Star Trek ship captains and how these variances in personality construct reflect cultural and social differences.

            It’s the intent of this thesis to highlight the similarities and differences of three Star Trek ship captains and how these variances in personality construct three pivotal characters that reflect cultural and social differences. Each of these captains is created differently with respect with their leadership roles. Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) are represented in three crucial Star Trek series which includes, The Original Series (NBC 1966–1969) TOS, Star Trek Voyager (UPN 1995–2001) STV and Deep Space Nine  (UPN 1993–1999) DS9.

Each captain represents a different race and gender:  Kirk, the white male captain; Janeway, the first white female captain; and Sisko, the first black Starship captain.  Each captain is represented as a dominant figure in the Star Trek series from the 1960’s to the end of the 20^th century. The illustrations and definitions of each captain will show how the responsibilities and cultural predispositions will set the tone and personal behavior aboard the respective Federation Starships.

With the selection for each captain in the Stark Trek series, the producers choose theatrically trained actors instead of actors who matured in the genres of television and film production. They believed this would give each captain an additional screen presence of authority and stature. For example, William Shatner was trained as a Classical Shakespearian actor and performed at the Canadian National Repertory Theater in Stratford, Ontario (Shatner 20). Kate Mulgrew studied acting at the Stellar Adler Conservatory of Acting in conjunction with New York University. And Avery Brooks, the first African American to receive an MFA in acting and directing from Rutgers also studied acting at Oberlin College (Rutgers). This distinguished group of actors had an opportunity to enhance their personal interpretations of their roles as Star Trek captains and bring their own original characterizations to this science fiction narrative.

William Shatner wanted to bring to the Captain Kirk’s character the same enthusiasm he always had for life, with a sense of awe and wonder for those feelings he also had about the universe and everything he encountered (Sager).

For Mulgrew, her representation of Janeway was intended to show girls that they could become anyone that they wanted to be (Bowring 178).  Mulgrew also felt her Janeway character could help many young women particularly in the sciences.  Brooks, who was supposed to be a cross between Kirk and Captain Picard from Star Trek, Next Generation,said that one of the reasons that he accepted the leading role was to give a single child a chance to see themselves some 400 years hence (Wilkins). Avery also felt the need to let children know that there are possibilities in the world and that someone is not going to take away or destroy the world before they have a chance to change it.

In its original run Star Trek TOS, never achieved more than lukewarm ratings and only lasted three years until NBC Television canceled the series in 1969. By this commercial standard, assumptions could be made the audiences and sponsors did not resonate with William Shatner’s character Captain Kirk. However, there was a minor social revolt with many dedicated science fiction enthusiasts at Caltech when they voiced opposition to rumored canceling of Star Trek on NBC (Harrison). After the series was canceled, Paramount studios sold the syndication rights to recoup the production costs. The series aired in 150 markets, which unexpectedly created a cult enthusiasm that permeates in today’s popular culture. If we use the sudden rise in popularity of TOS as a bench mark for Captain Kirks popularity, it could be assumed that Captain Kirk flourished in the world of syndication as an iconic authoritative figure to this day.

 In 1968, William Shatner thought Star Trek’s run was over. “I finished Star Trek late one night and everybody said goodbye and off I went, saying, ‘That’s the end of that show.' It was just a good show and that was the end of it."  Little did he know that the fans had other ideas; they wouldn't let the show fade into obscurity. "Star Trek" conventions began in earnest in 1972 with the first taking place in New York City. An early indicator of the series sudden rise in popularity, an estimated 3,000 fans showed up when only 300 – 400 were expected (Jindra 39).

In general, the audiences of the late 1960’s had an overwhelming acceptance of Captain Kirk. His public demeanor as an arrogant womanizer and dilatant had little affect on his overall popularity. In addition, Captain James T. Kirk's sexual exploits have been a long-running joke and point of contention in the Star Trek mythos. Viewers have admired, guffawed at or even been appalled by the Captain's macho method of saving the galaxy, taking off his shirt when ever that arises (Hemmingson 572).

 Although in the world of slash fan fiction, Shatner’s Kirk began a life of its own. The term slash fan fiction refers to stories, written by amateur authors (who are almost solely heterosexual women), which involves placing two television or film characters of the same gender, into romantic relationships with each other (Kuritz 371). Within the slash fan narrative Star Trek fans explored the deep friendship between Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy). These stories usually were labeled ‘‘hurt/comfort’’ because they involved one of the characters being physically or emotionally wounded and then receiving comfort from the other.

