When George Lucas created Star Wars, he wasn't just dreaming up a galaxy far, far away out of thin air. Instead, like any creative, he was pulling from different influences—ancient mythology, pulpy adventure serials, and his own vision of storytelling—to craft something that would resonate with people. But here’s the thing that we can sometimes forget: Lucas always intended Star Wars to be a story for kids. Yep, all those epic lightsaber duels and galactic battles were designed to give 12-year-olds a modern-day myth they could grow up with.
About halfway through his now-infamous 2015 interview with Charlie Rose (which can be viewed here), Lucas said the following:
"When I started to go into Star Wars, they said, 'Why are you making a children's film?' I said, 'Well, 'cause I think I could have more of an influence on people. And I think I can have things to say that I can actually influence kids. You know, adolescents, twelve-year-olds.' And, you know, [they're] trying to make their way into the bigger world. And that's basically what mythology was, was to say, 'This is what we believe in, these are our rules. This is what we are as a society.' And we don't do that. The last time we were doing that was Westerns. And, of course, this is in the seventies, and the Western sort of piddled out in the fifties. So, it's like we didn't have any national mythology. So, I said, 'I want to try this and see if it works. And I'm just doing it, you know, and it'd be fun because, you know, I like spaceships, I like adventure, I like fun, I like all this stuff. So, I'll do it.'"
This is Lucas's vision laid out plainly: Star Wars was meant to fill a gap in modern storytelling by offering adolescents a framework for understanding the world—one rooted in mythology. His statement provides the authorial intent, a critical piece of context for understanding not just Star Wars as a franchise, but Star Wars as a story. By starting with what the author is trying to accomplish, we gain a foundation for interpreting the films on their own terms. That's why it's important we take Lucas at his word here—and there's certainly no reason, given the context of this interview, that we would say Lucas is lying or being untruthful here.
In hermeneutical terms, this is about recognizing the author's intent—the purpose and vision behind the work as articulated by its creator. Lucas didn't make Star Wars to be a cynical deconstruction of genre tropes or a story for niche audiences. He made it for kids, drawing on universal themes of good and evil, heroism, and personal growth to inspire a new generation. To further the point, journalist Dale Pollock's biography of Lucas, Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas, quotes him as saying, "I wanted to make a kids' film that would strengthen contemporary mythology and introduce a kind of basic morality."
Ignoring the context provided by authorial intent often leads to misinterpretations, where the story is judged by standards or expectations that Lucas never set. Instead of asking, "What is Lucas trying to say?" we get bogged down in debates about how Star Wars should align with adult preferences, fan theories, or modern sensibilities. But if we start with the creator's intent, we can approach Star Wars for what it truly is: a mythic, adventurous story designed to entertain and guide kids, while still holding deeper meaning for adults who engage with it thoughtfully. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most prominent inspirations behind Star Wars and explore how they shaped the saga—and why understanding them gives us the best context for interpreting these stories.
The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell and the Heart of Myth
If you've ever heard someone talk about Star Wars being a modern myth, it's likely because of Joseph Campbell, one of Lucas's mentors, according to Lucas himself. Campbell's book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, introduced the concept of the "monomyth," or what's commonly called the "hero's journey." This is the familiar and, as Campbell argued, "universal" narrative pattern where a hero sets out on an adventure, faces challenges, undergoes transformation, and returns changed. Sound familiar? It's basically the blueprint for Luke Skywalker's journey (and many, many other heroes).
Lucas openly credited Campbell's work as a major influence, saying in a 1999 interview with Bill Moyers (which you can read here), "Joe Campbell, who asked a lot of the interesting questions and exposed me to a lot of things that made me very interested in a lot more of the cosmic questions and the mystery. And I've been interested in those all my life, but I—I hadn't focused it in the way I had once I got to be good friends with Joe." Campbell's ideas helped Lucas to craft the structure of Star Wars. Earlier in that same interview, Lucas noted, "Well, when I did Star Wars I consciously set about to recreate myths and the—and the classic mythological motifs. And I wanted to use those motifs to deal with issues that existed today." Campbell's idea of a "universal myth" was a way to tap into storytelling that feels timeless, something that would resonate with everyone, no matter their background—but most especially with children.
 |
| Credit: USC |
Take Luke's arc in the Original Trilogy and compare it with the familiar "hero's journey" myth cycle:
- He's the farm boy called to adventure (literally by the mentor figure of Ben Kenobi).
- He crosses the threshold into the wider galaxy, leaving his home behind.
- He faces trials and temptations before confronting his own fears and emerging as a hero.
