|
The next time you watch Star Wars - and you will, won't you? - please notice one crucial detail: the only person who both knows and understands what is going on all the time is Leia. She knows how to get the plans safely away from her ship. She makes Tarkin believe her when she lies about the location of the Rebel base. She realizes the stormtrooper entering her cell isn't what he seems. She knows where to shoot the wall to get out of the detention block. She knows Vader is tracking the Millenium Falcon. And that's just the short list. Everyone knows The Princess is brave, passionate, committed to her cause, and high-spirited. They tend to overlook the fact that she's smart.
I was twelve years old when Star Wars was released, and Princess Leia changed the way I thought about being a woman. No one other character has touched me as deeply. Her courage and self-possession awed me. Her position as a senator and a leader of the rebellion inspired me. And her sharp tongue. . . . Well, for a young girl raised to always "be nice," it was inspiring in an entirely different way. For years afterward, whenever I faced a difficult situation it was Princess Leia I drew on for courage and confidence. And it wasn't too surprising that my relationship with my first boyfriend ended up having a great deal in common with Leia and Han's relationship.
Unlike Luke and Han, who stumble into the Rebellion, propelled more by fate than choice, Princess and Senator Leia Organa is there because she has chosen to be. She could have continued to live a sheltered, priveleged life on Alderaan and Coruscant. Instead, she puts herself in harms way in order to do what she believes is right. She sees the evil the Emperor is inflicting on the galaxy, and she takes a stand against it, knowing it could cost her her life.
I have some issues with the way Leia is developed after "Star Wars", but every movie, novel and comic book do maintain her defining characteristic: public service is her vocation. She uses all her assets -- royal and political position, courage, rhetorical powers, intelligence, passion, and Force sensitivity -- to advance the cause of freedom, democracy and peace for the galaxy. As long as there is a threat to the Republic/Alliance, she will continue to fight for the billions of beings, non-human as well as human, whose lives are at stake.
|
|
| "I happen to like nice men." "I'm 'nice men.'" |
My favorite portrayal of Leia is in "Captive to Evil," which relates the story of Star Wars from Leia's point of view. The story presents Leia as someone with royal and political authority, as a resourceful covert agent, and as a very young woman who faces terrifying circumstances with great courage. If you thought her dialogue was wonderful, wait until you read what she didn't say!
Books, Links, Sounds and Artwork |
