Fifty Years of Humanism in Star Trek

[TheGoodStuff]

I just had to share this excellent article from the American Humanist Association which does a great job of describing some of my own feelings towards the franchise. My particular highlight is the start:

"It feels like we live in a world where movies and shows keep getting darker. It’s a pop culture where viewers tune in for their weekly dose of misery on The Walking Dead, depravity on Game of Thrones, and where even classic children’s heroes like Batman and Superman are portrayed as mass-murdering vigilantes in Dawn of Justice. Comic book and science fiction fans have even coined the term “grimdark” to describe this apparent one-upmanship of doom and gloom assaulting audiences. In contrast, for over five decades Star Trek has remained positive, philosophical, and moral, portraying a society built on Enlightenment values."

I always post here to describe my love for Trek's philosophising, moralising and Humanist outlook. I love the deep vein of positivity within the franchise instead of the usual angst/anger/hatred that saturates so much of our popular culture.

 

[Horizons96]

Great article, thanks for posting!!

I always post here to describe my love for Trek's philosophising, moralising and Humanist outlook. I love the deep vein of positivity within the franchise instead of the usual angst/anger/hatred that saturates so much of our popular culture.

It's great that there are others here with this outlook. I always enjoy reading your rational posts!

 

[TwoJakes]

portraying a society built on Enlightenment values

Except many times the representatives of that society (Starfleet) advance the society and make critical decisions not through enlightenment values, but employing the feeling in their guts, their emotions, intuition, and past personal experiences.

One of the prime building blocks of their society, the warp drive, was developed owing to it's (Human) inventor's avarice.

Star Trek has remained positive, philosophical, and moral

At the same time Star Trek exists in a environment of near constant interstellar warfare, super-natural beings wipe out entire species, plaques are common. The darkness in modern comics and Game of Thrones pales in comparison to Star Trek's (somewhat sanitized) violence.

 

[TheGoodStuff]

Great article, thanks for posting!!


It's great that there are others here with this outlook. I always enjoy reading your rational posts!

That is probably the nicest thing anyone has said to me on an internet forum. Thank you very much!

portraying a society built on Enlightenment values

Except many times the representatives of that society (Starfleet) advance the society and make critical decisions not through enlightenment values, but employing the feeling in their guts, their emotions, intuition, and past personal experiences.

One of the prime building blocks of their society, the warp drive, was developed owing to it's (Human) inventor's avarice.

Star Trek has remained positive, philosophical, and moral

At the same time Star Trek exists in a environment of near constant interstellar warfare, super-natural beings wipe out entire species, plaques are common. The darkness in modern comics and Game of Thrones pales in comparison to Star Trek's (somewhat sanitized) violence.

Feelings [be it guts, intuition or avarice] are a natural part of the human condition, Enlightenment values of rationality are not incompatible with feelings. I am sure Cochrane owes a little credit to his scientific acumen as well as his 'avarice'.


As for your second point I find it...unfair. Because:

1. Constant interstellar war is a bit of a stretch. Only one show actually depicts a fully declared war. Everything else can best be defined as...skirmishes. Both Picard and Kirk certainly can't be described as being 'constantly at war' with anyone. I concede that in Trek there are some severely frayed relations between powers but it is largely never at the fault of Federation aggression. While other factions war-monger and oppress, the Federation merely defends itself.

2. Super-natural beings wiping out entire species is...rare in the extreme in Trek.

3. I assume you mean plagues. They do happen [although, 'common' may be liberal...how many times do they happen in the franchise? I know it is a trope in TNG..but even then it is limited and I think I am right in saying that they rarely end in disaster/mass death..


I think the 'darkness' that is in Trek is quite well balanced and is there for sake of the plot [for risk, for contrast, for thrill of the audience]. What we see, however, is a show that overcomes these threats through rationality, morality and general positivity. For every negative you mention, there are dozens of positives in Trek...where 150+ member worlds live in cooperation with respect for liberty and rationality.

Take [for example] the Batman universe. The foundations of that universe are corruption, loss, despair, sorrow, mental illness [to name but a few] whereas Trek is based on humanity having left behind a horrible past and finding many other races who share the same ideals [Vulcans/Andorians/Betazoids...]. To me that's the difference...Trek is built upon a positive structure.

 

[Horizons96]

That is probably the nicest thing anyone has said to me on an internet forum. Thank you very much!

all good.

super-natural beings wipe out entire species

I have abilities to affect the universe that exceed that of an ant or amoeba, but that does not make me supernatural. I cannot think of a single instance where the supernatural is given as existing or the cause for any event in any Star Trek production, outside of a particular race's own supernatural beliefs, such as Bajorans or Klingons.

 

[Jedi Marso]

A backlash to this grimdark phenomenon may be why Blue Bloods has gone from the threat of cancellation after its first few seasons to a loved show going strong: it accentuates the positive, all of its main characters strive to be ethical, and are rooted in family and judeo-christian values. I think people are hungry for more of that as society continues its slide towards ever-increasing moral and cultural equivalence.