Jabba the Hutt and Slave Leia: Drool and Discuss

Its a small point I'm bringing up, but I'm really trying to invigorate this community with some proper discussion. I know that a lot of these topics have been talked of previously, but this is a small one I haven't seen a topic of in awhile.

Its no secret that many of us constantly strive to look for details indicating just what sort of relationship Jabba and Leia had with one another. Some argue she was merely a pet and trophy, that Hutts are hermaphrodites and can't possibly be attracted to humanoid women sexually. Others of you look at the slobbering passes and advances Jabba makes towards the princess, at the metal bikini outfit she is forced to wear and can only conclude that she was clearly made to be the Hutt's new pleasure slave and to serve in all his slimy and lustful desires. We watch hers and Jabba's actions towards one another in that small space in the film, him pulling on her chain only to be met with mild resistance from the princess. We see her go from cringing and looking away in horror when he first tries to kiss her to throwing herself wantonly into his loathsome embrace with the slightest tug of her leash, with little to no real disgust apparent.

But after watching some commentary, I think I may have found another neat little point that truly shines some very clear overtones on just how submissive Jabba was with Leia. Because from the moment she utters "We have powerful friends, you're going to regret this." all the way to the point where she chain-chokes the gangster, she is practically NO DIALOG.

This is Princess Leia here. She has gotten mouthy with all of her friends, even from flirtatious remarks from Han Solo that she considered uncalled for. She was all huffy and defiant with Vader, even as he threatened and had her committed to rounds of torture from his torture droid. She even mouthed off to Tarkin himself before he blew up her home planet. She's a feisty and strong woman.

But then she encounters Jabba, and it seems that all this fire and passion seems to give way for a docile, quiet, and non-disgusted slave girl, clad in dancer's veils. She doesn't snap at the Hutt when her chain is ever pulled. She doesn't attempt to push away his tail as it rubs and wiggles against her bare thigh. When Jabba is pronouncing her friend's execution, his pudgy hands groping and petting all over her back, she merely shows a hint of annoyance and not utter revulsion. Even her embrace with the slug on the sail barge, where he utters that "She'll soon learn to appreciate him." is met with little more than a few doe eyed looks of fear, confusion and acceptance.

Are these pangs of resistance when her chain is tugged signs of the Princess' former defiance coming through, or mildly playful retorts to her new Master? When she looks on in pain, holding her collar as Luke comes close to being devoured by the rancor, are those grimaces of worry, or wistful frustration at being forced to watch such carnage instead of indulging in another session with her bloated Hutt lord, with his wiggling tail against her legs a constant reminder of those forbidden pleasures? Are those looks of annoyance as she is groped and fondled meant for Jabba, or perhaps meant for her so-called friends whom she would rather forget about in favor of serving Jabba and embracing her new life as his slave girl?

She is being broken in when we see her in that bikini, my fellow slave girls and Hutts. Jabba gives her a nice, sloppy kiss when she shows defiance, and the next we see of her, she's wearing a skimpy outfit picked out by Jabba himself, showing no real resistance to him and his advances, and is completely silent.

This isn't biding her time and waiting for the moment to strike against Jabba. This isn't letting the Hutt do as he pleases fo fear of upsetting the plan Luke has, or risking the safety of her friends.

She is submitting to Jabba. Submitting to her master and debating if that new life she has is actually preferable to the one she had previously.  

I think I have to agree with Sulla the Hutt.  I think she only merely learned to be silent or else risk being strangled and was binding her time but since we don't know and only have our fantasties of what happened but it is most likely during that night she quickly learned to silent.  Cause yeah as she spoke out you saw a tug on the chain.  Perhaps that lick that followed was Jabba looking foward to punishing Leia for that.   

@jabba628

But also Jabba just tugged and yanked on Leia's chain when Luke was there, demonstrating his dominance over her, and I also think Jabba got off by pulling on her chain, and seeing Leia suffer and humilated. I mean he put her in a barely there slave girl oufit, chained to the neck and degraded her. But I would also have to agree with Sulla that, she just gave up in trying to speak.

I'm with Darzura.  In the first film, Leia not only mouths off to Vader as she's captured, but she endures incredible torture and still resists to the point she's not even weary when she's brought before Tarkin even as he's telling her she will be terminated.  It's over for her but she's not even going to give him the satisfaction of having beaten her.  She's incredibly defiant.

And she exhibits none of that spirit as Jabba's slave.  Hell, compare her to Oola, who moves as far away from Jabba as her chain will allow.  Leia sleeps up against him even as his chain slacks and when Luke enters, she strikes a "proper" slave pose as opposed to a very defensive pose that Oola takes up on the throne.  The former slave almost curled up in a fetal position, while Leia's posture only flaunts her master's dominance.

She has no reason to think that Luke has any kind of plan once the execution is announced and she looks incredibly worried.  What's more, she waits a rather long time to react once the chaos breaks out at the Sarlaac Pit.  I don't think she's biding her time and she seems genuinely distressed nearly every moment she's on Jabba's leash.  If nothing else, Jabba is taming her.

Hhhhhmmmmmm, good question actually.  I would maybe say no but then again there is a good possiblity he may have.  Since he does deal in the drug known as spice and he did force supposedly forced her to drink from his wine glass while on the sailbarge.  So in way he was using a substance to control her with.  So yeah I don't think that would be that far of a stretch for Jabba to use on Leia.

When Luke is in the Rancor pit, Leia is struggling on the chain only so she can look down into the pit.  That's as obvious as it gets.

Now, keeping that in mind, when Han, Luke & Chewie are being lugged into the Audienec Chamber, Leia is struggling before Jabba, his tail flopping and slapping about next to her bare legs.  Looking more carefully at Leia's posture and behavior, however, she's leaning forward, stomach muscles clenched, teeth clenched; she's clearly in a struggle, yet even as Jabba's hand is rubbing her bare shoulder (and going pretty far down onto the front of her chest, I might add!), she's showing NO sign of actually trying to, say, push his hand off of her, or elbowing him in the bulbous gut, or anything.

It almost doesn't matter how powerful Jabba is (physically and in guard count), Leia shouldn't have any trouble giving him a quick one-two if she really wanted him to stop molesting her in these scenes.  She could've easily just jumped up to her feet and/or off of the throne, if she really wanted to get away from him.  Instead, she just struggles in front of him only when her friends are being brought in before her.

I'd say she was embarassed, honestly.  I think Leia felt really embarassed to be seen in her new state, and was trying to convey that she clearly was uncomfortable and spiteful of her place by her captor--but she knew better than to literally fight back.  Like her mental process was, "Oh no, I can't fight my Master...but ugh, what will Han think of me if he sees me?  I can't just sit here like a slave...I have to at least look like I don't want to actually be here!"

Thoughts?