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As an 11-year-old boy in 1977, I went to see the first "Star Wars" movie over a dozen times. The mythic themes of the movie deeply influenced my moral compass and gestalt. In the '70s, I was completely unfamiliar with Joseph Campbell, and The Power of Myth, but like most Star Wars fans, my psyche became like putty in George Lucas' hands. Lucas brilliantly tapped into ancient archetypes in mythology that tend to strike a chord in every human being on a visceral level that seems embedded someplace deep within our species' DNA.
Yesterday, like millions of people around the globe, I went to see Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens on opening day. I love this movie on so many levels. I was particularly excited that director J.J. Abrams and producer Kathleen Kennedy are sending an egalitarian message to the world about the universal power of resilience, loyalty, and camaraderie—regardless of age, gender, or the color of your skin.
SPOILER ALERT: This post reveals the plot. You might want to stop reading now.
Princess Leia was never a cliché damsel in distress, but in the new Star Wars movie the lead protagonist of the film is a woman named Rey who takes center stage as the shining hero. Rey has been passed both the Force, and the "hero's" torch. She literally inherits Luke Skywalker's lightsaber. By the end of the film, Rey and Princess Leia, along with Chewbacca, are really the only confirmed heroes left standing to face the evil "First Order."
As the father of an 8-year-old girl, I was excited to know that as my daughter watches this film, she'll have very strong role models that will inspire her to take charge and seize the day. However, there is a dearth of positive father figure role models who survive the conflicts, or the power of the dark side. Subconsciously, I wonder how this might shape her view of all father figures, myself included.
In this film, most of the bad guys appear to be stodgy, older white men. Personally, as someone who has fought against the traditional establishment, labels, and stereotypes, I was happy to see this demographic challenged by an empowered republic that represented ethnic diversity. That said, I do feel an obligation to play devil's advocate with my own bias and ask myself if the pendulum has swung too far in a way that inadverdantly villifies or disenfranchises a specific demographic based on race and gender.
Where Have All the Father Figure Role Models Gone?
Driving home from the movie last night, I put myself in the shoes of the 11-year-old boy I was in 1977. I asked myself, "If I was eleven in 2015, and had just watched The Force Awakens, how would I have reacted to the lack of any male role models left standing by the end of the film who are willing, and able, to pursue the "holy grail" by finding Luke's hideaway using the newly discovered map?" Maybe the nonverbal exchange between Rey and Luke in the final seconds of this film is a setup for a positive father figure in episode VIII? The ending is way too cryptic to draw any conclusions.
As an adolescent boy in the late 1970s, I wanted to be Luke Skywalker. I had a plastic lightsaber, and the only real enemy in my mind was Darth Vader, who simply represented evil, and the dark side. I had posters of both of them on my bedroom walls. My daughter could triumphantly identify with Rey or Leia. . . . But, if I had an 8-year-old son, what leading protagonist would he identify with in The Force Awakens?
Near the end of this movie, Han Solo is executed by his son while trying to convince him to come home and reintegrate with his loving family. His son, Kylo Ren, declines, and stabs his father in the stomach with his lightsaber. Han Solo falls to his death from a bridge into the abyss. His death was very disturbing as a Star Wars fan, and by far the most upsetting scene in the movie. I'm still digesting what type of message the outcome of this father-son conflict sends to children about the mortality and vulnerability of their, potentially flawed, but ultimately loving fathers.
"I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar!"
During the 1970s, my mom was a political activist who took to the streets to condemn the Vietnam War, Richard Nixon, and fight for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Helen Reddy's song, "I Am Woman" was her anthem. From a young age, I've considered myself a feminist. Throughout my adult life, I've advocated for the equal rights of all human beings, as well as the power of equanimity and non-violent protest.
My father was a progessive thinker, who was born in 1932. Socially, he didn't have the skillset to adapt to radical changes that took place during the middle of his life. During the late 1970s, my parents' marriage began to unravel. It was easy at the time for me and my sisters to villify our father as being a male chauvinist pig based on how he treated our mom. It was a confusing time.
As a parent now, I realize that my father was just trying to do the best he could to provide for his family. The slippery slope of any shift in the zeitgeist of "political correctness" is the potential unintended backlash as the pendulum swings too far in the opposite direction. Is this happening with the lack of father figure role models and male mentors in America?
In November 2015, I wrote a Psychology Today blog post, "Why Are So Many Middle-Aged White Americans Dying Young?" The post was inspired by an alarming study which found that in the past decade, mortality rates for middle-aged white Americans have jumped dramatically, compared to other demographic groups.
When I put myself in the shoes of being a millenial who aspires to live the "American Dream"—start a family, provide food, shelter, and health insurance for my children, while saving money for retirement—it seems practically impossible that most millenials will be able to make this a reality. Inevitably, when this dream doesn't come true, hopelessness and cynicism could creep in. . . . Opening up someone's susceptibility to the dark side of depression, anxiety, fear, aggression, and self-destruction.
For my daughter's generation, in many ways, I think that her classmates who are boys may have a slight disadvantage in decades to come. Especially if he's expected to be the primary breadwinner. Maybe this is just a much needed adjustment to inequality that has treated women like second-class citizens for centuries that levels the playing field.
The balance of power for example in the U.S. Senate and House reflects an incredible disproportion of men to women. The same is true at the CEO level. Books like Sheryl Sandberg's, Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, and Kirsten Gillibrand's, Off the Sidelines: Speak Up, Be Fearless, and Change Your World have addressed these issues convincingly.
Conclusion: One for All, All for One
Ideally, in a utopian society, everyone would be treated equally regardless of our age, gender, religion, color of our skin, or sexual orientation. Unfortunately, there does seem to be an increasing sentiment of "us" against "them."
Ironically, the main reason I felt compelled to write this blog post was that I exited Star Wars: The Force Awakens with a feeling of exuberance that my daughter would have the type of mentor in Rey, that I found in Luke. Which I'm sure she will. However, is the deck subconsciously being stacked against boys in terms of them lacking healthy father figure role models and mentors? Where have all the modern day real-life male heroes gone? Girls obviously need positive father figure role models, too.
This blog post is written primarily as food for thought. I don't have the answers to these questions intellectually. But intuitively, I have a gut feeling that as a society we need to make sure that boys don't fall through the cracks in terms of identifying with a healthy father figure. The "hero and heroine's journey," and the belief that anyone can pour his or her heart into something they love—and someday find the holy grail by tapping into the "Force," and doing the right thing—is a message we can all embrace.
To read more on this topic, check out my Psychology Today blog posts,
- "Superfluidity: Decoding the Enigma of Cognitive Flexibility"
- "The Dark Side of Mythic Quests and the Spirit of Adventure"
- "Simple Ways to Turn Negativity Into Self-Nourishment"
- "Subliminal Cues Impact Motivation, Endurance, and Longevity"
© 2015 Christopher Bergland. All rights reserved.
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