The AtS Virtue-Chart of Heroic Characters
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| Title: | The AtS Virtue-Chart of Heroic Characters |
| Creator: | Tracy Duncan |
| Date(s): | October 1980 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | Star Wars |
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The AtS Virtue-Chart of Heroic Characters is a chart by Tracy Duncan. It accompanies the essay "The Chart Explained."
Both were published in Against the Sith #9 in 1980, the same issue that contained Duncan's essay, The Death of Star Wars.
Duncan was a ferocious fan of Luke Skywalker, tolerated Han Solo, and despised Leia Organa.
This article was written very shortly before the release of the third movie, meaning Duncan did not know that Luke and Leia were brother and sister, something that may have eased her mind regarding the possibility of Luke and Leia being a intimate couple.
From "The Chart Explained"
Listed on the next two pages are fifty virtues by which to judge heroic characters. These moral virtues are all positive qualities one can expect to find in any character that is put up as an example of heroism, nobility, and goodness. Opposite faults for these virtues are listed in italics next to each virtue. Two faults are added at the end of the list—two that don't have any corresponding virtues but that I felt should be taken into account. A perfect score is +50.
I charted each main character in the STAR WARS SAGA to this list, including Obi-Wan, Luke, Yoda, C-3P0, Han, Lando, Chewie, Tarkin, Leia and Vader. If the character has displayed a virtue, he gets an X. If not, he gets a 0. If a character has displayed the opposite fault, he gets a negative X (-X). If a character has displayed both the virtue and its opposing fault in equal quantities, he gets a 0. Some characters we don't know too much about yet, namely Yoda and Lando. Chewie's also a question in many ways. If I didn't know whether they had a virtue or a fault, I gave them a 0. So their scores may be higher or lower than they would be if we knew more about them.
If Ben is lying to Luke about his father, he loses those virtues marked with a (*), and falls from a +49 to a +36. He loses the COURAGE to tell the truth, TRUSTFULNESS and OPTIMISM of what Luke will do with the truth, BROAD-MINDEDNESS and JUSTICE in judging Luke, HONESTY, HUMILITY in believing he knows best in withholding the truth, LOYALTY and TRUSTWORTHINESS since Luke trusted him to tell the truth, NOBILITY, PURITY with his conniving, RESPONSIBILITY of when to reveal the truth (why didn't he reveal it before Luke faced Vader?) and WISDOM— look what resulted from his decision to hide the truth.
As you can see, in general the heroes have positive numbers and the villains negative numbers, with one exception—Princess Leia (-35). Luke is only a point lower than Obi-Wan, +48 to +49, and he had most of these points in STAR WARS, too. But where a character gained a point because of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, I indicated this with the symbol Ktesb). Or, if they lost a point by their behavior in EMPIRE, it's indicated thusly (>tesb). Han is a very interesting case. Based only on STAR WARS, he wouldn't rate quite so high (+25). Now, however, he's become quite a noble hero, mostly due to his relationship with Luke. Qualities such as GENTLENESS, COMPASSION, SENSITIVITY, UNDERSTANDING and SELF-SACRIFICE come out most strongly in Han when it concerns Luke. I always felt Han and Luke love each other more than either loves Leia.
Yoda doesn't rate quite so high as Obi-Wan (+39 to +49) mostly because we don't know enough about him. We don't know how much he appreciates Luke, or how courageous he is, or how humble or self-sacrificing. But Obi-Wan had more of an opportunity to show his stuff.
No assumptions are made on ray chart for behavior that isn't directly evidenced in either of the films. We might assume Leia has certain characteristics because she is respected by the rebels. But we have no evidence for this. {Vader is respected, too). Neither do we have evidence that she was acting a particular way in STAR WARS because she was affected by her planet blowing up and her torture, or that both films were just examples of bad days for her. I refuse to give Leia special consideration because she is a woman. She's in a war and some may feel she deserves special consideration because of this. Luke is also in a war and he has also lost loved ones, and gone through much more than Leia. The same conditions prevail for Han and the rest of the characters. The idea of heroics is that dangerous and soul-searing situations make the character a better person by giving them a chance to display their mettle, not that these conditions give the character an excuse to be bad. Leia is actually weak if she has to hide behind a mask, and can't therefore face the reality of the situations she's in. Han had his cynicism in STAR WARS, a sort of mask, which he consequently lost as he became a better person. Luke never hid his feelings—he faces each situation as he is, with his sense of self complete. If Leia is not hiding behind a mask, that means she has no feelings. That prospect is even scarier.
