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The History and Politics of Star Wars
This book provides the first detailed and comprehensive examination of all the materials making up the Star Wars franchise relating to the portrayal and representation of real-world history and politics. Drawing on a variety of sources, including films, published interviews with directors and actors, novels, comics, and computer games, this volume explores the ways in which historical and contemporary events have been repurposed within Star Wars . It focuses on key themes such as fascism and the Galactic Empire, the failures of democracy, the portrayal of warfare, the morality of the Jedi, and the representations of sex, gender, and race. Through these themes, this study highlights the impacts of the fall of the Soviet Union, the War on Terror, and the failures of the United Nations upon the ‘galaxy far, far away’. By analysing and understanding these events and their portrayal within Star Wars , it shows how the most popular media franchise in existence aims to speak about wider contemporary events and issues. The History and Politics of Star Wars is useful for upper-level undergraduates, postgraduates, and scholars of a variety of disciplines such as transmedia studies, science fiction, cultural studies, and world history and politics in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
236 pages, Paperback
Published August 11, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 22, 2023
An excellent examination of how the contemporary politics of the era is reflected into the Star Wars stories themselves. Extremely well written and accessible and yet deeply researched with nuanced analysis.
A must-read for anyone interested in exploring how politics can be reflected in media and how these reflections change over time.
A must-read for anyone interested in exploring how politics can be reflected in media and how these reflections change over time.
August 8, 2022
Star Wars has always been inspired by real-world events. But creators beyond George Lucas, whether they've meant to or not, have continued to draw from the history and politics of the real world to craft stories set in a galaxy far, far away. Chris Kempshall's new book looks at the connections between history and Star Wars and how real life influences the media we consume and create.
In The History and Politics of Star Wars: Death Stars and Democracy, the author takes readers through different eras of Star Wars storytelling - the films, but also the Expanded Universe of books and games - and how real-world events influenced both how these stories were told and how audiences viewed them.
An academic and Star Wars fan at heart, Kempshall uses his vast knowledge of history and Star Wars to show the various connections between what Star Wars is saying and what we can gather from its messages. How did the War on Terror change the way Star Wars books in the early 2000s were written and read? How does Star Wars continue to influence online fandom as it reacts to the more diverse stories being told?
Even if you don't consider yourself someone to read a book like this, it's worth your time all the same. Star Wars is embedded into who we are and who we will become. It doesn't hurt to learn more about the things that have continued to influence it from the beginning.
In The History and Politics of Star Wars: Death Stars and Democracy, the author takes readers through different eras of Star Wars storytelling - the films, but also the Expanded Universe of books and games - and how real-world events influenced both how these stories were told and how audiences viewed them.
An academic and Star Wars fan at heart, Kempshall uses his vast knowledge of history and Star Wars to show the various connections between what Star Wars is saying and what we can gather from its messages. How did the War on Terror change the way Star Wars books in the early 2000s were written and read? How does Star Wars continue to influence online fandom as it reacts to the more diverse stories being told?
Even if you don't consider yourself someone to read a book like this, it's worth your time all the same. Star Wars is embedded into who we are and who we will become. It doesn't hurt to learn more about the things that have continued to influence it from the beginning.
December 24, 2024
A superb historical reading of Star Wars across all of its sprawl of lore, both canon and Expanded Universe. Exquisitely researched and written with clarity, this study carries considerable scholarly heft. Kempshall historicizes Star Wars in light of the wars being waged during its production across five decades. Cannot recommend this book enough.
August 28, 2025
As a lifelong Star Wars fan, and someone who has been alive to witness the post-Viet Nam events that are discussed in the book, it was an insightful and fascinating read.
While I have been aware of a lot of the influences and themes from history and current events as portrayed in Star Wars, the discussion and analysis in the book are interesting, and will further enhance my enjoyment of current and future SW media.
While I have been aware of a lot of the influences and themes from history and current events as portrayed in Star Wars, the discussion and analysis in the book are interesting, and will further enhance my enjoyment of current and future SW media.
July 14, 2024
4.5 / 5 stars.
