One of my favorite moments in A New Hope takes place between the 2nd & 3rd acts of the film, as the Rebels gear up for their attack on the Death Star. It’s a nice relief from all the action, and offers a lovely character moment between Han and Luke.
Luke, suited up and ready for action, runs into Han and Chewie packing up the Falcon, ready to abandon the Rebels after they received their reward for making the trip to Alderaan & rescuing Leia…They have a tense conversation regarding their personal morals and how they view the impending battle – but before Luke can fully storm off, Han turns to him and says, “Hey Luke. May the Force be with you.”
Of course, Han is not the only person to say this now iconic line in the film. Jan Dodonna says it after the Rebel briefing on Yavin, and even Obi-Wan offers the alternate “The Force will be with you, always” to Luke while on the Death Star. But Han’s statement implies a shift in his character to both Luke and the audience.
Obi-Wan’s statement is an offering from within his own world view, an offering to share his religious viewpoint with Luke as he continues on his path to become a Jedi. Dodonna’s is offered as a ‘good luck’. Han’s use of the phrase shows that he understands it’s incredibly meaningful to Luke and signals “we may not agree, but I respect you and your perspective.”
Han Solo, the man who’s keen on following his own path, supposedly attached to nothing other than credits, and firmly states “There’s no mystical energy field that controls my destiny”, uses this moment to not only offer a few words of encouragement to Luke, but he does so by putting aside his own, narrow view of the universe and says something meaningful specifically to Luke. It’s one of the small moments we see Han breaking away from the man we met back on Tatooine and admitting that Luke (and Leia) has already made an impact on him. He may not believe in the Force yet and he may not believe the Rebels have a fighting chance – but he still makes sure that Luke feels seen. The statement brings Han into Luke’s perspective of the universe in an incredibly meaningful way.
In real life, in the context of the world we live in currently, I think a lot of Star Wars fans could and should take the time to step out of their own perspectives. The increasing polarization of society has bled into the fandom, and it may be time to extend an offering of understanding just as Han does for Luke. “May the Force be with you” is used as a (not so secret) code to indicate ‘I love what you love’ amongst Star Wars fans. It’s time that we add the additional context to the phrase “I may not agree with you, but I respect you” because at the end of the day, we’re all Star Wars fans. And sometimes the best things happen when you choose to open your mind to new perspectives – you may just end up saving the day and forming a lifelong attachment to a farmboy & a princess.
. . . . . . . . .
Jakku Journal 