For my chart, I distinguish between TRUSTWORTHINESS and LOYALTY this way. Trustworthiness is being dependable and reliable, a more personal loyalty to friends. Loyalty is keeping coraraitments or obligations to a government or a cause. (The word loyalty actually encompasses both forms, personal and general). All the heroes are trustworthy to each other, except Lando who lied to Han and Leia. For Leia, we have no evidence that she would save her friends' lives if needed—rather, we saw her run out on Luke. In this way she is unreliable. I don't blame Lando for not rushing to save Luke on Bespin. Only rare spirits go out of their way to save strangers, like Luke saved Leia in STAR WARS. But Leia never even thought to thank Luke then, and she doesn't bother to repay the favor now. Leia is all Cause, with no concern for individuals. Han is just beginning to share the Cause, but he is already filled with a sense of loyalty and duty to his friends. Remember his reaction when Lando told him Vader was after "somebody called Skywalker"? He hardly said, "That's good, then at least Vader doesn't want me." It was this mention of Luke that brought on his strongest reaction. Luke is a unique and wonderful mixture of love for his friends and for what is right.
Leia isn't CONSIDERATE of others. She insults Han, Lando and Chewie, and the Falcon even, unmindful of what their feelings might be (and Han's toward his ship), which also makes her lose out on COMPLIMENTS. Never once did she compliment anyone in EMPIRE. Compare this to Luke's, "They could use a good pilot like you," and "Ben is a great man," and Han's, "You're pretty good in a fight," and "You look strong enough to pull the ears off a gundark." Unfortunately, Leia brings out Han's worst side, and his conversation with Leia results in one insult—directed toward Chewie ("Laugh it up, fuzzball.") But this is hardly worth counting, considering all theopportunities Leia gave him to insult her that he passed up.
Leia is the only 'hero' who goes a step beyond insult, she CURSES Han—"Someday you're going to be wrong and I hope I'm there to see it," which is equivalent to the expression of a wish that misfortune befalls another, the definition of a curse.
Nobility is what makes a love triangle impossible with Han and Luke. If Luke knew Han and Leia loved each other he would step out of the way, regardless of his own feelings. I feel Han would do the same, so in EMPIRE I believe he knows Luke doesn't belong with Leia and wants Luke to see it, too. It should be obvious to most how incompatible Luke and Leia are. A +48 and a -35? Ouch. That's an 83 point difference. Luke deserves at least a +45. Luke needs a woman who is gentle, humble, friendly, honest, self-sacrificing, and loving, like he is.
Han would have fit Leia better if he was the same way he was in the early part of STAR WARS. But he's a good man and much more mellow, unlike the sarcastic Han in the EMPIRE novel. I feel Han deserves a better woman, one who displays maturity, sense and understanding, for his better half.
It's strange that the virtues that are usually considered more feminine (sensitivity, warmth, gentleness) are actually stronger in the male heroes than in Leia, which is only to her detriment, not Luke, Han or Lando's detriment. These qualities only serve to make the heroes better men.
It's very unfortunate that the one female character we have is such a poor representation of all we women have to offer. I hope a new heroine, or better yet, two (we need it!) can rectify this and make the universe less-male-orientated.
I couldn't resist. I scaled the characters according to the 1-10 attractiveness measure, my Attractivity Score, 10 being perfect. This is a very biased scale, since beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I base mine on whether or not I enjoy watching the character. Leia gets a very generous 8, increased to an 8 1/2 when she smiles, which is almost never. She gets only a 7 when she purses her lips and frowns angrily, which is quite often. Leia's just not a classic beauty, which would be okay if she weren't so tough. But I she were more beautiful, and sexy, and cute, I could understand the heroes' attraction to her her. Her outfits are sexless and her hairdo matronly.