Academic works, in order to qualify as "academic", seem to require mental boredom and/or frustration inflicted upon the reader as a necessary feature. So I'm uncertain if this book was meant to be considered as "academic", as this book was one of the best and most fun non-fiction (academic?) works I've read. And I've read many books, including academic ones, on pop culture works, media, content production including filmmaking, etc.
This book occupies an interesting niche in works about Star Wars, being a combination of understanding the inspirations behind Star Wars, Star Wars universe history, real history, pop culture history, political systems, and political commentary (all Western, primarily U.S.). Most books on similar topics tend to focus narrowly on one area.
The book was excellently researched. I had no prior knowledge of the Expanded Universe, and the author did an excellent job of summarizing the works and tying them into his main point(s), including how the political system in the Star Wars universe compares to (Western conceptions of) political systems.
Kempshall is very thorough in his analysis. As explained by Kempshall, due to the lack of detail in political systems in the Star Wars films and TV shows, he filled in some of that missing information with the Expanded Universe material (which go into these political systems in greater detail).
I especially appreciated his careful treatment of explaining his bases for comparison, both in terms of Star Wars' and real-world systems. People often assume there's only one singular definition/perception, and/or focus on particular aspects that they think wholly defines that concept (and so no explanation is needed).
But Kempshall seemed to be aware of that pitfall, so he made sure to cover historiography and pop-culture concepts as the basis for his comparisons to Star Wars (including the characteristics that he was focusing on), and how these, and real history, possibly influenced the Star Wars storyworld.
I also liked how he covered the possibility that the conflicts portrayed in Star Wars sometimes may simply be due to storyworld/narrative considerations, not necessarily a general comment or warning that, e.g., democracy can't work and thus keeps failing, as seen in Star Wars.
This is a perspective that many academicians tend to overlook. Many of those in academia assume that storyworlds were (solely) meant to be commentary or be reflective of the real world and/or the creator's perspective, treating stories like news/opinion articles. But they forget that conflict is a main staple, often a central element of stories, especially of an epic scope/scale like Star Wars ("epic" as in the genre, not the colloquial term of being "large"). So conflict is commonly there for creating a setting or driving narrative events, not necessarily representing the creator's statement about our own world.
The latter half of the book was not as interesting to me. Here the focus of the book abruptly changes. Whereas the first half focused on how real-world events, settings, and organizations (or people's popular conceptions of them), which might have formed the basis for some of the Star Wars events and politics, the second half primarily used Star Wars as commentary.
I'm generally interested in anything to do with political science (including, e.g., geopolitics, political economy, etc.). But given the inherent complexity of such topics and the sparse details and inconsistency of the Star Wars universe (especially when combined with the Expanded Universe), it seems it'd be difficult to adequately use Star Wars to comment effectively on real-world political events, such as U.S. foreign policy. (Though I generally find political/social/moral discussions to be interesting and enjoyable within the context of fictional storyworlds)
Overall, the book was serious yet fun, detailed without being overwhelming, easy to follow with clear explanations, good organization of thought processes, well-researched, and educational. (As an aside, it also helped answer my question as to whether some of those scenes in The Clone Wars TV series involving helicopter-like transports were inspired by the Vietnam War)
Highly recommended especially for those interested in the intersection of media, content production, politics, and history, including those who aren't as familiar with Star Wars lore but have a casual enjoyment of Star Wars. I'm looking forward to similar future works by this author.
(Other possible future topics, if the author decides to write another book, might be the other conflicts in the Star Wars timeline, such as the war between the Mandalorians and the Jedi Order (including incorporating material from the newer Star Wars TV shows), a deeper examination of the ethics/moral dilemmas of war and the attitudes of those who were fighting in the Clone Wars (which were touched upon in this book), and anything to do with Andor (one of the overall best TV shows that I've watched))
Academic works, in order to qualify as "academic", seem to require mental boredom and/or frustration inflicted upon the reader as a necessary feature. So I'm uncertain if this book was meant to be considered as "academic", as this book was one of the best and most fun non-fiction (academic?) works I've read. And I've read many books, including academic ones, on pop culture works, media, content production including filmmaking, etc.
