The Divine Comedy.
In this episode of Meta Treks, hosts Zachary Fruhling and Mike Morrison discuss the classic work of literature The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri and its relevance to the Star Trek universe. Dante's semi-autobiographical, mythical tale of a redemptive and self-reflective journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, led by the poet Virgil (Dante's symbol of human reason) and the lady Beatrice (Dante's symbol of divine love), has become an archetypal metaphor for going astray and being led back to one's true path.
Many characters in the Star Trek universe have gone astray, whether literally as in the case of the Voyager crew lost in the Delta Quadrant, or metaphorically as in the case of characters with deep personal struggles, such as Wesley Crusher, Worf, and Benjamin Sisko. These and other Star Trek characters who have gone astray are frequently visited by quasi-mystical messengers, analogous to Virgil and Beatrice in The Divine Comedy, who lead them on a journey and back to their own true and unique paths.
Chapters
Welcome to Episode 35 (00:01:06)
Initial Thoughts on The Divine Comedy and Star Trek (00:01:45)
The Doctor's Inferno (00:04:55)
"Shattered" and Other Dante References in Star Trek (00:09:31)
Virgil [Human Reason] and Beatrice [Divine Love] (00:17:16)
Wesley's Inferno (00:21:47)
Comparing Kirk/Spock/McCoy with Dante/Virgil/Beatrice (00:27:09)
Virgil and Beatrice [Picard and Troi] on the Enterprise-D (00:33:52)
"Midway Through Life's Journey" (00:50:31)
Voyager - Tom Paris, Captain Janeway, and Harry Kim (00:57:11)
Worf's Inferno (01:05:51)
Benjamin's Inferno (01:15:38)
Other Examples and Final Thoughts (01:26:43)
Hosts
Zachary Fruhling and Mike Morrison
Production
Mike Morrison (Editor and Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Patrick Devlin (Associate Producer) Kay Elizabeth Janeway (Associate Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager)
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