Ben gets a 10 for his knowing smile and the twinkle in his eye. Luke gets an extra point for his sexy body, which is one reason why I return to the theatre for more viewings. Han gets an extra point for his well-groomed state, and the fact that I realized I'm always looking at him in the scenes he plays with Leia. Lando has an award winning smile, Chewie's a handsome Wookiee, and Yoda's as cute as a koala. One thinq I take into account is a character's humanness in their looks. Luke gets messed up, muddy, his hair damp, and he's more attractive for being vulnerable and human. Leia always has every hair in place in her hands-off white clothes. She's as untouchable and unaffected as a statue.
As for the other hope: All I can say is, if Leia had the Force it's more than a little likely she would succumb to the Dark Side. Of course, an evil villain-ness would make an interesting character. Suppose after Luke kills Vader and the Emperor, Leia wants full power of the New Republic—and we have a new villain for the third trilogy. This scenario would at least redeem the reason for such a poorly drawn 'heroine'. Actually, she's not a heroine. She just happens to be a female character.
Reactions and Reviews
Does anyone remember Against the Sith? Nancy and Tracy Duncan's zine was a text-book on pathological character assassination. Their final issue had a "Virtue Chart" that "proved" Leia was as deplorable as they said she was. The way they had it, Leia was just barely above Vader (she -35, he -39), and Tarkin was better than both of them (-21). Obi-Wan came out the most virtuous, ranking 49 (a perfect score is 50). Y'know I can't help but wonder what they thought of ROTJ. Then again... Why bring this up? Well, lately, I've been having these attacks of deja vu while reading some letterzines. Yes, I've definitely been there before.[1]
I'm glad you'll be doing an article on Leia. It's time we rose to her defense! First, I really dislike the criticism of her character in SW. I think they're dead wrong. I think they are forgetting they are dealing with a fictional character. What the character does and says is Leia; how she does and says it is the actress who portrays her. There isn't anything wrong with what Leia actually does and says. First, she refuses to be broken by Vader and Tarkin, demonstrating courage, determination and strength. I refuse to apologise for her talking back to the enemy. Then, there's the rescue. There's been a lot of criticism for her reaction. Well, damn it, if she'd acted any other way, I wouldn't have considered her human. She's been under interrogation, capture and threat of death, she's been forced to watch the destruction of her home and family - and all for one purpose: to get the plans to the Death Star into the hands of the Alliance. Now, along come these two clowns whr did not bother to think of an escape route and, not only are they blowing the rescue to bits, but they've brought the plans back into the hands of the enemy! Everything was for nothing! No wonder she's mad; I would have been furious! Then, on top of everything, there's this damned arrogant Corellian telling her how he amazes himself. There's no doubt that Solo was asking for everything he got! What do her critics want? Perhaps she should have swooned gracefully at Tarkin's feet? Or, kissed the toes of those turkeys bungling the rescue?
Even more, I get a feeling that a lot of the resentment stems from the fact that it's a woman behaving in this fashion. Instead of applauding the breakthrough - a strong woman in video SF - they suddenly reveal themselves as Phylis Schafley clones! I believe that Han would have acted in much the same fashion (under the same circumstances) and that he would not have been criticized for it..
Leia has been called selfish, argumentative and cold. Huh? The only people-she argues with are the Empire's minions (three cheers for that) and Han Solo. And, in the first movie she argues with Han because she doesn't like him, while in the second movie she argues with him because she does.Selfish?! suppose that's why she's sacrificing everything for a cause she may not live to see triumph. She could have remained a pampered Princess. If she had not cared about others more than herself, she would still be living on Alderaan. Selfish people do not spend their lives living in caves and constantly on the run. And, cold? Twice in SW, she goes out of her way to try to comfort Luke, a total stranger. In both movies, she treats him with warm affection and deep concern. It's obvious that the Rebellion holds her in high regard and deep affection: witness her welcome She could not be an effective leader if she were truly as her critics claim- no one would follow her. As for Han: well, she argues with him in SW because she thinks he's uncaring and selfish; in TESB, she knows better, but is afraid of her feelings. Afraid, too, of being hurt. She really doesn't know where he stands. A critic asked why, if she cares, she doesn't want him to leave to make his peace with Jabba. Why? Because she's afraid that he won't come back; that she'll lose him. You'll notice that the bitter arguments end after she realizes that he really does care.
