Divorce in Star Trek

[sbk1234]

Did they ever cannonicallly state that it was Leah Brahms? To me, that was really contrived. To marry that one woman from the past? I always assumed it was Leah Berkowitz, a girl he met in his last year on the Enterprise while waiting for a table at a crowded restaurant at Starbase 439, while on leave.

But that's just me.

 

[Sci]

Also, Guinan commented that she was married 27 times. I'd hate to think she was a widow 27 times! Talk about an unlucky wife!

Or the most diabolical serial killer of the 24th century . . . .

No, that's Jessica Fletcher. So insidious she even managed to pin all of her murders on other suspects, every week for twelve years!

 

[Greg Cox]

Also, Guinan commented that she was married 27 times. I'd hate to think she was a widow 27 times! Talk about an unlucky wife!

Or the most diabolical serial killer of the 24th century . . . .

No, that's Jessica Fletcher. So insidious she even managed to pin all of her murders on other suspects, every week for twelve years!

I wasn't aware that Jessica Fletcher was still around in the 24th century. Talk about a long-lived old lady!

 

[Pavonis]

Redjac posed as "Jessica Fletcher" for a time.

 

[Enterprise is Great]

Or the most diabolical serial killer of the 24th century . . . .

No, that's Jessica Fletcher. So insidious she even managed to pin all of her murders on other suspects, every week for twelve years!

I wasn't aware that Jessica Fletcher was still around in the 24th century. Talk about a long-lived old lady!

Jessica Fletcher is Flint in drag.

 

[Star Wolf]

Its the Federation would not some of the member worlds allow for group marriages?

 

[Ezri D]

Future Picard and Beverly were divorced.

Never thought that Picard ever thought of Wesley as his step son? If it was true, would it be unnatural to make Wesley a acting ensign?

 

[T'Girl]

Denobians were said to have them in the 22nd century, they would have brought that to the federation, should they have joined.

 

[bbailey861]

I expect that marriages in the future (both real life and as sometimes already depicted in SF) will tend towards legal contracts with varying durations, which can be either renewed or allowed to dissolve at the end date.

I recall this as being the case. I do not remember who exactly, but it was discussed in Trek Lit where a couple of people were deciding whether or not to renew their marriage contract. if not, then that was that. I wish I could remember the details, though, to provide reference.

 

[Sci]

Its the Federation would not some of the member worlds allow for group marriages?

It's already canonically established that the Federation allows for more marriages than the heterosexist monogamy we associate with marriage in the present-day United States. We know that Bolians, for instance, have group marriages -- "Field of Fire" (DS9) establishes the existed of Bolian families that feature a wife and co-husbands.

We also know from TNG's "Data's Day" that Andorian marriages require groups of four; the novels have run with an interpretation of this, establishing that Andorians have four sexes and that their "marriages" (more properly translated as bondgroups) require all four sexes before they are willing to reproduce.

And as T'Girl already noted, Denobulans seem to practice an extended form of polygamy; granted, it's never been canonically established that Denobula joined the Federation, but it seems improbable to think that they did not, given their proximity to and good relationships with Earth and Vulcan.

The non-canonical Trek novels have also established quite clearly that same-sex marriages are legal and accepted on Earth by the pre-Federation ENT era, and that this continued into the 24th Century, even among alien cultures such as the Trill.

I would imagine that marriage laws, or the equivalents thereof, are a matter the Federation government mostly leaves to the Member governments to regulate.

 

[Admiral James Kirk]

I just wanted to add another child whose parents weren't married. Jason Vigo, son of Miranda Vigo and an unnamed Starfleet officer who is not Jean-Luc Picard.

I recall this as being the case. I do not remember who exactly, but it was discussed in Trek Lit where a couple of people were deciding whether or not to renew their marriage contract. if not, then that was that. I wish I could remember the details, though, to provide reference.

