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What exactly does Luke know about his father?

In the movies he sees Vader kill Obi-wan, and then learns that he is his father. But does he know more about Anakin's past, like the fact that he was a slave, and the Jedi did little to help his mother which pushed him down the path to the dark side? Does he find out that Obi-wan hacked off his limbs and left him burning by a lava lake to die?

It seems like he doesn't know a lot of this history, especially since he begins trying to rebuild the Jedi order and seems to have great respect for them, despite what happened to his father and the galaxy as a result of their actions in the past.

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    Well he'd of had Ghost Kenobi to fill him in on the truth, from a certain point of view.
    – Wiggo the Wookie
    Commented Dec 19, 2020 at 9:49
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    @WiggotheWookie yeah, he wasn't exactly forthcoming about that... Yoda too, e.g. in Last Jedi he doesn't mention the fact that he seems to have realized that the Jedi Order sucked and those old ideas should be abandoned, in fact if anything he implies that it's Luke's fault for not doing a better job of starting it up again.
    – user
    Commented Dec 19, 2020 at 9:55
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    Probably should have been talking to Qui Gin’s Force ghost instead......he saw through all the stupidity the Jedi Order possessed, and saw things even Yoda missed.
    – MissouriSpartan
    Commented Dec 19, 2020 at 14:20
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    What does Luke know when? At the start of the original trilogy he knows almost nothing. By the end he knows quite a lot. By the time The Force Awakens rolls around he knows even more.
    – Valorum
    Commented Dec 19, 2020 at 19:37
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    R2-D2 knows everything, assuming he's willing to talk and Luke knows to ask.
    – notovny
    Commented Dec 19, 2020 at 22:42

2 Answers 2

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If anyone could impart information about Anakin to Luke (aside from Obi-Wan), Owen Lars (Uncle Owen) could. Owen knew a fair bit, but his self-imposed role was to protect Luke as much as he possibly could from Jedi and the Imperials, so didn't disclose details of Anakin:

Owen: "I told you, I'm not gonna let you warp the boy like you did his father. You brought him to me to protect, and that's what I'm doing. Protecting him from you."
Obi-Wan: "I'm not asking to train the boy. You've made yourself quite clear on that matter. But Luke has potential to be something…truly remarkable. Just as his father was, before he—"
Owen: "Before you got him killed! Haven't you murdered enough Skywalkers already, Kenobi?" ―Lars and Obi-Wan Kenobi[src]

And later:

Years later, when Skywalker was twelve years old,[19] Beru compared Skywalker to his father after Lars noted he was proud of his nephew's hard work. Refusing to discuss Anakin any further, Lars told Beru that his nephew was like a son to him. Not wanting Skywalker to experience war in his lifetime, he admitted he would not let him join the Imperial Academy. [src]

Further background on Owen Lars and Luke's early life with his aunt and uncle - Star Wars Fandom - Owen Lars

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  • Ok, so he didn't find out from Lars when he was living with him. But that doesn't rule out other sources mentioned in comments (force ghosts, droids), or other possible sources.
    – Peter Cordes
    Commented Dec 20, 2020 at 3:25
  • Although this tells us about Owen Lars as a potential source of information, it doesn't really answer the question about how much Luke knew about his father.
    – keithcurtis
    Commented Dec 24, 2020 at 5:47
  • My answer only really seeks to address the time before Luke’s father revealed himself to Luke. I felt that Darth Vader was so well known to both the Republic and Empire that Luke would soon have learnt everything he needed to know about Vader. Being so protected and isolated before that point, I feel that Lars was the only reliable source of information.
    – user134768
    Commented Dec 24, 2020 at 15:25
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In the Disney+ TV series, The Book of Boba Fett, "Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger", it is revealed that

Luke Skywalker has met, and maintains a friendly relationship with Ahsoka Tano, Anakin's former Padwan learner. As a result, it is probable that he now has significant knowledge of what Anakin was like as a Jedi, from someone who knew him for years in that capacity, and is apparently willing to share information. There is no indication in the episode, but I imagine it is also likely that she spilled the beans about R2-D2.

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  • Perhaps. I get the feeling that Ahsoka doesn't share too much information about some topics, and Jedi are well known to be less than forthcoming.
    – user
    Commented Feb 4, 2022 at 16:11
  • Looking back the question and the choice he gave Grogon in that episode, I'd say there is no way he can have any understanding of what drove his father to the dark side. He's just repeating the same mistakes.
    – user
    Commented Feb 4, 2022 at 16:13

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