In short, in Leia we have a strong, dynamic, assertive, intelligent, independent leader - who also happens to be a woman. We really should be cheering about this, but apparently, some fans believe women should either be inspiring Barbie dolls or Machiavellian manipulators behind the throne, as long as they don't try to sit on the throne itself! [2]
Leia Organa is in some ways the most interesting of the Big Three because she presents something of an enigma. She can't be summed up in one line—"idealistic young hero awakening to his talents" or "cynical smuggler with a heart of gold." Leia's inner emotions and motivations are less obvious than Han's or Luke's, and her actions often give conflicting clues as to the Alderaani Princess' real feelings. This makes her difficult to understand and difficult for some people to like, but it's those quirks, inconsistencies and faults that make Leia a real person.
Leia's strong points are many: she's courageous, decisive and intelligent. She's an administrator, a politician, a diplomat; she can fire a blaster, fly a starship and even work on one, as well. In SW, she undertakes a dangerous mission to get the Death Star plans to the Rebels, courageously defies Imperial villains when captured and stands up to their most sophisticated torture devices without breaking. In TESB, she obviously works long and hard in the command center on Hoth and is one of the last to abandon it when the Imperials enter the base.
Her talents must be impressive to land her so many leadership positions at such a tender age. Prior to the beginning of SW, Leia was a member of the Imperial Senate and, apparently, an active one who had been involved in a number of missions for the Senate (Vader says to her, "You aren't on any mercy mission this time." indicating that she had been on mercy missions before.) It seems logical that she may have been on secret missions for the Rebels, as well. At any rate, once the Senate is dissolved, she becomes one of the Alliance's top leaders, and it is apparent that she is no mere figurehead. In TESB, she is working at the command center boards alongside General Rieekan and participating in command decisions on evacuation.
It's unlikely that Leia has landed these top positions merely because she is hereditary Princess of Alderaan. That might have carried weight on her own world, but it is doubtful that the Rebels would be too impressed by the royalty of a single world which, at any rate, no longer exists. To keep a leader of a destroyed world around as a symbol would be one thing; to give her a top administrative and decision-making role suggests considerable ability.
An impressive young woman, she nonetheless has human faults—impatience, a tendency to take command, a sharp tongue and, in TESB, for a time, an inability to face up to her real feelings. These faults are tempered by very real virtues and are outgrowths of just those vulnerabilities and uncertainties that make Leia so interesting.
Leia might be impatient and sarcastic, but she can also show great sympathy and understanding, as she did in SW, particularly with Luke. She might have a tendency to try to take over (and sometimes be very justified in doing so,) but this should be balanced against her willingness to take on heavy responsibilities on her very young shoulders.
I personally see Leia's famed sarcasm as her protection against a harsh universe. She uses it that way against Vader and Tarkin. And, Leia has other things to protect herself against besides Imperials. Alife spent in preparing to be a political leader could have left hardly any time to learn much about 'relations between the sexes" and, considering who receives the brunt of most of her famous witticisms, it is possible that Leia's use of her tongue is more in the nature or a defense than an attack.
Well, that sort of thing is open to individual interpretation. But, that is what makes Leia such a good character; just like a real person, she is open to individual interpretation. She is not Superwoman, a mass of virtues with no faults, no bad moments, no inconsistencies, but a real woman, courageous, strong-minded, quick-witted, sarcastic, stubborn— a contradictory bag of virtues and faults.
