The Non‐dualistic, Redemptive Metaphysics of the Jedi

In Jason T. Eberl & Kevin S. Decker (eds.), Star Wars and Philosophy Strikes Back. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. pp. 163–173 (2023)
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Abstract

This chapter explores how the non‐dualistic metaphysics endorsed by Star Wars and Spinoza provides an important lesson about what it means to have a true idea about something. According to the non‐dualistic metaphysics of the Jedi, power‐seeking ultimately isn't a matter of domination or destruction, but of “balance”. Living things are like all other things: they strive to maintain and increase their power. But they're unique because their manner of power‐ seeking demonstrates in an especially clear way how non‐dualistic metaphysics is true: how independence and dependence, activity and passivity, aren't simply opposed but in fact interpenetrate and codetermine one another. The non‐dualistic interplay of activity and passivity, self‐assertion and receptivity, independence and dependence, is further demonstrated through the psychological lives of human beings.

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Michael Baur
Fordham University

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