This book occupies an interesting niche in works about Star Wars, being a combination of understanding the inspirations behind Star Wars, Star Wars universe history, real history, pop culture history, political systems, and political commentary (all Western, primarily U.S.). Most books on similar topics tend to focus narrowly on one area.
The book was excellently researched. I had no prior knowledge of the Expanded Universe, and the author did an excellent job of summarizing the works and tying them into his main point(s), including how the political system in the Star Wars universe compares to (Western conceptions of) political systems.
Kempshall is very thorough in his analysis. As explained by Kempshall, due to the lack of detail in political systems in the Star Wars films and TV shows, he filled in some of that missing information with the Expanded Universe material (which go into these political systems in greater detail).
I especially appreciated his careful treatment of explaining his bases for comparison, both in terms of Star Wars' and real-world systems. People often assume there's only one singular definition/perception, and/or focus on particular aspects that they think wholly defines that concept (and so no explanation is needed).
But Kempshall seemed to be aware of that pitfall, so he made sure to cover historiography and pop-culture concepts as the basis for his comparisons to Star Wars (including the characteristics that he was focusing on), and how these, and real history, possibly influenced the Star Wars storyworld.
I also liked how he covered the possibility that the conflicts portrayed in Star Wars sometimes may simply be due to storyworld/narrative considerations, not necessarily a general comment or warning that, e.g., democracy can't work and thus keeps failing, as seen in Star Wars.
This is a perspective that many academicians tend to overlook. Many of those in academia assume that storyworlds were (solely) meant to be commentary or be reflective of the real world and/or the creator's perspective, treating stories like news/opinion articles. But they forget that conflict is a main staple, often a central element of stories, especially of an epic scope/scale like Star Wars ("epic" as in the genre, not the colloquial term of being "large"). So conflict is commonly there for creating a setting or driving narrative events, not necessarily representing the creator's statement about our own world.
The latter half of the book was not as interesting to me. Here the focus of the book abruptly changes. Whereas the first half focused on how real-world events, settings, and organizations (or people's popular conceptions of them), which might have formed the basis for some of the Star Wars events and politics, the second half primarily used Star Wars as commentary.
I'm generally interested in anything to do with political science (including, e.g., geopolitics, political economy, etc.). But given the inherent complexity of such topics and the sparse details and inconsistency of the Star Wars universe (especially when combined with the Expanded Universe), it seems it'd be difficult to adequately use Star Wars to comment effectively on real-world political events, such as U.S. foreign policy. (Though I generally find political/social/moral discussions to be interesting and enjoyable within the context of fictional storyworlds)
Overall, the book was serious yet fun, detailed without being overwhelming, easy to follow with clear explanations, good organization of thought processes, well-researched, and educational. (As an aside, it also helped answer my question as to whether some of those scenes in The Clone Wars TV series involving helicopter-like transports were inspired by the Vietnam War)
Highly recommended especially for those interested in the intersection of media, content production, politics, and history, including those who aren't as familiar with Star Wars lore but have a casual enjoyment of Star Wars. I'm looking forward to similar future works by this author.
(Other possible future topics, if the author decides to write another book, might be the other conflicts in the Star Wars timeline, such as the war between the Mandalorians and the Jedi Order (including incorporating material from the newer Star Wars TV shows), a deeper examination of the ethics/moral dilemmas of war and the attitudes of those who were fighting in the Clone Wars (which were touched upon in this book), and anything to do with Andor (one of the overall best TV shows that I've watched))
July 1, 2023
As the title suggests, this text is focused on identifying the correlation between Star Wars and real world events. The author shows extensive research into the topic and particularly points out a lot of really interesting connections to both historical and contemporary events.
Particularly, I enjoyed learning about the original inspiration Lucas was working with and how his experiences and understanding shaped the way the warfare and political groups in the OG and sequel trilogy were formed. Lucas really pulls from so many different places and makes it work together so seamlessly. There were so many small details in the design of the Empire for example that are understood unconsciously because they come from so many familiar areas in history, but to have them pointed out was really enlightening. The analysis of Watergate and Vietnam also really made it clear how, just like in Star Wars, history really does repeat itself.
