Max explores the purpose of Droids in the galaxy far, far away…
One of the biggest themes in Star Wars is even though they are a society full of advanced science and tech; many people adhere to a religion (in this case the Force) where most sci-fi universes are apatheists. Meaning they probably don’t believe in God but don’t worry either way. That’s how I always interpreted Star Trek. Anyway, religion is a big theme in Star Wars since 1977 yet one of the everpresent themes in Star Wars is robots and artificial intelligence.
Known as droids; they are ubiquitous in the Star Wars galaxy and DEFINITELY possess consciousness and feelings. Many fans don’t realize how big a deal this is and what it implies for their technological capabilities. Yet, if the “hard problem of consciousness” is so easy to manufacture; where do droids play into the Force? The Force is an energy field created by all living things and it controls the fates of the citizens of the universe. Every living being can be “felt” in the Force and everyone has a destiny. However, where do droids stand? Jedi cannot sense them since they aren’t alive and hardcore Jedi like Mace Windu doesn’t care for them and found Anakin Skywalkers’ friendship with R2-D2 to be disturbing.
In Legends, an Anzati assassin (Star Wars version of vampires) remarked that he could not read the “fate lines” on a droid and found it also to be, disturbing. This implies that droids have no fate or destiny path, and they are like holes in the Force. This is Legends of course and there were even some instances of Force-sensitive droids in the lore, but canon is much different. They are holes and since the “rules” don’t apply to them. My theory is that since the Force does not flow through them; they can work against it. R2-D2 and C-3PO always seemed to survive the most dangerous of events and R2 saved the day all the time. In my opinion, all “hero” characters should attach themselves to a droid IF they want to live longer and succeed in their missions. Mando and his friends would have never survived their standoff if it wasn’t for IG-11 coming to the rescue. And, the whole reason Kaz and his friends beat the First Order is that CB-23 lowered the Star Destroyers shields!
Droids have power in Star Wars. They are the anti-Force and they can accomplish many things without any weights restraining them as organics do.
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Max Nocerino is a new addition to the Future of the Force roster. He is a passionate Star Wars fan and loves the literature of the galaxy far, far away. Follow him on Twitter @MaxN2100 where he channels his passion frequently!
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Max Nocerino is a regular Staff Writer for The Future of the Force. He is a passionate Star Wars fan and loves the literature of the galaxy far, far away. Follow him on Twitter where he shares his love of the Force frequently!
