So, for how long did Luke train...??

If you take the EU into account, he never went back (as shown in Shadows of the Empire).

 

Well, according to Yoda, Luke wouldn't become a full Jedi until he conquered Vader and his Emperor. Now, of course Luke basically cheated by giving in to anger which is how he beat Darth, but he did come to his senses and stopped himself from killing his father and stood up against the Emperor in peace. That made him a Jedi.

I think Luke trained for some days on Dagobah in TESB and then went back to continue his training before the events of ROTJ for however long.

 

Luke's statement in ROTJ "I have a promise to keep... to an old friend" could be interpreted two ways. 1) He is referring to his promise in ESB to go back and continue his training, which means he didn't go back prior to ROTJ. 2) He refers to Yoda as an "old friend," implying that they had more training sessions.

You can interpret it as you will. There's no doubt, however, that Luke is more powerful at the start of ROTJ than he is at the end of ESB. That implies progression.

 

In a RotJ cut scene it is implied that he trained by himself in Obi's old hut after ESB. And I'm inclined to believe he didn't return to Dagobah post-ESB, because in RotJ he asks Yoda if Vader is really his father. You'd think if he had gone back that question would've been asked in one year.

It's 100% certain that he did train, though. RotJ is far more powerful than ESB Luke.

 

You mean the lightsaber construction scene?

 

Yes. Also, I edited my post with some more ideas why he might not have returned.

 

That's my interpretation of it. He never went back to Yoda after he left in ESB until ROTJ.

I speculate that he continued with what Yoda taught him on his own, because he does seem more mature and in control when we see him in ROTJ.

 

Being a Jedi wasn't so much about "training" and all that until the prequels. In the originals it was more a metaphor for becoming and adult, your full self. Luke wasn't ready to face Vader because he wasn't mature enough to face the dark reality of the world and accept the fact that his parents weren't perfect and in the end he'd be on his own, he was like a kid with the mindset they are invincible and everything works out. It was about discipline and knowing the dangers of taking the easy way out.

He lost his right hand in the fight symbolizing a loss of what he relies on most, the form of the status quo and the truths he hold to. The idea is that in the time between the two films he was able to rapidly mature and balance his feelings allowing him to take all of what he learned seriously. If you watch Empire and Jedi again you'll notice right away Luke has an entirely different personality in the final film.

 

Maybe he means "my friend who is old".

 

It was probably an expression, not to be taken literally.

 

Also got dye job...

At any rate, the way I see it is that he trained basically for whatever time it took the Falcon to reach Bespin. SW no sense of scale etc., but it may have taken a month or so.
It's kind of murky a bit - Han and Leia of course didn't really "develop" their relationship in that time span, they pretty much arrived on the cloud city as they were in the previous scene; maybe a week?

The perspective it really works best from is the "cinematic" one - it all happens in the "tranquil" middle part of the movie between the fast, actioney first act and the climactic last act, and while the Falcon adventures fill that time with drama and excitement, the tranquil mood of Luke's training scenes, along with common sense, helps make it feel "long" and "important".

So it feels just right when watching and being immersed into the movie (magic), and that's I think the important part. And when the more rational part of the brain awakes and starts making trouble, the Han/Leia plotline has several "resting points" in it (the space worm, on the star destroyer etc.) that may have taken slightly more time than a few hours, so it's all cool

 

My understanding is that Luke did not return to Dagobah in between films.

Besides the fact that he makes a reference to keeping his promise, and asking about Vader, I'm pretty sure he also apologizes to Yoda for not returning sooner. All indications are that he didn't return, which would imply that his time with Yoda was a few days at most (and even then, probably shorter). Admittedly that does seem a bit rushed, but I don't let it ruin the film for me.

 

Several thoughts:

A New Hope. Obi-Wan teaches him some basics. Obviously in the Falcon, he learned to act on instinct and then eventually used the Force to destroy the Death Star.

