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star wars - What do the sand people do with Anakin's mother?


Why did they kidnap her (and keep her alive)? Do they use her for slave labor, or what?



The tent Shmi is kept in, and apparently tortured in, is under guard, so it seems like the sand people anticipated a rescue effort. What's the story there?



Answer



Based on the Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Junior Novelisation, it appears that she was initially used as bait (by the Tusken raiding party), then taken to their camp where she was slowly tortured to death. Anakin's dreams may be prophetic in nature but it seems more likely that he was simply sensing her pain in real-time. The guards are likely there to discourage any further rescue attempts by the settlers:


Approx 30 days before her rescue



“It was just before dawn,” he said, his voice hoarse with emotion. “They came out of nowhere. A hunting party of Tusken Raiders —”
...
Cliegg was still talking. Anakin heard only snatches. “Thirty of us went out after her … I couldn’t ride anymore … This isn’t the way … been gone a month.” Anakin forced his attention back to the present, just as Cliegg finished heavily, “There’s little hope she’s lasted this long.”



Approx 20 days before her rescue




“You were dreaming about your mother earlier, weren’t you?” Anakin looked away. “Yes. I left Tatooine so long ago, my memory of her is fading. I don’t want to lose it. And lately I’ve been seeing her in my dreams — vivid dreams. Scary dreams.” His voice became lower and softer. “I worry about her.”



Approx 10 days before her rescue



Anakin opened his eyes and looked at her, and she could see in them all the torment he was feeling. “I saw my mother. I saw her as clearly as I see you now.” He swallowed hard. “She’s suffering, Padmé. They’re killing her! She is in pain….”



Anakin also notes (in his internal monologue) that the Tuskens generally torture captured humans for their own entertainment:



Anakin’s mind shut off. Tatooine was controlled by the Hutt criminal organization; it was a haven for smugglers, thieves, and other lowlifes. But even on Tatooine, the Tusken Raiders were considered vicious. They tortured people for fun, and they had his mother? He felt cold. No, Mom, no …





The Official Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Novelisation goes into a little more detail about the actual extent of her torture:



Annie was her comfort, her place to hide from the pain the Tuskens had, and were, exacting upon her battered body. Every day they came in and tortured her a bit more, prodding her with sharp spears or beating her with the blunt shafts and short whips. It was more than a desire to inflict pain, Shmi realized, though she didn’t speak their croaking language. This was the Tusken way of measuring their enemies, and from the nods and the tone of their voices, she realized that her resilience had impressed them.



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