No, Leia Organa is not the perfect woman some would hope to inflict upon our heroes. But, she's not dull, either. And, in the long run, maybe that's more important.[3]
Feelings about Leia? Hmmm...that's hard. I like her instinctively and don't often put it into words. I admired Leia from my first viewing of SW. Here was a female character I could identify with - strong-willed - self-sufficient - not dependent on the nearest man to do her thinking. She didn't faint or fall to the ground and kiss the feet of her rescuers - and that's two points in her favor. All respects to our beloved Han and Luke, it wasn't that impressive a rescue. She was a change - a refreshing breath of sanity, as far as film heroines go. In TESB, Leia's grown - become more full-bodied and even more identifiable. Her insecurities about her relationship with Han make her more human. Her bravery before Darth Vader, her courage in proclaiming her love to Han in the presence of their deadliest enemies make her more admirable in my eyes. I don't wonder that Han Solo loves Princess Leia. I consider him a man of remarkable perception and excellent taste.[4]
Let's see, my reactions to Leia . . . well, the best and most complete way to sum it up would be to remind everyone about the William of Orange fugue in the Susan Solution.
I really see her in terms of William of Orange; her noble rank is hereditary, but largely ceremonial or just polite like present-day counts and such in England (come to think of it, I don't think they have counts in England!) and less important by far than her civil rank, which is elective, but which is also more or less traditional in her family. Like William of Orange's position. I see her as a young woman who has been raised to lead, who has been force into a role rather prematurely, and, whereas she knows how to lead effectively, how to plot and plan
and take advice, she is not yet a fully matured human being. She still makes mistakes. Not silly, childish, petty, immature behavior such as the people who don't like her like to force on her, but the mistakes that any statesman that young would make when put in such a position of constant ferocious pressure. She is presently a more effective leader than adult—I mean by that her leadership skills are much more highly developed at this stage than her emotional coping mechanisms. She reacts to Han from her public persona—that's the most effective way she knows how to respond, and she can be sure that as far as the public sector of her life is concerned, she doesn't need to worry about not doing it right. When Han refuses to take public-Leia for an answer, she must search out the more effective personal response. And, this is confusing—she may come up with an inappropriate response—or her response may seem, on the face of it, to be childish or petty. Like a child, she must run through her previous theories for personal relations to find the proper one. Does that make any sense? Leia, in my mind, when she seems most unlikable, most shrill, is none of those things; she is simply in a situation that confuses her. And, I identify with her a great deal. Leia and I are so much alike in some ways— I especially identified with her when I was in the Army, and not making the same mistake twice, but making every mistake in the book, nevertheless. I knew the answers. But, you have to learn to fit the answers into the situational context. I hope that some coherent opinion about Leia manages to emerge from all that! [5]
Bev Lorenstein mentioned putting together a pro-Leia rebuttal - I think it's great! Leia's never been one of my favorite characters in SW, but I don't go around downgrading her. The way I see it, Leia's cold and tough because she has to be and not because she wants to be. If she worried about every Rebel who'd been sent out on a mission/might be killed/grieved over every pilot killed, she'd be in the nuthouse on Kessel by now. And, I personally think we're going to see a warmer,more responsive Leia in "Revenge of the Jedi." She had certainly changed by the end of TESB. Me, I chalk it up to good Corellian lovin' - the very best there is! [6]
Princess Leia,of royal birth and sophisticated political training, seems to me to be an excellent choice for the pressures she must bear as Senator and Symbol for the people of Alderaan and the free Galaxy. Granted that princesses in a war-wracked universe are reared to lead their people through the difficulties of constant uncertainly. Granted, also, that politicians serving on interplanetary decision-making bodies must have the strength and stubbornness to uphold the culture of the people they represent. The Empire, her enemy, threatens to annihilate the freedom of her people and the people of other planets. Leia represents her people to the leaders of other worlds. Under the circumstances, Leia is forced to be rock-hard, centered on her own culture and accerbic with anything that may make her people weak. This loyalty goes to the Alliance as much as to her own people. When her world is destroyed, it goes completely to the Alliance.
