars: Episode Four. New York: Spotlight Press. Lucas, G. (2012). Star Wars. New York: Scholastic Press. Mason, M. (2009). Complexity Theory and Philosophy of Education. New York: J. Wiley & Sons. Read More