Campbell's influence makes Star Wars feel both specific (it's Luke's story) and universal (it could be anyone's story). And this mythic foundation is a big reason why the saga has endured for decades, and why Luke's story continues to hold meaning for so many.
The 1950s and 1960s: Lucas's Formative Years
Before Star Wars, George Lucas grew up in the 1950s and early 1960s, an era when television was becoming the dominant form of entertainment. Shows like The Lone Ranger, Zorro, and Adventures of Superman carried forward the spirit of the old 1930s and ’40s adventure serials that Lucas admired—shows like Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers. These were short, episodic stories full of dashing heroes, daring rescues, evil villains, and cliffhanger endings. If you’ve ever wondered why Star Wars starts with a text crawl before jumping straight into the action, that's why. It's Lucas tipping his hat to those serials.
At the same time, the rising popularity of science fiction reflected the optimism of the post-war Space Race and the anxieties of the Cold War. Films like The Day the Earth Stood Still and Forbidden Planet, alongside TV shows like Captain Video and His Video Rangers, combined futuristic imaginings with themes of heroism and morality, leaving a lasting impression on the young man. Remember Commander Cody from the Prequel Trilogy? His name is an homage to Commando Cody, the hero of a number of sci-fi serials in the early 1950s.
All of these influences became "foundational texts" for Star Wars. Lucas blended the serialized excitement of the shows he watched as a child with the mythic depth he found in Joseph Campbell's work, creating a story that, as a result, felt both thrilling and timeless. The cultural duality of his formative years—hope for the future paired with the stark ideological battles of the Cold War—shaped the black-and-white morality of the saga's early days. Sure, Lucas stole from what had inspired him, but he went beyond just replicating these influences; he elevated them using mythology, turning a love of swashbuckling adventure and imaginative sci-fi into a mythic tale.
Why Star Wars Is (and Always Has Been) for Kids
As noted earlier, Lucas has been saying for over twenty years now that Star Wars is for kids. Specifically, twelve-year-olds. He wanted to create a story that would serve as a moral guidepost, a modern myth to help kids navigate the challenges of growing up. Think of it like a galaxy-sized fable with lightsabers.
But the focus on a younger audience doesn't mean the stories are simplistic. In fact, Lucas's genius lies in part in creating a narrative that kids can understand but adults can still find profound. It's like that old idea from C. S. Lewis and his dedication of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: "Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again." The themes of hope, redemption, and the struggle between good and evil are universal (that is, mythic)—but they're told in a way that's accessible to younger viewers.
This focus on children also explains why Star Wars has such a strikingly clear morality: the heroes are heroes, the villains are villains (at least until their redemptive arcs), and the stakes are big. But the messages—like trusting your instincts or believing in hope—are straightforward. Approaching Star Wars with this in mind helps us keep a clear-eyed perspective on the way the story is told. It's both a fun space opera, and a story designed to inspire and guide—which, ultimately, is part of what makes it so important! It is, in a sense, educational, and this is part of the original intent.
So, What Does This Mean for How We Watch Star Wars?
Understanding the influences behind Star Wars—mythology, adventure serials, the landscape of the '50s and '60s, and its role as a modern-day fable—helps us frame what in hermeneutics we would call the historical context. It serves to help us remember the story's purpose: to entertain, inspire, and teach younger audiences while still offering something meaningful for adults. These films weren't necessarily made for adults to dissect endlessly or for fans to argue over how the franchise should evolve. They were originally made to give kids a modern myth that teaches basic morality.
And here's the truth we all have to reckon with: once we've grown up, we're no longer Star Wars' target audience. That doesn't mean we can't enjoy it, or find deeper meaning in it as adults. Far from it! The best myths, after all, grow with us. They reveal new layers of meaning when revisited later in life. But if we approach Star Wars expecting it to cater to adult preferences or modern complexities, we risk losing sight of what it was always meant to be: a story for kids that speaks to timeless truths.
This is what makes Star Wars a generational phenomenon. Kids grow up with it, carrying its lessons into adulthood, only to pass it on to the next generation. It's a story that evolves not because it changes, but because we do. Each generation of twelve-year-olds finds something new to love, something new to learn, while adults find themselves rediscovering the wonder and some nuggets of wisdom they might have missed as children. But to truly understand the phenomenon that is these films, to see it for what it is, we have to step back and appreciate it the way George Lucas intended: as a myth that entertains, inspires, and teaches the young, while giving everyone else a chance to feel young again.
So, the next time someone dismisses Star Wars as "just for kids," remember: that's pretty much the point. And it's not a bad thing. By keeping an eye on its intended audience and purpose, we can better appreciate the saga for what it is—a modern myth for every generation.
No comments:
Post a Comment