Macbeth and Like One Star Wars Movie Scene
Macbeth is a story of a man coming to power illegally, believing he is invincible because of foretold prophecies, and his inevitable downfall. It also questions what good and what evil really means, and whether humans are innately good and evil. Macbeth has people fighting for what they believe is the right thing to do (either for them or others). The damning cycle Macbeth finds himself caught in seems to never cease, and these themes are played with again in different ways. There is also a fair amount of magic within Macbeth, found with the witches' ability to see the future, as well as Macbeth's vivid visions.
Something that in my opinion mirrors Macbeth beautifully is everyone's favorite space opera, the Star Wars Movies. These movies tell a tale of good and evil and are cyclical, very similar to Macbeth. Some would say they are tragedies, others say they are optimistic stories of hope and rising from the ashes. Macbeth can be interpreted in similar ways. Some could see Macbeth's downfall as sad, while others could hope for a better and brighter future. More examples of connection of Macbeth can be found in a certain scene of Star Wars, the Last Jedi.
The buildup to this scene is incredibly long-winded and complex; however, I will do my best to summarize. The galaxy used to live in peace, after defeating the Evil Empire. Peace reigned for a few years, and soldiers of that peace, called the Jedi, were being trained to try to break the cycle. Fate, however, would not allow it. A new evil now called the first order rose up and terrorized the lands once again, killing all the Jedi. This is similar to Macbeth's constant cycle of old kings being executed or killed, and new kings being reinstated. These kings then try to keep the peace, and are either killed or die. There is a short period of peace, and then war breaks out again. Back to star wars, however. With an imposing antagonist, there must be a powerful protagonist to fight them (The Last Jedi, Rey). Rey has fought her way to the room where the First Order leader, General Snoake is waiting. Within also sits Kylo Ren, his knight of death (but unbeknownst to him, partially loyal to Rey).
Snoake sees Rey, traps her, and orders Kylo to kill her. Snoake thinks that he is impervious because using the force, he can sense Kylo's intent. He proclaims, "Pathetic child. I cannot be betrayed, I cannot be beaten. I see his mind, I see his every intent. Yes. I see him turning the lightsaber to strike true. And now, foolish child. He ignites it, and kills his true enemy!".
As he is saying this, Kylo is feigning preparing to kill Rey, while in reality, he is preparing to kill Snoake. Right as Snoake finishes his speech, Kylo slices him in half, and Snoake dies.
This scene reminded me of Macbeth because here we have a person who ascended to power illegally (terrorizing the galaxy), very similar to Macbeth. He seems to think that he is invincible, for he has visions of what is planned for the future. Macbeth is just like this with the visions of the witches, believing that they will never come true. For both Macbeth and Snoake however, their "visions" of the future come true in ways that are twisted to be detrimental to them. Subscribing to these are what caused both character's downfalls. This scene as well as Star Wars, on the whole, demonstrates the theme of someone coming to power illegally, being told an "impossible" prophecy, which then comes to fruition.
Also here's Snoake Dying, after his long winded monologue :D
Something that in my opinion mirrors Macbeth beautifully is everyone's favorite space opera, the Star Wars Movies. These movies tell a tale of good and evil and are cyclical, very similar to Macbeth. Some would say they are tragedies, others say they are optimistic stories of hope and rising from the ashes. Macbeth can be interpreted in similar ways. Some could see Macbeth's downfall as sad, while others could hope for a better and brighter future. More examples of connection of Macbeth can be found in a certain scene of Star Wars, the Last Jedi.
The buildup to this scene is incredibly long-winded and complex; however, I will do my best to summarize. The galaxy used to live in peace, after defeating the Evil Empire. Peace reigned for a few years, and soldiers of that peace, called the Jedi, were being trained to try to break the cycle. Fate, however, would not allow it. A new evil now called the first order rose up and terrorized the lands once again, killing all the Jedi. This is similar to Macbeth's constant cycle of old kings being executed or killed, and new kings being reinstated. These kings then try to keep the peace, and are either killed or die. There is a short period of peace, and then war breaks out again. Back to star wars, however. With an imposing antagonist, there must be a powerful protagonist to fight them (The Last Jedi, Rey). Rey has fought her way to the room where the First Order leader, General Snoake is waiting. Within also sits Kylo Ren, his knight of death (but unbeknownst to him, partially loyal to Rey).
Snoake sees Rey, traps her, and orders Kylo to kill her. Snoake thinks that he is impervious because using the force, he can sense Kylo's intent. He proclaims, "Pathetic child. I cannot be betrayed, I cannot be beaten. I see his mind, I see his every intent. Yes. I see him turning the lightsaber to strike true. And now, foolish child. He ignites it, and kills his true enemy!".
As he is saying this, Kylo is feigning preparing to kill Rey, while in reality, he is preparing to kill Snoake. Right as Snoake finishes his speech, Kylo slices him in half, and Snoake dies.
This scene reminded me of Macbeth because here we have a person who ascended to power illegally (terrorizing the galaxy), very similar to Macbeth. He seems to think that he is invincible, for he has visions of what is planned for the future. Macbeth is just like this with the visions of the witches, believing that they will never come true. For both Macbeth and Snoake however, their "visions" of the future come true in ways that are twisted to be detrimental to them. Subscribing to these are what caused both character's downfalls. This scene as well as Star Wars, on the whole, demonstrates the theme of someone coming to power illegally, being told an "impossible" prophecy, which then comes to fruition.
Also here's Snoake Dying, after his long winded monologue :D
Who knew science fiction and Shakespeare could interest so cleanly?!?! I agree: Kylo Ren and Macbeth's illegal conquests of power don't accelerate their destinies but speed up their downfalls. They also both use loyalty as a pretense–Macbeth's performative loyalty to Duncan, who he plans to kill, is comparable to Kylo Ren's loyalty to Snoake, who he is loyal to at a surface level (as well as loyal to Rey). Ultimately, both men are only loyal to one person: themselves.
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