By the beginning of ESB, you can tell his abilities have been growing. The ability to use the force to move things to escape the Wampa.

During his training with Yoda, it's surmised he's there for at least a week and probably up to a month. Remember, Luke was the product of one of the most powerful Jedis. He had inherent natural skill and has been training for a few years prior to meeting Yoda who helped him "hone" his skills.

After leaving Yoda to rescue his friends, he doesn't return back because he's probably arranging for Han's rescue. ROTJ takes place a year after the events of ESB. He returned to Yoda only after everything was taken care of.

 

What I love about Luke in ROTJ is how patient he became with the things he did. I like to think Yoda taught him this over a period of time. It only took the final events of ESB for him to completely learn it.

In A New Hope and Empire, he had no patience. He was in such a hurry to do things. Come ROTJ, he does things so smoothly and waits for the right moments.

 

Your partially right and partially wrong about how what Yoda said and what made Luke a Jedi. First of Yoda never said Luke had to defeat Vader or the Emperor. He told him he had to confront them.

Luke: Then I am a Jedi.
Yoda: [coughs trying to speak] Not yet. One thing remains: Vader. You must...confront...Vader. Then, only then, a Jedi, will you be. And confront him, you will.

Those are the exact lines from the movie. Notice how he never says you have to defeat Vader or the Emperor. Only that he has to Confront Vader. Now here is basically what Yoda was telling Luke and what Luke really didn't get at the time.

Luke was no different then his father. He had anger and fears with in him. Much of the same flaws that are with in Anakin were also found in Luke. Yoda understood this and knew that it would be a challenge for Luke to over come but was confident that he could over come his anger and fears unlike his father. Which is why he says confront him you will.

The emperor saw all of Luke faults and used it against him. The difference between Anakin and Luke is that Luke always took at step back once he realize what was going on. The final stroke came as he was standing over Vader and he looped off his hand. Luke realize that he no different the Vader or the Emperor. He lets all his anger and fears go. Doesn't mean he doesn't have them only that he recognize them and lets them go. When you watch the scene watch how he relax and he tells emperor he has failed and toss his lightsaber aside. The tossing of the lightsaber a side is a symbolic gesture of letting go of his anger and hate and fear.

Luke became a Jedi because he was able to recognize his fears, angers and hates and move past them. This was something Anakin couldn't do in the prequels.

So in short Luke it didn't matter if he won or lost only that he choose not to give in to his anger, hate and fears. That he choose instead to recognize them and let them go and movie past them which is what all Jedi are supposed to do.

 

If you take the Prequels into account, Anakin had the advantege of having killed innocent people already, Luke didn't realy have many reasons to turn to the dark side.

 

Luke had just as much of a reason for turning to the darkside and Anakin did. Think about it for a moment. When Luke is on Death Star and emperor tells him that his friends are walking in to a trap and are going to die. Luke standing there watching people he cares about die. He watching this cause go down in flames. In his mind the perfect solution is to kill the emperor and end the fight right there. The problem is when he attacked he did so out of anger, rage and hate. He was so worried about what other people where doing instead of focusing on the task that was before him. A flaw that Yoda told him in empire.

The difference between Anakin and Luke is Luke would see his mistake and learn from it and find another path. Anakin didn't learn from his mistakes he kept making the same ones over again. The whole point of that is to show that while they are a lot alike they are also very different.

A lot of it had to do with Yoda training. In books to the original movies when ever Luke got mad or angry Yoda would make him stop and pull back. He would calm him down and show him his mistake. I think this helped a great deal in the throne room. Every time the emperor laughed or said something after Luke attacked out of anger and hate Luke would realize his mistake and take a step back and find a different way.

That's just my opinion any way.

 

3 days

 

i'm inclined to believe that. if i remember correctly, in Shadows of the Empire, which takes place between ESB & RoTJ, Luke was residing and training in Obi Wan's pad on Tatooine