As far as morality is concerned, this sort of topic will always be up for debate depending on your definition of ‘sentient.’ Merriam-Webster has three.
1 : responsive to or conscious of sense impressions
3 : finely sensitive in perception or feeling
DROIDS: Programmable machines capable of decision making and cognitive thought processes. I love droids. A creative technological mind can program the most entertaining, ornery, and sometimes downright spitfire personalities into a droid, along with an innate sense of adaptability so that it can learn from its surroundings and from interactions in such a profound way that one could almost argue that it has a mind of its own – which, to some degree, it does. They are as close to sentient as a creation can get. But by definition, they cannot achieve a state of near sentient status without someone programming them. R2-D2 {the best droid ever in my completely biased opinion, but that’s neither here nor there}, while demonstrating one of the most complex personalities in the Star Wars saga, still could not achieve that without his initial programming being authorized to do so. Anakin set safeguards in place to ensure that R2 would have the personality he had. A droid is only capable of what they have been created to do. They do not have something incredibly vital to sentient life-forms: will. Sure, they can make choices and can determine to fulfill those decisions as ardently as a human being would. But where a living being has a deep, innate sense of self and self awareness, a droid cannot go farther than its receptors and the guidelines laid down for it. It is a machine, created for a purpose. A pet? If you’d like to call it that. A companion? Absolutely, but not one capable of a life apart from its designed purpose.
CLONES: Humanoid, sentient, genetically modified. The use of the clone armies during The Clone Wars was, to put it incredibly loosely, a moral grey area explored only through what was considered ‘necessity.’ The clone army’s creation was the brainchild of a fallen Jedi under the influence of Lord Sidious and the ever-growing shroud of the Dark Side. The result was not, inherently, a mass-production of human specimens that could be brainwashed into service. The embryos were genetically tailored for battle, complete with strategic cognition, endurance, accelerated growth, and a predisposed compulsion to take and follow orders. Their DNA was designed for the sole purpose of providing the Republic with a fighting force and as a result, all of the clones were raised for war from birth to adolescence. Here’s the thing about human nature, however. Regardless of whether or not a human is cooked up in a lab, they remain human. So while the Kaminoans did their best to breed them to do what they were told with absolute obedience, it didn’t take for everyone. And that meant deserters later on down the line.
That being said, despite the fact that the Jedi did accept the proverbial gift-horse without bothering to look it too deeply in the mouth, it was also the Jedi who constantly reminded their clone troopers that they were individuals. That they were capable outside of their predispositions. That they had the right to think, want, and act as individuals. Anakin Skywalker was the first to give one of his troopers a nickname that reflected his personality instead of addressing him by a number. As time went on, many Jedi followed suit, encouraging nicknames and individual thinking among their troops. And – side note – several clones left before Order 66 and were not tracked down or branded traitors until the rise of the Empire. What would have happened after the Clone Wars is up for debate. I personally believe that the Jedi would have sought to disband the clone army and provide a smooth transition for them to become domestic if they so chose {much like they did with Jedi younglings who did not become chosen for training, allowing them to choose other Jedi careers such as the AgriCorps or to leave the Temple entirely.} But that would have been up to the Senate as well…and that’s an entirely different kettle of fish.
All that to say, if the clones felt that they were enslaved into a life they had not chosen and did not want, the Jedi Order would not have used them. Hands down. Anakin would never have fought alongside beings who felt their freedom had been taken from them. He would have freed them. And so would the rest of the Order. But while there are always exceptions to the rule, the clones at large were at home in a barracks with their brothers and found their purpose on the battlefield. It was in their DNA. And the Jedi were not meant to be soldiers, but peacekeepers instead. When the war started, the concept of falling in line for the Republic ruffled a lot of Jedi feathers and left many confused and disillusioned. The clones presented a solution to an ever darkening question: how can the Jedi both keep the traditions and code of the Order and serve a Republic at war? The answer came in a way they did not expect. The Dark Side clouded even the wisest Jedi Master’s eyes to the future or the best path. They acted and the fate of the clones did not worsen for it. As we’ve seen, the Jedi were their kindest leadership.
In conclusion: Droids are not sentient. Clones are sentient. Droids do not have will. Clones do. Droids cannot go beyond their programming. Clones can and did. Droids are not oppressed because they have no will to choose a true path for themselves or to understand the concepts of self or self-awareness. Clones, however, could be seen as oppressed, depending on one’s point of view…as they are beings with a sense of self and are aware of an inner world as well as an outer one. But for the clone argument to truly be taken as fact, the majority of clones would need to express a desire for a different life and the majority simply did not. Most were content to live the life they were bred for. Some were not. Those few left. The equation balances itself. Droids were treated by most as machines who served a purpose – and some decided to see them as counterparts or companions. Clones {for the most part} were treated with the respect of one brother-in-arms to another by those they served. Like everything and everyone in life, both droids and clones suffered injustices, unfair treatment, and sometimes cruelty. But while droids remained machine, the clones were human. As long as those around them saw them as such, no real injustice took place.
