I’m going to chime in here with my thoughts on Rey’s training and whatnot. I hope I’m not derailing the conversation, but it’s making me think about things and want to get them out. (Also, pardon my playing devil’s advocate in some ways. And apologies if this is far too lengthy- once I started I couldn’t stop.)
I’ve come to view Rey’s training and quickly acquired skills in the Force as a representational thing, corresponding with her storyline of moving forward in life. Its more symbolic in a sense. The issue for me arises in reconciling that way of seeing the Force with the more discipline/training approach we’ve seen prior, where yes there is a symbolic aspect, but there is certainly a more proper generational tradition of knowledge and training. For Rey, its not so much learning to feel the Force and swordfight, rather its about how to control her powers and how to use them for good(?)
Now that I’m on the subject, allow me to make a quick recap so it’s all clear:
TFA: Rey is already skilled in staff fighting, roughly translates to sword fighting. No sword training necessary, but she presumably still needs to learn how to anticipate events and have slight precognition through the Force. Powers “activate” as she is interrogated by Kylo, who is possibly symbolic of her own destiny if she can’t let go of the past. (Which is Rey’s whole dilemma in TFA, stay stuck in the past and waste your life, or move forward and allow your destiny to unfold.)
TLJ: Meets Luke and starts “training.” Practices with the saber for a little bit, has a moment of self-discovery, and learns to reach out further with the Force and feel the world around her. When saving the Resistance, she can suddenly lift tons of boulders- another instance of major feats just “activating” when something significant happens. You could think of it as a milestone after rejecting Kylo Ren and cementing her relationship with her new found family (which is something she yearns for.)
TROS: She continues to practice with the blade when on Ajan Kloss, but now with remotes to train her precognition. She has also been reading from the ancient texts (which I thought got destroyed lol), so she gains knowledge of ancient techniques and wisdom. When trying to save Chewie later on, she looses control of herself and shoots out a bolt of lightning. Another case of a power activating within her at a pivotal moment. After this she no longer trusts herself and flees to Ahch-To where Luke gives her some Jedi advice.
There’s probably lots of others I missed, but regardless, whether you want to call it bad writing or symbolic storytelling, there’s moments of importance which always lines up with where Rey happens to be on her journey, and its at these moments that we see her new skills switch on. The discipline and training aspects for Rey tend to come after her acquisition of powers which represent her overcoming or being overcome by insecurities/inner dilemmas and confronting Kylo. She awakens in the Force and tries to figure out her “place in all this.”
But lets review Luke as well:
ANH: Luke tries training with the Remote and is having a hard time with precognition, it is only when he covers his eyes and is forced to only rely on his human spirit (the Force) that he begins making progress. In Martial Arts, I know there is sometimes an emphasis on not thinking about acting, because thinking causes hesitation, and with hesitation can come problems. (This will come up later.) He can only make the Trench Run shot when he turns off his computer, and again, is forced to rely on his own human instinct- ahem, I mean the Force.
ESB: Has apparently been training and can now levitate small objects like his saber in the Wampa cave. On Dagobah, Luke fails again and again because he is hasty, impatient, and too quick to give up. When he fails to lift the X-Wing, its because he’s not believing in himself fully, and cannot concentrate or focus. He’s too in his head and thinks too much about it. Thus he cannot “do” it. Afterwards, he attempts to stop Vader but is ill-prepared and pays the price for it.
ROTJ: He has presumably continued training by himself and has become more even-tempered. He now can do mind tricks/choke (depending how one interprets his entrance to Jabba’s palace) and can levitate even larger things like C-3PO. His problem now is trying to overcoming his inner anger and not letting get the best of him. He looses himself a bit during the final duel, but is able to reign it in and lets go of his anger, fear, and hatred, declaring himself a Jedi.
For Luke, his abilities are far more tame in comparison. Throughout learning Jedi skills he makes steps in proving his dedication, commitment, and discipline, all of which he learns by listening to the advice of his mentors. These traits go hand in hand with his powers and skills.
To me, there’s a clear difference in how both characters skills in the Force are presented and what they mean for their respective stories. The Force itself operates a little bit different between either trilogy, though certain principles may carry over. Honestly, I will always prefer Luke’s story here, but with more refinement I think this approach for Rey could have been equally interesting. And lets be honest, I may be looking too far into this lol.