One area that was a little weak was the analysis of the Jedi. There were some great questions posed, but at times it seemed like the Jedi order was a little misunderstood. There are a lot of books out there focused on analyzing the Jedi through the connections to Buddhism and some with focus on historical groups like Shaolin Monks- those books will be better if you are interested in the Jedi. But this book really nailed it with analyzing the Star Wars approach to totalitarianism, the breaking down of democracy, and the ideology vs. reality of rebellion particularly against a bigger and more technologically advanced enemy.
Obviously because Star Wars is such a massive collection of source materials at this point, not everything could be analyzed deeply, but I appreciated the inclusion of comics, books, and games including the EU sources.
Particularly, I enjoyed learning about the original inspiration Lucas was working with and how his experiences and understanding shaped the way the warfare and political groups in the OG and sequel trilogy were formed. Lucas really pulls from so many different places and makes it work together so seamlessly. There were so many small details in the design of the Empire for example that are understood unconsciously because they come from so many familiar areas in history, but to have them pointed out was really enlightening. The analysis of Watergate and Vietnam also really made it clear how, just like in Star Wars, history really does repeat itself.
One area that was a little weak was the analysis of the Jedi. There were some great questions posed, but at times it seemed like the Jedi order was a little misunderstood. There are a lot of books out there focused on analyzing the Jedi through the connections to Buddhism and some with focus on historical groups like Shaolin Monks- those books will be better if you are interested in the Jedi. But this book really nailed it with analyzing the Star Wars approach to totalitarianism, the breaking down of democracy, and the ideology vs. reality of rebellion particularly against a bigger and more technologically advanced enemy.
Obviously because Star Wars is such a massive collection of source materials at this point, not everything could be analyzed deeply, but I appreciated the inclusion of comics, books, and games including the EU sources.
June 4, 2024
Been putting back giving a review for some time now, but after my second read I feel like it's necessary.
The book gives an amazing analysis about both the inspiration of George Lucas and what the world of Star Wars provides us. The study and talk of the historical events and symbolism that contributed to the creation is detailed and easy to read, follow and understand.
Even if your familiarity with the whole Extended Universe of Star Wars is not very good (as it's my case), you will have no problem in following this book. The amount of detail not only goes to the analysis between real life and fiction, but also in providing you enwough information that even of you have never read the books or played any of the games, you'll understand what is being talked about, why and how it impacts the whole universe George Lucas created (and beyond).
As someone who loves history and feels more attracted to the politics of Star Wars more than anything else, this book was just perfection.
The book gives an amazing analysis about both the inspiration of George Lucas and what the world of Star Wars provides us. The study and talk of the historical events and symbolism that contributed to the creation is detailed and easy to read, follow and understand.
Even if your familiarity with the whole Extended Universe of Star Wars is not very good (as it's my case), you will have no problem in following this book. The amount of detail not only goes to the analysis between real life and fiction, but also in providing you enwough information that even of you have never read the books or played any of the games, you'll understand what is being talked about, why and how it impacts the whole universe George Lucas created (and beyond).
As someone who loves history and feels more attracted to the politics of Star Wars more than anything else, this book was just perfection.
January 28, 2024
Dr. Kempshall does a tremendous job of covering a breadth of sources from mainline films to comics and novels and everything in between while connecting pillars of Star Wars to events like the Vietnam War and the War on Terror and their (sometimes shifting) effect on those stories.
As someone who grew up reading the old Expanded Universe at a young age, the connection the Vong possessed to events like 9/11 went unnoticed by me originally, among other things. Kempshall has reignited my interest in those stories and I'm excited to revisit them with a fresh outlook.
As someone who grew up reading the old Expanded Universe at a young age, the connection the Vong possessed to events like 9/11 went unnoticed by me originally, among other things. Kempshall has reignited my interest in those stories and I'm excited to revisit them with a fresh outlook.
March 3, 2023
This is not so much a review as a question: did the politics of the New Mandalorians under Duchess Satine cross the authors mind. Not so much a criticism but I think Satine’s pacifism is something that is significant in the context of The Clone Wars.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews