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The passage, represented as an excerpt from the FBI report, that talks about something that seems to be from “Star Wars”.

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Darth Plagueis is initially mentioned in the 2005 Star Wars film Revenge of the Sith, a prequil. During the opera scene, Chancellor Palpatine (secretly the Sith lord Darth Sidious) tells “The Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise” to Anakin Skywalker.

Although I’ve seen the movies, I have never thought as deeply on them as have our now-adult children, M, J, and R. So, after I read the post about the emails between Schiff and Epstein, I asked our kids to explain to me their interpretation of this story from Star Wars. (I did not say why, and they did not ask me why I wanted to know - that would have tainted the situation, so to speak.)

From their discussion:

R ~ Themes ~ meddling in things we cannot understand; misplaced faith; the cyclical pattern of evil...

J ~ Star Wars falls into an over-simplified binary of good and evil at times. Palpatine was obviously totally and utterly evil. But was Plagueis? His intentions were to hold on to the the people he loved, but also to achieve immortality for himself.

M ~ Interesting implication. That begs the question, was Darth Vader totally evil as well? His choices seem to mirror Darth Plagueis. I’d argue based on his emotional conflict and redemption in episode 6 (Return of the Jedi) shows that he was not.

J ~ Yes, for sure. Which is what makes those characters complex, right? In so many ways, the Jedi argue that emotional or worldly attachemnts ultimately lead to the dark side. But we see the opposite occur for Vader in his redemptions arc: his emotional connection to his son brings him back.
The only thing that makes Palpatine seem complex is the McGuffin, right? His infiltration of the highest echelons of civil society and betrayal. His actions, not his person.

M ~ Yeah, Palatine is definitely not a complex character. He’s a physical manifestation of the Dark Side of the force, that’s it. Interesting that Vader’s love for Luke becomes his salvation. Maybe the Jedi were correct in warning about attachment, but there is clearly a difference between love and attachment. Attachment led to Anakin’s downfall, but love and self-sacrifice lead to his redemption.
Ultimately, love is not only the desire for someone to stay around, but also the willingness to let someone go when the time comes.

J ~ Reminiscent of Orpheus and his attempts to keep Eurydice from death and the Underworld.

I share their discussion for understanding the Star Wars story. I cannot speculate as to why this story would be referenced by Schiff/Epstein in email correspondence.