In contrast to Shatner’s machismo, Mulgrew presented a strong and confident female captain.   But even Mulgrew was surprised by how influential her fictional character was. After the Star Trek series Voyager was premiered, Mulgrew was taken aback by the number of mothers who wrote and called her to relay stories of their daughters who were choosing the field of science because of the strength and confidence they drew from Janeway’s character in Voyager (Bowring 178). Indeed the producers and writers for Voyager were initially concerned with the public perceptions of Janeway, because they didn’t have a clue how to write for a female captain (Relke 20).

While Janeway’s brand of post feminism was hardly uncommon among Americans in the 1990’s, Voyager may have been more successful had Janeway possessed at least a basic gender representation. Mercifully for the series the loyal female fans did not concern themselves with her androgyny.  Also, Mulgrew had also grown acutely aware of her gender-neutral status and began singling out female fans with special thanks whenever she had the opportunity to do so. Unfortunately, Janeway has experienced some aggressive negative complaints in a number of online forums. Despite her enormous success with her fan base, a number of disgruntled enthusiasts accused her as a tyrant and murder. Her character has also been suspected as “Mommy” to the crew by sublimating her erotic energies by aggressively stifling her sexual drives as she mothers the crew stranded in the Delta Quadrant (Greven 82).

The popular reception for Captain Sisko in DS9 was one of celebration for the first African American actor to portray a Federation Captain in Star Treks televisual. However, according to one blogger who expressed the racial atmosphere in the 1990’s so succinctly stated, “I was only 11 when the final episode aired and while I vaguely understood the significance of Sisko, I admit to taking his presence–the presence of a starring Black man–on my screen as normal (James)”. For another fan, he always expected Captain Sisko to break into a song & dance routine with his big basso profundo voice-grabbing the nearest alien with a tree growing out of the top of their head and doing a robot waltz singing at the top of his lungs (Star Trek).

But for Sisko and DS9, the fan base has a significant serious emotional investment in this televisual. In terms of time, some followers have spent up to 40 years passionately intertwined with the Star Trek narrative. This series with its two decades of fan loyalty has helped increase the televisual to a cult status. Some research suggests Star Trek has the ability to aid in the memorialization of deceased loved ones, which is characterized in these fan letters from the British Star Trek Monthly magazine.  These letters reinforce the effectiveness in the morning process, and shows how this practice is not restricted to an American audience but rather emphasize how universal it is (Geraghty 1011). One letter writer from the British Star Trek Monthly, whose letter focused on bereavement, describes how her husband and eldest son died in a tragic accident and watching certain episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine became more important, more poignant, because it brought back special memories for myself and my little boy (Bunner 64).

Granted, the hierarchal culture of a white dominant society controlled the Star Trek vision with concerns from its network censors and commercial sponsors.  Regardless, the producers and creators of Star Trek wanted to convey a progressive attitude, which would include a liberal humanism quality that reflected a progressive attitude toward race, gender and a tolerant view of political freedom.

And yet with all the noble social and humanitarian intentions, Gene Rodenberry and company created dominant personalities that conflicted with their utilitarian intentions. Whether this was intentional or accidental, is hard to say. According to David Gerrold, who wrote the Star Trek episode The Trouble With Tribbles, Gerrold, believed the stories were about twentieth century man’s attitude in a future universe, and of course not every episode makes a social commentary, but some individual episodes make strong comments on sexism, feminism, racism and improving race relations (Snyder). Gene Rodenberry also echoes Gerrold’s statement, “I have no belief that Star Trek depicts the actual future, it depicts us now, and things we need to understand about” (Snyder). But some of these lofty ideals do not reverberate with everyone concerned. Karen Blair in her article, Sex and Star Trek, felt that female roles in the series have sought to affirm traditional male fantasies in an unenlightened way. However there are women trapped in low paying jobs or are within a socially isolated sphere as homemakers, who find the connection with a national or international group such as a Star Trek convention in San Francisco or Las Vegas, as a type of emotional safety value which would grant these women an amount of esteem and pride, that they otherwise may be lacking (Jenkins 89).

