Since this is the SciFi Section, I thought I'd display my subconscious nerdom, and share a dream I had last night. I drempt I was a Sith and Palpatine - or someone that was similar to him - was my master. I remember few specifics of what I did, but I remember how I felt throughout. Namely, I felt -angry-. A seething anger burning as a constant flame in my chest. A draining anger (perhaps the reason for the physical problems one suffers from the Darkside?) which, paradoxically, still gave me a feeling of incredible power. I kept on clenching and unclenching my fists throughout, just to feel the strength I felt was in every cell of my body. I was wondering, however, if one could consider the reason for the Dark Side corruption of one's body being linked with a feeling of tiredness one often experiences after a passionate emotional experience, specifically something such as anger? I am not saying I actually experienced what is a -fictional- thing, simply that it offered me some insight, perhaps, into what could be the foundation, as it were, for Lucas' conception of Dark Side corruption.
` There were physical problems associated with the Dark Side...? I thought their guys were just victims of "previous incidents", like Darth Maul getting that godawful face painting job at some "galacto-goth" county fair, and Vader breathing sulphuric acid vapor in that volcano. LoL I mean, frankly, it looked to me like - save for it being written in the script - that Darth Maul would have kicked both them Jedi's arses, as they seemed to move like they had 2 foot metal rods stuck up their rectums compared to him, and Vader was damn good good even though it seems he was pretty much a walking Iron Lung on a pair of tin sticks. I think you're reading way too much into it, but it seems to me the "down side" to the Dark Side was that commiting oneSelf to "evil" produced a "sympathetic" rotting of the body which went along with the corruption of the soul or spirit which came about on account O' bein' a sumbitch alla time... Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Actually, the Dark Side does slowly tax the body of its wielder. I believe Palpatine experienced this badly as his clones quickly degenerated. The Dark Side robs the mind of total awareness and puts constant fatigue on the body, most particularly if the person has used it for a long time.
Killjoy: Yes, bodily corruption. The longer one used it, the weaker one's body became. A sort of accelerated decrepification process. "Galacto-Goth"? Hilarious! But yes, Vader suffered injuries, and Maul got body tattoos, but these are not what I am refering to. IN general, Dark Siders begin to show signs of deep physical problems. Eyes taking on unnatuarl colours, skin becomining wrinkled and ghostly pale...et cetera. Obi Wan would have experienced life in a Turkish Prison if he had fought Maul alone, but Qui Gon demonstrated an immense level of skill against Maul, even to the point of nearly killing him. If he had elbowed Maul in the face and didn't knock him off the walkway, he could have easily stabbed him on the way down. Through bad placement, he failed to be able to do this. Yes, though physically, great emotions do take a strain on the body. A constant state of this would surely result in a stress that could account for some of the results. Hapsburg: How so? Arquibus: Yes.
Obsession with anything is ultimately destructive. So, if you stress yourself out by attempting to dominate the galaxy (through politics, charm and evil manipulation of the force) you should expect it all to go wrong. In 'Shadows of the Empire', Vader uses his hatred to momentarily heal himself, so in moderation, the dark side isn't too bad.
One might argue that point, if they one was completely evil oneself. On reflection, maybe the force (and its evil uses) behaves like entropy: it always increases in a closed system. However, in local areas (Vaders lungs) in may decrease. Maybe this is why the good guys always win. (And the winners always write the story.)
