Yup. As far as i am concerned, when i watched Episode I for the first time i was actually lightened and interested to know more about the midi-chlorians. At least now Lucas attempts to 'explain' some of the jedi qualities thru the PT, and how their powers or senses actually 'work'.
I find the 'generic vs mystic' virtue of the Force debate quite relevant at first, but then i realise that the issue of the midichlorians do have the mystical quality to it as well, despite being allegedly generic.
From Wikipedia: Article on Midichlorians Controversy:
Midi-chlorians were extremely controversial among fans when their existence was first revealed in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. They were never mentioned in the original trilogy, and many fans believed they diluted the spiritual aspect of Star Wars by making the connection to the Force biological rather than mystical. However, it may have already been established in the original trilogy that the Force was genetic (through heredity) and passed down through families. Some argue that this was intentionally jarring; a way to imply that the Jedi Order of the time had become so bureaucratic that even one's potential in the ways of the Force was measured by a single statistic. Indeed, it would be only after the events of Episode III and toby that one sees surviving Jedi explaining the Force in mythical terms, although Lucas insists that midi-chlorians were not mentioned in the original trilogy simply because he did not want to complicate the notion of Force too much at that time.
It has also been suggested that there are two schools of thought among the Republic's Jedi. On one hand, Qui-Gon Jinn's school would state that the Force is biologically caused by the existence of midichlorians, hence the reliance on Anakin's blood analysis to measure his ability with the Force. On the other hand, Yoda's school, which is the dominant school in the Jedi Council, would state that the Force is purely a mystical interconnection between all things ("Here, between you…me…the tree…the rock…everywhere! Yes, even between this land and that ship!" he teaches Luke in Episode V) and that midi-chlorians are at most a consequence of the ability with the Force, hence the reliance of the Council on true tests of Anakin's ability with the Force, even though Qui-Gon has certified the large number of midi-chlorians in his blood. It is already known that Qui-Gon, like his master Count Dooku, is a pariah among the Jedi, so it wouldn't be surprising if he had a slightly different view of the Force than the dominant theory.
I think the Force having two school of thoughts is interesting. The Qui-Gon's versus Yoda's... it explain the different perceptions of the Force.
It just gets worse...
I have two thoughts about that piece:
1. WHy is Lucas trying to tell us all the time that everything in the PT and OT were invented all before ANH came to the screen. Fact is: he didn't and he's making things up as he goes along... which, honestly.is fine. But I'm not buying he came up with the midichlorians in the 70s and thought up the two-schools-theory. Honestly, Qui-Gon did not exist before he started wrinting the PT.
2. I hate all this explaining stuff... WHY this urge to EXPLAIN the Force. No one tries to explain God, do they? They only argue whether he exists, just like Luke and Han do about the Force in ANH.
Originally posted by queeq
2. I hate all this explaining stuff... WHY this urge to EXPLAIN the Force. No one tries to explain God, do they? They only argue whether he exists, just like Luke and Han do about the Force in ANH.
Yes, they do. Its an interesteing construct...so many people have their vision own of it based off of what we know.
I agree that it seems highly suspicious that GL keeps maintaining that he had the whole thing planned out. It looks as though he's trying to establish himself as the omnipotent creator free from inconsistencies.
The fact is, even if he had a general idea of the entire saga before hand, making 6 movies with a story line and ideals that flow would almost definitely overlook inconsistencies here and there.
I disagree though that people dun try to explain God. They do all the time. His existance, His virtue, His nature. Same goes for those wishing to 'understand the Force'. While evidently many disagree with the science of the Force, then we could always stick to what appeals to us best, such as the vague or mystical Force.
Ultimately God is what one makes out of Him, and lets just say it goes the same for the Force as well.
Originally posted by Cybervader
I agree that it seems highly suspicious that GL keeps maintaining that he had the whole thing planned out. It looks as though he's trying to establish himself as the omnipotent creator free from inconsistencies.The fact is, even if he had a general idea of the entire saga before hand, making 6 movies with a story line and ideals that flow would almost definitely overlook inconsistencies here and there.
I disagree though that people dun try to explain God. They do all the time. His existance, His virtue, His nature. Same goes for those wishing to 'understand the Force'. While evidently many disagree with the science of the Force, then we could always stick to what appeals to us best, such as the vague or mystical Force.
Ultimately God is what one makes out of Him, and lets just say it goes the same for the Force as well.
Bravo, someone who says the word. 💃
That's why I hate people fighting over religion!!!!!!
I love fighting over religion!!
So who explains God? They may give arguments for his existence, but EXPLAIN???? Who explains who one persone believes in God and why the other doesn't??? Well, not biology at least... upbringing maybe, personal experience yes... but not some hardware explanation for faith. That is rather lame...