Fascism/Legends
Fascism was a political philosophy based on militant authoritarianism. A number of laws passed by Emperor Palpatine were referred to as fascist by members of the Rebel Alliance.[1] In 13 ABY, opponents of the New Republic were derogatorily referred to as fascists.[2]
Behind the scenes
In the real world, fascism is derived from a political and economic philosophy that generally entails either radical authoritarian nationalism or big government totalitarian ideas, usually relying on big government and state capitalism. The most infamous adherents to this ideology were Benito Mussolini of Fascist Italy and Adolf Hitler of Nazi Germany.
Fascism played a large role in the creation of the Star Wars trilogy, with the story treatment notes for Star Wars (then-titled The Star Wars) made by series creator George Lucas in 1973 stating, among others, "Theme: Aquilae is a small independent country like North Vietnam threatened by a neighbor or provincial rebellion, instigated by gangsters aided by empire. Fight to get rightful planet back. Half of system has been lost to gangsters[…]The Empire is like America ten years from now[…]We are at a turning point: fascism or revolution".[3] For the most part, fascism was used as one of the inspirations for the Galactic Empire, the main antagonists of the original trilogy,[4] although it was also ironically used as an inspiration for the Rebel Alliance at one point: The ending awards presentation scene in A New Hope was based on a scene from the Nazi propaganda film Triumph of the Will.[5]
Appearances
- Star Wars: The Force Unleashed video game (First mentioned)
- Crimson Empire III: Empire Lost 2 (Mentioned only)