 Newton Minow the chair of the Federal Communications Commission said in 1961 that television was a “vast wasteland of mediocre programs” that was providing a diet-of “dulling sameness” for the American people. For the fans of Star Trek, mediocre would not be the first thought to describe their favorite science fiction series on television. Especially when we consider the leadership roles that are presented in a quality production such as Star Trek. Each captain in the Star Trek narrative has reached across class, sex, age and race to treat each member of his or her crew as fairly and justly as possible. Alan D. Winegarden, in his article, Using Star Trek: The Next Generation to Teach Concepts in Persuasion, Family Communication, and Communication Ethics, states that the Star Trek series is an excellent example of explicating concepts related to persuasion, family communication and communication ethics.  Good communicators need concepts and principals in team building that will construct trust for a responsible Starship crew and captain. Many of the Star Trek episodes offer possibilities for teaching communication concepts, which are recognized patterns that provide important analytical skills for communications (Winegarden 181).

 James P. Kirk, the youngest Starship captain of the USS Enterprise, is the most visible and recognizable of all the Starship captains. Kirk is vulnerable, in regard to criticism if we render his style of authority by using today’s benchmarks for cultural and social indicators. Kirk’s hegemonic representation has been criticized and cataloged since he first appeared in original TOS in 1966. Brash, indifferent, militaristic and sexually aggressive makes Captain Kirk an easy target for today’s analytical audience. In one specifically sexist episode, The Corbomite  Maneuver (NBC 1966), Captain Kirk’s Yeoman Janice Rand (Grace Lee Whitney) is subjected to serving Kirk salads and coffee in especially awkward moments which emphasis the absurdness of the situation. In a rather rude scene Kirk wonders out loud who assigned him a female yeoman. In another scene in Corbomite Maneuver, Kirk is displayed with his shirt off, parading a well-chiseled torso while enduring a stress test by Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelly). Kirk is called to the ship’s bridge and walks through the Enterprise with his shirt off.  Most figures of authority (or anyone one else), would have put their shirt back on to demonstrate some concept of decorum, and present themselves on the bridge in a dignified way. But clearly as an indication of Kirk’s machismo and absolute power aboard the Enterprise, Kirk decided it wasn’t necessary that he put his shirt back on, as a sign that he is the supreme commander of the Enterprise.

But what is depicted here is the superficial Kirk, the flip Kirk, not the serious captain who is represented in the turbulent period of 1966. Lyndon Banes Johnson was president and there was a steady escalation in the war of Indochina. At home an estimated 200,000 anti-war demonstrators marched in New York City and young a Buddhist girl committed suicide by setting herself on fire to protest the war in Vietnam (BBC). But in some regard Kirk may act like President Johnson’s predecessor, John F. Kennedy. Captain Kirk represents America and the Free World engaged in a Cold War struggle with ideological enemies like the Klingons and Romulans. President John Kennedy, who began the decade with the promise of a New Frontier, pursued an activist foreign policy aimed at challenging Communism in the Third World, and championed a massive effort to advance national prestige through the manned space program (Worland 20). Kirk is also framed with political and cultural turmoil in the 60’s as he consoles Dr. McCoy in The Man Trap (NBC 1966) after he kills the shape shifting illusionary creature, which McCoy had fallen in love with. Kirk is also the Philosopher King, as in The Corbomite Maneuver as he artfully negotiates with Balok (Chris Howard), the space alien, who threatens to annihilate the Enterprise for their aggressive behavior. Then with a touch of liberal humanism, Kirk befriends Balok, in his damaged spacecraft, which is drifting in space and rescues him.

These are the qualities that rally a ship’s crew and set the humanitarian goals of the Federation. In Star Trek Voyager, another type of style in commanding a starship vessel is presented as the first female ship’s captain, Kathryn Janeway. With an ensemble cast, which is equally represented in gender, Janeway’s character ark is not a dominant feature in Voyager. Major story lines do not necessarily center on Janeway’s authoritative role, as in previous Star Trek episodes which featured Captain James Kirk.

