Meaning
What does So This Is How Liberty Dies mean?
So this is how liberty dies is a famous movie quote, uttered by the character of Padmé Amidala in Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of Sith.
The movie was part of the Prequel Trilogy, a saga which received massive criticism and led to the birth of many memes due to its cheesy dialogues and acting.
So this is how liberty dies features in many memes which are mostly ironic jokes, usually mocking authorities and political events.
The full quote is “So this is how liberty dies: with thunderous applause”.
Aside from featuring in various memes, the quote is often used as a reaction image as well, both in still and in GIF formats.
Origin
What's the origin of So This Is How Liberty Dies?
The infamous line was spoken by Senator Padme Amidala (played by Natalie Portman) in Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of Sith, directed by George Lucas.
The movie premiered worldwide in 2005.
One of the main storylines of the movie revolves around the two political forces: Jedi and Sith. As we follow Padmé taking part in the Jedi council, a coup – executed by Chancellor Palpatine – unfolds before our eyes.
Padmé turns to her ally Organa in disbelief and utters: “So this is how liberty dies”.
Spread & Usage
How did So This Is How Liberty Dies spread?
Like all the other Prequel-based memes, so this is how liberty dies spread mainly on Reddit, more precisely within the r/PrequelMemes subreddit.
The meme was a huge success from very early on and it has appeared on all major meme sites eventually, like Me.me, Memegenerator or Imgflip.
External resources
- Quora.com – What does Padmé Amidala mean when she says “So this is how liberty dies…with thunderous applause.”?
- Dorksideoftheforce.com – The best quotes from each film in the prequel trilogy