The prequels explore two primary questions. The first, and probably much more anticipated question, was how Anakin became Darth Vader. This fall, however, occurs against the backdrop of a wider tragedy – how a democracy turns into tyranny. Unlike Anakin’s trajectory, which begins with an almost entirely innocent boy, the Republic is already starting to decline in Episode I. We see the corruption, the apathy and the decadence that allow such injustices as slavery in the Outer Rim or planetary invasions by the Trade Federation to go unpunished. Palpatine uses these circumstances, manipulates and deceives, but he did not create the corruption from nothing. And when the Republic finally becomes the Empire, it doesn’t happen by brutal force. As Lucas explained, “Democracies aren’t overthrown; they’re given away.”
This is foreshadowed by a line from Queen Jamillia. As she and Padmé discuss the alarming news of the Separatist movement, it is clear they share the same idealism. Both of them dread the thought of war, seeing it as the very last resort. They want to rely instead on diplomacy, on negotiations. War, for them, is the antithesis of democracy. It uses violence and physical force to accomplish its aims; democracy relies instead of honoring the voice and will of the people. Jamillia concludes the discussion with a somber observation.
“The day we stop believing democracy can work is the day we lose it.