"That old man is just a crazy wizard" -- Owen Lars, Star Wars: A New Hope
Obi-Wan Kenobi's character travels an interesting arc over the course of the saga, transforming from the virtuous knight portrayed in the prequel trilogy to a different archetype in Episodes IV-VI, the wizard. Even though Obi-Wan isn't the only wizard archetype in the saga (Yoda could also be characterized as a wizard, while Darth Sidious/Palpatine may be characterized as an evil wise guide or a sorcerer), he is the only one who evolved from a different archetype over the course of the story. And of all the wizards, he has the greatest influence on Luke Skywalker's journey.
For the most part, Obi-Wan serves as a mentor in both trilogies. Interestingly enough, he fits that role in a more traditional sense in the Imperial trilogy because of the greater age difference between Obi-Wan and Luke than between Obi-Wan and Anakin in the prequel trilogy. Mentors do not need to be old, but many of them in fiction are of advanced age. Greater age brings experience and with that, often comes wisdom. (It's not uncommon for wizards in fiction to be thousands of years old.) George Lucas modeled Obi-Wan in part after the elder swordmasters found in Japanese samurai tradition. He even considered casting Toshiro Mifune, who frequently appeared in Akira Kurosawa's samurai epics, in the part.
Even though he was a powerful Jedi Master and he once fought in the Clone Wars, age and years in exile made Obi-Wan "too old for this sort of thing," as he put it in A New Hope. It is no longer his role to be the hero in an adventure. It's his turn instead to pass on the values and traditions of the Jedi Order to Luke Skywalker, and to set him on his quest. Even though Obi-Wan does not practice "magic" in the usual fantasy sense, his knowledge of the Force and his abilities as a Jedi Master give him a supernatural power that differentiates him from other wise men or guides. For this reason, "Ben" Kenobi fits the wizard archetype.
The wizard is actually one type of helper a hero encounters. Joseph Campbell wrote in the chapter on Supernatural Aid in The Hero With A Thousand Faces that the helper figure is usually female but "not infrequently, the supernatural helper is masculine in form. In fairy lore, it may be some little fellow of the wood, some wizard, hermit, shepherd, or smith who appears to supply the amulets and advice the hero will require. The higher mythologies develop the role in the great figure of the guide, the teacher."1
The wizard serves several purposes. The first thing he does is seek out the hero for the quest. Merlin seeks out Arthur, who had been living in exile and was oblivious to his heritage and his destiny. The wizard Gandalf seeks out Frodo Baggins in the Shire at the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring. Allanon, the last Druid, comes to Shady Vale to seek out the last descendant of the Shannara king, Shea Ohmsford. In an interesting variation of tradition, Obi-Wan does not show up at the Lars homestead to take Luke away for Jedi training. Instead, it is Artoo's "escape" from the moisture farm that draws Luke away from home (Artoo of course was carrying Princess Leia's message for the Jedi Master). But the mysterious "hermit" arrives out of nowhere in time to save Luke from the Sand People, so perhaps Obi-Wan was indeed seeking out Luke without his knowledge after all.
The wizard is often connected with the hero's past. Merlin used his magic to disguise Uther Pendragon and deceive his slain enemy's wife, Queen Igraine, contributing to Arthur's conception. He was also the one who placed the boy in hiding when Arthur was an infant. Gandalf knew Frodo's uncle Bilbo Baggins from their adventures in The Hobbit. Obi-Wan knew both of Luke's parents -- he'd trained and practically raised Anakin, while he'd shared adventures alongside Padmé Amidala. Obi-Wan also took the newborn and orphaned Luke to Tatooine for safekeeping from the Sith.
The wizard gives the hero a talisman, reveals the hero's latent powers and/or his destiny, and entrusts him with the quest. In one version of Arthurian legend, Merlin has Arthur pull the sword Excalibur out of a stone, proving to all he is the rightful heir to England's throne. In another version, he brings Arthur to receive Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake.2 Arthur has no magical powers of his own, but he is guided on his destiny to rule England by Merlin. Gandalf ensures the One Ring is given to Frodo. Again, Frodo has no powers of his own but the One Ring does and by its nature it transforms its possessor. Gandalf also joins the Fellowship in its quest. Allanon reveals to Shea Ohmsford that he possesses royal Elven blood and is able to wield Elven magic. More importantly, the lineage allows Shea to wield the magical Sword of Shannara. Obi-Wan gives Luke his talisman, Anakin's lightsaber, and reveals to Luke that he too has potential to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi like his father. He encourages Luke to join him in rescuing Leia.
