4 ms·

Star Trek is arguably utopian. At least that’s how it is intended and perceived. I personally abhor the primacy of the military it glorifies, and also the fashi

Star Trek is arguably utopian. At least that’s how it is intended and perceived. I personally abhor the primacy of the military it glorifies, and also the fashion choices.

jhbadger 8y ago
To be fair to Star Trek, the shows generally focus on the people on Starfleet vessels, not the civilians on planets. It's implied that war and poverty on Earth and other "developed" planets is over and the only conflict is in border regions where the Federation borders hostile civilizations. You may have a point in regard to fashion, however.
TeMPOraL 8y ago
At least in TNG era (TNG/DS9/VOY), Starfleet was only technically "a military". While everyone still wore uniforms and followed a chain of command, the show made a huge point of Starfleet's goals being primarily diplomacy, exploration and scientific research; occasional force projection was considered a secondary and unfortunate task.
- matt4077 8y ago
  The militarism I was referencing isn't defined so much in violence, but in values, organisational structure (, and fashion). It's arguably worse for the trappings of the military (rigid hierarchy, loyalty as the core value, etc) to be used in the context of functions that are civilian by nature, such as science and diplomacy. The essence of life as it's portrayed is that of a benevolent military dictatorship. I know Star Trek has some storylines grappling with some of these issues. But any allusions to civilian life I remember seem rather tacked-on. Politicians were usually frightened & helpless, in need of rescue. They did get to wear nicer clothes, though. (this is almost exclusively based on TNG–I did not watch enough of the other incarnations to comment on those)
  - TeMPOraL 8y ago
    I see. True, TNG didn't deal that much with civilian life directly - as viewers, we're following a Starfleet flagship on an exploratory mission. But the show does try to communicate in the background that it's just Starfleet that's the military branch, and the wider Federation is a fully civilian effort. In DS9 civilian life is almost the primary focus of the first few seasons, as the titular DS9 has only skeleton Starfleet representation onboard, and most of the protagonists aren't part of it. The series also had portrayed an attempt by some Starfleet personnel to turn Federation into actual military dictatorship ("for the greater good", of course).

Star Trek is arguably utopian. At least that’s how it is intended and perceived. I personally abhor the primacy of the military it glorifies, and also the fashion choices.

jhbadger 8y ago

To be fair to Star Trek, the shows generally focus on the people on Starfleet vessels, not the civilians on planets. It's implied that war and poverty on Earth and other "developed" planets is over and the only conflict is in border regions where the Federation borders hostile civilizations. You may have a point in regard to fashion, however.

TeMPOraL 8y ago

At least in TNG era (TNG/DS9/VOY), Starfleet was only technically "a military". While everyone still wore uniforms and followed a chain of command, the show made a huge point of Starfleet's goals being primarily diplomacy, exploration and scientific research; occasional force projection was considered a secondary and unfortunate task.

matt4077 8y ago
The militarism I was referencing isn't defined so much in violence, but in values, organisational structure (, and fashion). It's arguably worse for the trappings of the military (rigid hierarchy, loyalty as the core value, etc) to be used in the context of functions that are civilian by nature, such as science and diplomacy. The essence of life as it's portrayed is that of a benevolent military dictatorship. I know Star Trek has some storylines grappling with some of these issues. But any allusions to civilian life I remember seem rather tacked-on. Politicians were usually frightened & helpless, in need of rescue. They did get to wear nicer clothes, though. (this is almost exclusively based on TNG–I did not watch enough of the other incarnations to comment on those)
- TeMPOraL 8y ago
  I see. True, TNG didn't deal that much with civilian life directly - as viewers, we're following a Starfleet flagship on an exploratory mission. But the show does try to communicate in the background that it's just Starfleet that's the military branch, and the wider Federation is a fully civilian effort. In DS9 civilian life is almost the primary focus of the first few seasons, as the titular DS9 has only skeleton Starfleet representation onboard, and most of the protagonists aren't part of it. The series also had portrayed an attempt by some Starfleet personnel to turn Federation into actual military dictatorship ("for the greater good", of course).