The "Star Wars"movies may be set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away (or if you want to look at it from the boring real life angle, the first Star Wars movie was released in 1977), but the reason these stories have stood the test of time and become so iconic in popular consciousness is because they're timeless, with characters and themes that people from all walks of life can relate to.

That said, it's definitely true every generation brings their views and and their own history with them to the theater (or the living room couch) when they watch a film. And I think we would all agree that's pretty normal; we all tend to look for people or things we can relate to in stories, that's part of why we love them. Different people like the same thing for different reasons.

Let's start with Luke as we see him in the beginning of "A New Hope." He's nineteen, stuck at home, and feels like he's going nowhere. Sound familiar? But let's keep going. It's mentioned a few times that Luke intends to apply to the Imperial Academy, but keeps deferring his application to help out on his aunt and uncle's farm. This is an interesting tidbit, because Luke clearly dislikes the Empire and is seen daydreaming about joining the Rebellion, but apparently these feelings not enough to keep him from applying to the Imperial Academy in hopes of finding some way of getting off-planet. Luke is stuck choosing between his beliefs or the only practical chance he has of leaving home. Like many of us, Luke is stuck in a system where he only viable choices involve him being forced to aside his personal views.

Aunt Beru also mentions that Luke's restlessness was become worse recently, since almost all of Luke's peers have left home at this point. His uncle makes a few dismissive comments about how all Luke likes to do is waste time with his friends. We don't really see anything to back up this assertion, but it is clear that being with his friends is the only thing that brings Luke any satisfaction anymore (his infamous "power converters" line is said in response to being forced to cancel plans). Millennials are known to place stronger emphasis on bonds of friendship, often using them as a substitute for family. I'm sure many of us are familiar with the feeling only getting through a bad situation because of friends or feeling left behind while everyone you know is moving on to bigger and better things.

Yet despite Luke's desperation to leave home, when push comes to shove he's not really willing to do that much to get out of there. Oh sure, he talks about applying to the Imperial Academy, but he puts up much of a fight when his uncle asks him to stay on the farm another year, and it's implied that it's not the first time this has happened. He moans about how awful Tatooine is to Obi-wan, but when Obi-wan actually offers him an opportunity to leave the planet, Luke nervously shoots it down, citing all the reasons his uncle gives about how he's needed on the farm. Luke wants nothing more than to leave, but he's also terrified of it.

It's easy to talk about leaving, but the truth of the matter Luke is just plain stuck. He's lived at home his whole life and done the same thing on the farm; picking everything up and leaving sounds great in a fantasy, but the reality of it is terrifying. Is this not the situation of every other millennial living at home? We have no shortage of complaints to share with our friends, but when it comes to taking the first steps to actually leave the nest, a lot of us would rather stay in our comfort zone. And Luke, like many millennials, is hindered by the fact that he doesn't actually have anywhere else he wants to be. He just knows that it's Definitely Not Here. No matter what planet you're on, having an aimless desire to just be somewhere else is often one of the least helpful things to have; it keeps you from actually sitting down and formulating a plan about your situation, because you're so unsure of where to even start.

Now some of you might being saying, "okay, sure that all sounds great, but what about all the stuff that happens in the second half of the film?" But that, you see that's beauty of this comparison. Everything that Luke was going through, all his struggles about what he wanted out of life, the sense of purposelessness. That was all just the beginning of his movie.

I can't promise you'll go out there and do anything as exciting as blowing up the Death Star. I can't promise that the thing that ends up changing your situation will be as neat and obvious as a secret message in a droid. But if Luke Skywalker didn't have to define his whole life by being stuck in a lousy situation for a few years then neither do you. You still have great things left to accomplish, lightsaber or no.