Remember that this woman is not yet 20 and, if given an upper class education (as Earthlings know of it) likely has had little direct contact with 'ordinary' people. How then would she respond to important, close physical and emotional contact with men like Han and Luke? It seems to me that she would initially be frightened by a growing sense of involvement that threatened her sense of duty to the reason for her life. She would insist that the objects of her interest behave as she expects the people near to her to behave. She would expect them to give her the support and respect befitting a person of her station. As her situation changes and she becomes more interested in her companions- after her world, her centerpost is destroyed - she feels a great conflict and a need to grasp at anything to lean on in order to be able to continue her fight for the things she believes in. And, of course, she refuses to show or admit this.
We are all creatures of our past. Leia behaves very well under the circumstances.[7]
The very first comment that I would like to make would be that I think that she is the most maligned character in the series. I, for myself, am very interested in her, since she is the motivating force behind this rebellion. Even Vader, with all his obvious evil and unsavory characteristics rates more attention than this young woman involved in trying to overturn galactic tyranny. It surprises me, but I know there is an explanation. Fan women don't like rivals and would rather see Mary Sue Skywalker get the man. I don't think because of the limitations of the series that we'll ever find out, definitively, what makes Leia Organa run. What can be done, however, is we can try to put together a working set of constants based on her actions one one movie to another. Unfortunately, we can only work with reactions to known situations. Anything other than that is pure fiction. (Besides, as Gary Kurtz has said, "what's on celluloid is fact. The rest is fiction.") We know that she is a princess (a holdover from the old Republic?) and a senator from the planet Alderaan, and a young one at that. Was she elected or was the post given to her? We don't know, but one might think that she was elected. Her statement to Tarkin - "Alderaan is peaceful - we have no weapons." would indicates to me that it is a well developed planet in all ways; understanding of themselves and human rights. The fact that Alderaan is peaceful does not mean that Eden did exist in its form, because our heroine picked up a heavy dose of caustic wit, sarcasm and disdain for Imperial authority somewhere. Perhaps not from the court, but from incidents involving the court. Bail Organa fought in the Clone Wars, and I would imagine that relations with the Empire have been slightly less than cordial as time wandered on. Leia would have observed these happenings, and they no doubt would have affected.,So, she runs for senator thinking, perhaps, she can work to right the injustice from the inside? Possible. But, that sours, so she's now obvious a Rebel, But, the really confusing question that remains is - who else is? Her father, without a doubt. After all, he's the one who sends Leia to Ben in the first place. Without knowing what kind of government ran Alderaan, we can go no farther in the chain of command. But, did the people of Alderaan know? I think that the answer there is a definite no, which now leaves us in the wake of serious moral decisions for her and her father. They're working for truth, justice and the Jedi way, right? - but with the awful risk of the punishment of a planetful of people on their shoulders. Not just a city or country - but a planet. That is a tough decision and not one that I would make readily. She obviously has strong moral convictions and a strong sense of duty to the 'ultimate right! to be willing to risk not only herself but also her people. This leads me to the consequences of that decision - the destruction of Alderaan. A slight regression for a moment. - People often accuse the Princess of being bitchy the whole time she is being rescued. I would think that the fact that she is functioning at all is a miracle!The mental strain she had been under from the moment her ship was attacked must have been phenomenal. Let's consider this in order and then, perhaps, tally with a mental score of your own of how you would have been under the same circumstances:
a) Your ship is attacked by a Dark Lord of the Sith and captured.
b) In a moment of desperation, you program an R2 unit with stolen data and pray that he gets off the commandeered ship to complete the mission you failed, ( Add to that the addition of a neurotic protocol droid, and she probably would have done herself in on the spot!)
c) You're hauled off (quite rudely at that!!!) to the Death Star and 'questioned' for awhile, while thoughts of dead, dying and captured friends/lovers in the Rebellion are still flitting around in your head. After all, your blockade runner was probably crewed with members of the Rebellion, and you can't miss the bodies as you walk through the corridors.
d) You watch helplessly as your father, your Bee Gees poster, record collection and a planetful of innocent sheep are destroyed as an example to the rest of the populated Galaxy.
e) You are rudely awakened by a dumb blond kid who has problems formulating complete escape plans and has a pessimist and a walking carpet for sidekicks.
f) You watch the man you were sent to bring home die at the hands of Vader.
g) You are almost killed in the trash masher by the stench and the walls.