Granted, Janeway takes the lead as the authoritative figure in Voyager, but also allows other members of the cast to develop dramatic story lines, which demands other actors to carry the melodramatic science fiction narrative. This level of inclusion shatters some of the authoritative patterns of Captain Kirk’s style of commanding. This may be interpreted as a maternal side to Janeway allowing her to share her spotlight. For example, in Star Trek Voyager, Seven of Nine (Jerri Ryan) is introduced as Borg who forms an alliance with the Federation to fight Species 8472 in Scorpio (UPN 1997). During the fight with Species 8472, Seven of Nine is separated from the Borg collective, and becomes a permanent member of the Star Trek crew. In accepting Seven of Nine, Janeway shows compassion, grace, understanding and a determined will. In a traditional wartime narrative, Janeway should have destroyed her long fought enemy, and continued their struggled journey to return to the Alpha quadrant. But in a humanitarian effort, Janeway understands Seven of Nine was human before her assimilation into the collective and wants to save and rehabilitate her back into the human race. The addition of a new crewmember such as Seven of Nine would have the added benefit of increasing the coveted 18-24 male audiences and balance out the female cast demographics on Voyager and further move the narrative away from Janeway.

In this innertextual scene, the writers further the distance from Janeway’s authority, by providing lighter moments with Neelix (Ethan Phillips) and Kes (Jennifer Lien), as they watch American television in Futures End.

KES: We've set up a computer algorithm to search for key words and phrases. Anything that might indicate Voyager. 


KIM: Anything so far? 


NEELIX: Not yet, but we have come across some very intriguing televised broadcasts. Take a look at this. It's a form of entertainment called a 'soap opera'. The exploration of human relationships is fascinating. 


KIM: I can't imagine just watching the story and not being a part of it. 


KES: That's because you've been spoiled by the holodeck. There's something to be said for non-interactive stories like this, being swept away in the narrative. 


NEELIX: Oh, I can't wait to see if Blaine's twin brother is the father of Jessica's baby.

This scene demonstrates there is a lighter side to Voyager, and the narrative of returning to the Alpha Quadrant with Janeway at the helm does not dominate the entire script and story.

However the crew does has a sense of family with Janeway at the epicenter as the familial, military and cultural leader. But without the threat of a patriarchal savior waiting in the wings to swoop down and save the day and return the crew home, safe and sound. This scenario would not be fitting for a female commander in the 24th Century. If this was the narrative in pre-feminist days, it would be tolerable that a male hero would emerge and save the crew from their endless wandering in the Delta Quadrant. 

 Janeway in some aspects may fulfill her crew’s everyday emotional needs, as a mother figure.  While this is a blatant stereotype, it is the first Star Trek series that a Federation starship is lost in space. So there is more of a sense of family -- a sense of a collective group that must endure hardships -- during this long journey. Certainly unlike other Star Trek narratives, Voyager does not embark on a journey to explore new space, but its adventure is to return home (Dove-Viebah 598), to the domestic earthly tranquility the crew once experienced in the Alpha quadrant.

The opening scene of Deep Space Nine demonstrates how different this Star Trek series will be. In Emissary, Captain Picard has been assimilated by the Borg and attacks the U.S.S. Saratoga. During the battle the Saratoga’s Captain, Benjamin Sisko’s wife is killed and his only son Jake (Cirroc Lofton) survives the attack. This complex set of events, sets in motion a number of humanitarian, spiritual and social constructs that braves new frontiers for the Star Trek narrative. Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), an African-American, is the first black actor to be cast in a leadership role in the Star Trek televisual series. In addition to portraying the first African-American to lead as a Starship captain, Brooks is also attributed with introducing 20^th-century race issues of allegorical alien stand-ins, because of his involvement in various civil rights organizations. But some film theorist have suggested, in the 1960’s TOS was addressing many social problems that were occurring throughout the county, but with any democratic society change is eminent and the 1990’s was ripe for social equality in television programming. For African Americans the representation in popular culture was a mixture of highs and lows. Astronaut Bernard Harris becomes the first African American to walk in space, and O.J. Simpson was found not guilty in the murder trial of Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman.

In Deep Space Nine, Sisko is introduced in dramatic fashion; he is a single parent who shows love and affection for his son Jake. Not that loving your son is unusual, but this is out of character for a Starship Captain, let alone one that is assigned to a space station in Bajoran space.  It is important to note, that Sisko is very close to his son, he shares a physical space with Jake, which is unlike other Starship Captains. Sisko plays, kids and jokes with his son. This relationship is heighted  at this time by Sisko being a single parent, but he deeply misses and longs for his wife Jennifer, which makes Sisko’s vulnerability apparent, a characteristic that is rarely seen in an authoritative figure in a Star Trek narrative. But by giving Sisko a family and permanent love interest in future episodes, the producers created a fully developed character, humanizing him further than any other Star Trek captains (Kwan 63).  This portrayal of Sisko may have been unusual in the 1960’s or 1970’s but for the 1990’s it was an acceptable presentation and evolution of racial equality at this time.

