A while back, last July to be more precise, I posted a comparison of Anakin Skywalker to Sir Lancelot. Mostly I was expounding on Anakin's tendency to make wrong choices, which ultimately led to his downfall.
So, in honor of Luke Week, I'm comparing Luke, the son of Anakin, to Sir Galahad, the son of Lancelot.
Now, I'm not expert at Arthurian Legend, but I'm familiar with the poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson that proclaims Galahad's strength is the strength of ten men, because his heart is pure.
We all know Luke is very strong with the Force, but is his ability to resist the dark side stronger because his heart is pure? Both men were raised on Tatooine by good, hardworking people. Both had benefit of the wisdom of the Jedi, both fought willingly for their respective causes. Yet, when faced with choices that could lead to the dark path, Luke always makes the right choice where his father always seemed to make the wrong one.
Yoda tells him that Jedi does not crave excitement or adventure, and Luke certainly does, but he channels that craving into a good thing in fighting for the Rebellion.
When he's first tempted by love, the object of his affection falls for another man.... Which of course turns out to be a good thing since she's his sister, but he doesn't know that at the time... so Luke does the right thing and lets her go.
When faced with the temptation of power on Bespin, he chooses to risk death instead of going with Vader, and again on the second Death Star, he is willing to die at the hands of the Emperor rather than take the easy path to the dark side. "I am a Jedi," he says, "Like my father before me," not even realizing that he will become 10 times the Jedi his father ever was.
Obi-Wan sensed the danger in Anakin when they first met, and expressed his dismay at training him at the advanced age of 9, yet he didn't think Luke was too old at 19. Perhaps he sensed that purity of heart that carries Luke down the right path of the Force.
And may the Force be with us all...
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