What's In A Name?

I mean, really, what is in a name? Here, I will stop to pose a question:

When is the last time you have honestly stopped to think about what the name of your beloved saga really means?

In all honesty, I haven't thought about it in years, and then only once. We just toss the name "Star Wars" around loosely. We don't give it great care and thought, we just take it for granted. But have you ever really thought about it?

1. Star: a natural luminous body visible in the sky especially at night

2. Wars: a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations

So, the very name of our beloved saga means pretty much this: A state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between the states or nations that exist among the luminous bodies visible in the night sky.

Our galaxy is supposed to be at constant war! Its very name declares as much! We sigh and we fret over the same old plots that constantly pop up whenever Del Rey launches a new series, but there you have it, folks! Star Wars, the very name, insists that such be the case. The galaxy must always be in a state of war, with the exception of a few years here and there. According to its name, that is.

So I ask you this: Do you believe we should change this? Of course we certainly can't call it Star Hugs, but should we tone down how religiously we follow the name of the saga? Must it always be in a state of conflict?

In my personal opinion, I think it must. I don't believe the Star Wars galaxy should ever be at peace. As such, it would defy the very foundation upon which it stands, a foundation of good against evil. While I do believe that we can touch on the individual peaceful states here and there throughout the galaxy, the universe itself must always be at war. That's the way it was meant to be, and to abandon it, we abandon the very thing we fell in love with.

So, forgive my philosophical ramblings tonight, but this is something I often wonder about, and I'm just curious as to the opinions of others. Smile

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

This is the second thread you've made with the same name (the first was about our real names). Wink

Should the galaxy be at war forever? I don't think it has to be at war, but there always has to be tension (i.e. Fate of the Jedi). Otherwise the series would die.
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Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.

Oh, did I? Whoops. That was a long time ago...I completely forgot about it! Trust me, this is no Romeo and Juliet fan. I suppose the phrase just sticks in my head. Smile

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Master Joined: 11 Jun 2009 Posts: 1354

Heck, the planet Earth has only had 300-something days of world peace in the last 4,000 years... How can you expect to keep a whole galaxy conflict-free? Laughing

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Point.

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Master Joined: 11 Jun 2009 Posts: 1354

Besides, what fun is Star Wars without a bunch of battles?

I just wish they stopped being so gloomy and killing off good characters like Chewie... Luke and co. doesn't need to be in EVERY battle...
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But it doesn't always have to be a full-scale galaxy-wide war. There could be a period of smaller conflicts.
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All things die, Anakin Skywalker, even stars burn out.

So this is how liberty dies....with thunderous applause.

Those without swords can still die upon them

The world is a mess and I just need to rule it.

I can see that. Some smaller-scale conflicts might be a good change of pace.
_________________

Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.

There's been Star Wars novels where the galaxy wasn't at war, but there has always been battles of some sort. Violence and conflict seem to be a necessity. At bare minimum there has to be a one on one fight be it space or person to person.

Which gets me thinking, what is the least violent Star Wars novel? Seemed like Wildspace was pretty tame.
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I've never read Wild Space, but I know there were no fatalities in Outcast and I don't remember that ever happening in a Star Wars book (unless I just forgot).
_________________

Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.