One literary technique which is easy to spot in The Phantom Menace is the use of imagery, most of which is predictable. For instance, the villain is associated with darkness, wearing black robes, lurking in shadows. Black is, traditionally, the archetypal color for evil, and in this story black is the color of choice for both Sith Lords, which is further appropriate as they are masters of the dark side of the Force. Another example of color imagery, one relying on two short snippets of text, is a comparison of two of the main characters' eyes, Qui-Gon's blue eyes and Darth Maul's yellow eyes. Blue eyes are those of the traditional American hero, while yellow eyes connote an unwell or reptilian association.

Beyond these obvious physical traits, slightly more subtle literary conventions are also at work on a greater scale, such as the use of setting. As described...