In both Generations and the Inner Light the writers played with the idea of contrasting Picard's life alone in Star Fleet with a life he could have had being a family man, even implying that that life is what would have truly fulfilled him. But is there any reason to think the life of a family man would be remotely appealing to Picard? Picard seemed to express an actual dislike of children which I don't think would be unusual in a man like Picard. Someone so focused and reflective and disciplined like Picard couldn't stand to having screaming brats around him. Secondly Picard was presented as a very driven man since his childhood. He had a goal, to be in Star Fleet, and that is all he wanted. Why should any alternative life have to appeal to him? Lastly Picard himself didn't have the best of childhood's and familial attachment never seemed that important to him. Shouldn't Picard's fantasy life in the Nexus pretty much been as the captain of the Enterprise forever?
Why Did They Want To Give Picard A Family So Bad?
- Thread starter The Boy Who Cried Worf
- Start date
We all want what we don't have. It's like women with straight hair try to make it curly, and women with curly hair try to make it straight.
Picard didn't much like children; perhaps because they reminded him of the children that he did not have.
It's interesting, though, that the nexus tempted both Picard and Kirk with family. "Two captains, one destiny" seemed an appropriate tag line.
Picard didn't much like children; perhaps because they reminded him of the children that he did not have.
It's interesting, though, that the nexus tempted both Picard and Kirk with family. "Two captains, one destiny" seemed an appropriate tag line.
Good question. I've always wondered that myself. The only answer I can give is this one:
Characters at the beginning of a series are set up with a group of flaws that are eroded away by the series close. These flaws provide material for the episodes of a show. And at the end of the series the characters are perfected or are near to perfect as they can be.
Picard hated children, so in order to perfect his character they made him deal with this flaw. The outcome was him wanting to have family.
But in reality this is not always so. I know people who don't like children, and they genuninely, deep-down inside do not want kids.
Characters at the beginning of a series are set up with a group of flaws that are eroded away by the series close. These flaws provide material for the episodes of a show. And at the end of the series the characters are perfected or are near to perfect as they can be.
Picard hated children, so in order to perfect his character they made him deal with this flaw. The outcome was him wanting to have family.
But in reality this is not always so. I know people who don't like children, and they genuninely, deep-down inside do not want kids.
That's the way I see it. Just because Picard spent his entire adult life not wanting a family doesn't mean he wouldn't come to want one at some point.
He told Riker "I've always felt uncomfortable around children." A career in Starfleet would have made it easy to avoid them, then Picard gets this absolutely plum assignment, but there's a catch ... families with children. This isn't a shore assignment with family housing vaguely over there some place, he's worried he's going to have to interact with them to some degree (before palming them off on Riker).
I don't think it would be an exaggeration to use that word for describing his feelings towards the Borg.
As for the children issue, I think his feelings towards children definitely changed or at least softened significantly over the course of the series. Look at how he interacts with his nephew in "Family" and with the kids in the turbolift in "Disaster", for example. His wink at the end of that one was such a sweet moment. 
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