The wizard has his own agenda and often keeps secrets. In The Hobbit, Gandalf would vanish from time to time without elaborating to anyone where he'd been. Allanon rarely revealed everything to Shea, his brother, their friends, or to subsequent heroes in the story. They were often frustrated with Allanon; some of them even distrusted him. Obi-Wan kept the truth about Anakin/Vader from Luke and it's often debated whether he intended to have Luke unknowingly kill his own father. In any case, Obi-Wan did not think Luke was ready to handle the truth about his parentage and feared it would leave him vulnerable to Vader and the Emperor.
It is interesting to note an argument that "Obi-Wan and Yoda differ from the Wise Guide in traditional fairy tales in that their wisdom is limited: they disagree, they may misjudge. They are dismayed and predict disaster when Luke takes leave from his training to rescue his friends. But in fact Luke partially succeeds, and does not himself fall into the Dark Side as they feared."3 This is perhaps a modern convention, where in the past a wise guide or wizard may not always be of impeccable character, but he was nevertheless always right. Both Obi-Wan and Yoda seem to have abandoned the prophecy of the Chosen One and both believed Anakin was lost forever. The events of Return of the Jedi proved them wrong.
Killing off the wizard is often a necessary plot device so that the hero learns to stand on his own. But this doesn't mean the wizard cannot make a return from the great beyond to guide and advise the hero when needed. Allanon dies in one of the Shannara novels, only to return as a spirit who is called upon from time to time for assistance. Gandalf dies in Fellowship of the Ring, only to return as Gandalf the White. Merlin does not precede Arthur into death, but he vanishes mysteriously. Thereafter he invisibly advises Arthur on occasion.4 Obi-Wan sacrifices himself during a lightsaber battle with Darth Vader. Initially, he advises Luke in the form of a disembodied voice that apparently only Luke can hear. Then he later appears as an apparition, having fully mastered the technique of retaining his identity after death. He continues to advise and guide Luke during the rest of the saga.
The most important function the wizard serves however, is as protector and guide. "What such a figure represents is the benign, protecting power of destiny."5 Gandalf leads the Fellowship on its journey. Merlin "tells (King) Arthur of his destiny to unite the kingdom, and uses his magic and wisdom to help the young king."6 Obi-Wan "shields Luke from dangers along the journey"7 at first, taking control of getting into Mos Eisley safely and finding a pilot in the cantina. At the beginning of their relationship, Obi-Wan saves Luke twice, once from the Sand People and again from rough characters in the cantina. It's Obi-Wan who negotiates with Han Solo to get passage to Alderaan. It's Obi-Wan who gives Luke his first Jedi lessons -- leading Luke into what Obi-Wan called "a larger world" -- and who comes up with the plan to escape the Death Star. It's at this point that Luke, left alone with his new companions, is strong enough to take his first steps as a hero by initiating the rescue of Princess Leia.
Obi-Wan may not have a floor-length beard, a pointed hat, and a magical staff, but he is in essence a wizard over the latter half of the saga. By serving as the wizard in the story, he not only makes it possible for Luke to claim his destiny but also makes it possible to save his old friend from the Dark Side.
Footnotes:
1. Campbell, Joseph. The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1948.
2. Wikipedia, "Excalibur."
3. Ellwood, Gracia Fay; Robin, Doris; Vibber, Lee. In A Faraway Galaxy: A Literary Approach To A Film Saga. Extequer Press, Pasadena, CA, 1984.
4. Star Wars: The Power of Myth. Dorling Kindersley, New York, 1999.
5. Campbell.
6. Star Wars: The Power of Myth.
7. Hanson, Michael J. and Kay, Max S. Star Wars: The New Myth. Xlibris, 2001.