In view of all that happening in less than two days, I would think that catatonia would be more along the lines of survival! In this case, I think that her sarcasm was a mental defense mechanism that helped her survive the mental strain that she was under. Without a retreat into regal superiority, she probably would have collapsed from the shock.[8]
Leia has many positive attributes, but the one that impresses me the most is her strength of will. Over the last few years, I have become increasingly disenchanted with many of the traditional types of heroines, like those who scream in terror at the slightest creak in the floor, who flood the scene with steamy tears at the slightest provocation, who cannot function independently for five minutes without the comforting support of the nearest good-looking male, and who are invariably sickeningly cute or silly, Leia, on the other hand, is a young woman of intelligence, ability and determination. One of Leia's most impressive scenes (for me) was her briefing of the Rebel pilots before the Battle of Hoth. In some of the fan fiction I have read, Leia is portrayed as a mere figurehead with no real power. I think that this scene as well as the following one in the control center of the Hoth station show that Leia is a genuine leader who has earned the respect and devotion of her fellow Rebels.
Leia does have a flaw in TESB. Several places in the novel, she is described as behaving coldly or wearing a 'tough mask.' She seems to have difficulty expressing emotion, as though she were attempting to destroy any vestige of a personal life and devote all of her energies to the Rebellion. I think it is important to point out that she does have feelings, but is suppressing them. What is the cause of this suppression? We can only guess. The first time we see Leia is when the crew of her ship has been mercilessly slaughtered. From then until the end of the first SW movie we see her caught in the most extraordinary circumstances. It is difficult to judge what she may have been like previous to this experience. It is my hypothesis that her cold stoicism is a recent development, a reaction to the destruction of her home planet, Alderaan. Some have criticized the lack of visible grief in Leia after viewing the destruction of Alderaan; however, I doubt that tears would be an immediate reaction to such an event. Reactions of shock, disbelief and denial seem more probable to me. The fact that Leia remained same and functioning after such a traumatic event indicates a woman of rare courage and strength. Perhaps it was in order to survive and maintain her sanity that she found it necessary to deny and suppress that part of her being that feels and grieves. This is not a healthy situation for Leia. The longer she suppresses her grief, the more damaging the consequences, Han seems to understand her problem; certainly many of his teases seemed to be aimed at ferreting out her true feelings and goading her into releasing them, as if he were aware that Leia must once again be a whole person or decay into a cold, unfeeling machine.
Although Han wants to help her, his attempts seem to get tangled up in his growing attraction to her. Leia's defense towards Han's advances, of course, anger, as though she felt that by admitting affection for Han she might chip away the dam and release that part of her life that is still too painful to face yet.
The problem is resolved, finally, at the end of the movie during the scene in the carbon freezing chamber. Throughout the movie we see a gradual softening of Leia, as if she is finally coming to terms with herself. A resolution is reached when, faced with the impending, traumatic loss of Han, Leia admits (perhaps more to herself than to Han) her love for Solo. She has decided to emerge from her self-imposed prison and to face life as a complete person. After this scene, we see a changed Leia, a Leia who has faced the devils of her own soul and has overcome them. She is more energetic, more passionate and capable of compassion, as her tender ministrations to an injured Luke illustrate as well as her frantic attempts to rescue Han. She is at last a whole person.
There is one other line in the movie that I would like to comment on. In response to Leia's "I love you," Han says "I know." I like this line; I think it says much more about the growth of these characters than a trite "I love you, too." Han has witnessed the transformation of Leia from the early scenes on Hoth through the time they were together on the Falcon and to that tender moment in this carbon freezing chamber when she says "I love you." He recognizes her triumph and with a tone of pride and joy acknowledges her victory. At this moment, Han is not thinking of himself, but is totally caught up in Leia, which indicates that one slightly self-centered mercenary has done a bit of growing, too. But, that's another story, isn't it?[9]