In the DC Comics Star Trek annual #3 (vol 3) Scotty and his wife Glynnis were discussing renewing their marriage contract. Glynnis opted not to when she realized Scotty was going to return to space duty.

 

[Sindatur]

and Janeway and Paris's newts!

They got better...

.

At the end of Amok Time, after winning T'Pring as his wife (property), Spock then verbally transfers her (as property?) to another Vulcan male. While it would appear that this is what T'Pring wanted, it isn't clear if she had any actual say in the matter.

Strickly speaking, is this Vulcan divorce or annulment? Spock's marriage was dissolved.

Spock pointed out that whatever he chose to do, it would conform to T'Pring's wishes. She knew all possible outcomes of the challenge she brought: either Spock wins, and thus he wouldn't want her, or Kirk wins, and *he* certainly wouldn't want her. T'Pring knew well in advance that whatever happened in the ring, she would have Stonn. So she got exactly what she wished.

Woulda served T'Pring right if Kirk had won, and he made her do the nasty with him once, before he released her to Ston.

 

[scotpens]

Future Picard and Beverly were divorced.

Never thought that Picard ever thought of Wesley as his step son? If it was true, would it be unnatural to make Wesley a acting ensign?

Nepotism is very natural. Doesn't necessarily make it right, though.

 

[Timo]

We know that Bolians, for instance, have group marriages -- "Field of Fire" (DS9) establishes the existed of Bolian families that feature a wife and co-husbands [..] granted, it's never been canonically established that Denobula joined the Federation

To be sure, it's never established that Bolians joined, either. But that's immaterial here, because the co-husband thing concerned a Bolian member of Starfleet, and said member would be subject to UFP laws regardless of whether his "native" culture was part of the UFP or not.

Unless we speculate that, being a foreigner and all, he was in Starfleet under a special mandate, perhaps similar to that of Kurn - and that the mandate kept him subject to Bolian rather than UFP law at least in certain things...

We can also speculate that the co-husband thing was illegal in UFP terms, and the UFP just decided not to prosecute Petty Officer Zim Brott on this, because it was easier for the UFP to just pretend that Brott didn't have a co-husband, merely a really close male friend living at their place.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Star Wolf]

Why do you think the UFP would follow the model rooted n Christianity rather then a more libertarian interpretation of legal family groupings?

 

[Timo]

Because they are a bunch of prudes?

Every other 20th century taboo appears to still be in place; tight regulation of married life would probably be a safe assumption as well.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Shawnster]

Why do you think the UFP would follow the model rooted n Christianity rather then a more libertarian interpretation of legal family groupings?

This statement implies that monogamous marriage is rooted in Christianity.

Weren't/aren't there monogamous marriages in other, pre-Christian and/or non-Christian cultures?

 

[T'Girl]

Did I miss any divorces?

I presume rom and his first wife were divorced.

Rom's wife (iirc) was spoken of as if she was seperated from Rom. If they possessed a contractual marriage for a specific time period, which I can see the Ferengi having, then then it might have been a case of one or the other simply not re-newing the marriage contract, and the marriage lapsed after the last day of the contract.

But would that actually be "divorce?" If you had a term marriage, and successfully broke the contact prior to it agreed upon conclusion date, that might be Ferengi divorce.

Under Ferengi law, even if married to wife number one, Rom might still have been able to marry Lita, as wife number two.

 

[horatio83]

I doubt that pre-Reformation Ferengi marriages are complicated. This is after all a culture where women have virtually no rights.

 

[Timo]

Indeed, why should the rights of the wife be of interest or significance to these hardened businessmen? Why should a marriage contract be simple, when the average contract between two businessmen is likely to be complex enough to leave both sides satisfied that they can wring some profit out of it and leave the opposite party that little bit poorer? No doubt there are all sorts of special clauses and unique arrangements in each and every marriage contract, and only an idiot like Rom takes the "standard" form that leaves no room for clever business moves!

Timo Saloniemi