My friend Daniel has started something I always meant to do but never got round to because it’s such a daunting task – looking at the relationship between Classics and Star Trek. There’s a lot to say here. A lot. Even more if you include archaeology, which Star Trek is curiously obsessed with. This first instalment’s very interesting and you should all check it out.
From meeting the god Apollo in The Original Series, to the Roman-inflected Terran Empire in Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek has always drawn heavily on ancient Greece and Rome for inspiration. Since both Star Trek and Classics have been important parts of my life from a young age, I’ve decided to take a look at some of the more interesting way the franchise has engaged with the ancient world, whether through direct allusion or more subtle thematic patterning.
In this first instalment, I begin by looking at the very ancient roots of one of pop culture’s most famous split infinitives.
To explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no-one has gone before.
This is, of course, the conclusion of the phrase that opens the credit-sequences of both the original Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation. (1) This…
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Ancient Worlds 