Re: ....never to attack
Originally posted by Wilcar
Yoda in te ESB, says to Luke that a Jedi uses the force just as defence and knowledge....never to attack. However in ROTS he is the first to pull out his lightsaber and the firts to give a sword movement in the duel with palps. So... he attacks first? why? What do you think?
Well not to be a smartass or anything, but pulling out his lightsaber isn't using the force. Therefore he's not using it for attack in this particular scene.
This is just over-literal meaning.
It's not 'always let enemies take the first shot at you." That's a good way to simply lose your fights.
Jedi never take the overall offensive. Obi-Wan was acting to protect, not destroy, Anakin had to be stopped. The Jedi in that war fought to defend the Republic, not to invade the Confederacy. But that would have invoplved invasion of planets; if they could never attack, they would be boned pretty quickly, hmm?
Don't forget that Yoda was younger and perhaps more foolish in Episode III than in V and VI. Besides, we heard that he admitted to Qui-Gon that he had much to learn, and "your apprentice I shall become"...
Could be that he learned a valuable lesson from the duel in III. 😱
Or it could be that Lucas just wanted to change up Yoda for the prequels. 💃
Either way, I don't really give a rat's ass! 😱
Palp's red guards began to attack Yoda in the doorway, as Yoda could sense their evil intent. ('Attack' meaning move towards their weapons, which is good enough intent for Yoda who can sense that kind of thing!)
Besides, Yoda's task was to destroy the sith. There's no time for namby-pamby navel-gazing when it's time to act. It might mean striking first.
Obi-Wan, on the other hand, didn't twirl his lightsaber and stab Anakin, putting him out of his misery on the lava hillside. That act was the act of a Jedi, and later it would work out that it would save the Galaxy.