Also, Sisko and his crew on Deep Space Nine represents the most racially and ethnically diverse crew of previous Star Trek presentations. The combination of family, religion and ethnic diversity, shapes Deep Space Nine through several episodes which highlight these qualities in Sisko. But the subtext of Sisko’s racial ethnicity, as once being oppressed and enslaved demonstrates and heightens the plight of the Bajorans with the repressive Cardassians. After sixty years of occupation and resettlement of the Bajoran people by the Cardassians The Cardassians have relinquished control of Deep Space Nine to the Federation and the Bajoran Empire. The key words here are occupation and resettlement. One could equate the Bajoran plight with the first Palestinian Intafada uprising (1987 to1991) in the West Bank in Israel. The similarities are striking, even though Israel is not an Orwellian society like Cardassia or the Palestinians a highly religious society similar to the Bajorans. However the Bajorans had a rebel and terrorist component, which would engage in street-to-street fighting as well as domestic terrorism against the Cardasian invaders. The resistance fighters from Bajor could also be identified as the PLO and  well as the Black September Organization who claimed responsibility for the killing of eleven Israeli's in Munich during the Summer Olympics in 1972 (Callahan 4).

Granted condemnation of the Palestinians or Bajroans can’t be based on actions of a terrorist organization, but sympathies of resettlement does resonate a familiar cord with the Palestinian people. Which demonstrates how far Sisko and his crew must endure tolerance for the Cardassians and sympathy for the people of Bajora. This validates the liberal humanism of the Federation and Sisko. For the Bajorans, Sisko as captain and authoritative leader displays a unique mixture of personality and spiritual leader that is quite unusual for a Federation officer.

Obviously the cultural evolution of Kirk, Janeway and Sisko, has been a hard fought battle in the eyes of the producers and writers in Star Trek’s narrative. It is unclear by some critics and leading academics that the Star Trek narrative broke new ground representing important racial and social benchmarks in our televisual history.

 For example, in 1968 gender and racial history was on display in Plato's Stepchildren network television’s first interracial kiss on Star Trek. This physically forced caress unmistakably subjugates Uhura (Nichelle Nichols). Visibly shaken by this experience, Uhura fights at the notion of kissing, Captain Kirk. Figuratively speaking, the textual content reminds the spectator of a rape scene. Granted this kiss was commanded by Parmen (Eric W. Weisstein) with telekinetic powers and not by Kirk. But one can surmise the sub-text of the kiss, reaffirms the patricidal order in the Star Trek universe and Kirk’s underlying representation.

Janeway is some aspects can’t be identified by her female gender. She is rigid, controlling, emotionally distant and aloof. To be otherwise may jeopardize her authority. Janeway must be a disciplinarian to avoid any repercussions that may harm her authority.  Janeway must also agonize through these minefields of isolation to prove her “maleness” to the crew and her officers. By keeping her private life secret; she instills a mystery about her, a chilling isolation which divides and separates the crew. This division helps Janeway establish order so it does not undermine her gender free authority. 

There are times when Sisko, without relying on a metaphor, can address rasicm directly. However, there are instances when Deep Space Nine prepatuates the racial normatitives found in the first two Star Trek series (Kwan 63). Sisko and Kasidy (Penny Johnson) tour a 1962 Las Vegas Casino on the holodeck. Sisko has reservations because the holodeck program ignores the social environmnet of segreation for blacks during that time period. Kasidy responds that this is what things should have been. Siko is still uncomfortable, knowing full well that blacks at this time were only allowed to be performers or janitors. But what is problematic is that the story is suggesting we can idealize certain  periods of American history without feeling guilty over the racism of our ancestors.

Clearly these three distinct individuals have different visions and interpretations of what Federation life is about. This future setting of Star Trek was one of hope and would be thought of a better place for all species and genders. In some regard, the representation of Sisko, Kirk and Janeway has proven Gene Rodenberry’s vision through these three diverse characterizations and was not lost in a sea of capitalism and containment that often derails story and plot in the eyes of some. But Star Trek and its authoritative representatives have endured and thrived through the eyes of millions of viewers in the television universe. 

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