Plot Summary for Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope

Plot Outline

In galaxy far, far away, the Rebel Alliance had just stolen the plans for the Empire’s Death Star space station. The starship belonging to Princess Leia, a prominent leader of the Rebel Alliance, which is carrying the plans, is captured by an Imperial Star Destroyer. During the ensuing battle, Princess Leia slips away, where we see her giving the secret documents and a cry for help directed at Obi-Wan, a Jedi and old friend, to R2-D2, a maintenance droid. After R2-D2 and C-3PO (another droid aboard the ship) escape on an emergency pod, Darth Vader takes Leia as prisoner, where Vader demands to know where the plans are. She refuses.

R2-D2 and C-3PO crash land on the closest planet, Tatooine, where the set off to find someone to help them. After some squabbles between the two friends, they separate and go their own different ways. They are both, however, captured by Jawas, who then put them for sale. The Jawas then sell both of the droids to Owen Lars, an inhabitant of Tatooine. Luke Skywalker (Owen’s nephew) is then put with the task of cleaning the droids, where he accidently comes across the secret message. The only person he can think of with the last name of “Kenobi” is Ben Kenobi, a person who lives in the desert of Tatooine.

During the night, R2-D2 slips away to find Ben. Luke goes out to find R2, towing C-3PO along with him. They find R2, and, after an unfortunate event, Ben saves them. Ben explains that he used to be called Obi-Wan before the civil war, when he was a Jedi. He also tells Luke that his father, Anakin, was a Jedi before he was killed by Darth Vader himself. He explains the Force to Luke, and how Vader (who we find out is Luke’s father) was subdued by the evil part of the Force. Ben...

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...hen Luke discovers that Ben is really Obi-Wan, an old Jedi Knight who has been hiding, which allows Luke to begin to understand the Force and why it acts the way that it does, as well as the conflict between good and evil; when they find the thermal port in the Death Star plans that will allow them to blow it up, which allows them to go out on a mission to destroy the Death Star; When Luke finds the battle plans and message to Obi-Wan as he is cleaning R2-D2, giving him the allowance to question what is really going on and eventually join the Rebel Alliance

Main Climax – when Luke turns off the computers on his fighter jet and uses the good side of the force to shoot into the thermal port and blow up the Death Star

Falling Action or Denouement – The Death Star blows up, Luke returns back to the Rebel base a hero, and he begins his journey of becoming a Jedi Knight.