Personally I think George Lucas’ idea of what the Jedi were changed some time between '83 and '97. From Obi Wan’s description it sounds like Anakin was recruited as a young adult starfighter pilot by Obi Wan personally, and that Obi Wan had been recruited and trained by Yoda personally, and that the whole Jedi order was a secret society of space wizards discretely passing their skills down to each generation along with their commitment to defending the Republic. Maybe you’d hear about them or see a video of one using the Force, but it would be easy to just think that they’re an urban legend and the people who actually believe in that stuff are cranks.
But then the Prequels hit and it turns out the Jedi were a massive cult that was deeply embedded in the bureaucracy of the former government, so some things didn’t make sense anymore after that.
Personally I think George Lucas’ idea of what the Jedi were changed some time between '83 and '97. From Obi Wan’s description it sounds like Anakin was recruited as a young adult starfighter pilot by Obi Wan personally, and that Obi Wan had been recruited and trained by Yoda personally, and that the whole Jedi order was a secret society of space wizards discretely passing their skills down to each generation along with their commitment to defending the Republic. Maybe you’d hear about them or see a video of one using the Force, but it would be easy to just think that they’re an urban legend and the people who actually believe in that stuff are cranks.
But then the Prequels hit and it turns out the Jedi were a massive cult that was deeply embedded in the bureaucracy of the former government, so some things didn’t make sense anymore after that.