peterr@utcsrgv.UUCP (Peter Rowley) (01/14/84)
--- My apologies if this topic has been brought up before, but I've only just subscribed to the group, due to a renewed interest in the series brought on by being able to see it again. In "The Galileo Seven" (Spock, McCoy, Scotty, and 4 others go off in a shuttle to investigate the "Murasaki" effect, caused by a quasar. They get lost and land on a planet inhabited by 10 ft. ape-like nasties. 2 security folks get killed (THEY always get killed), but they get off the planet eventually and get saved by Enterprise, but barely, as Enterprise had to help out some plague victims on New Paris), Spock shows a considerable lack of intelligence or knowledge. The theme of the episode is that commanding people requires MORE than logic-- it requires feeling, intuition, etc. Spock uses only logic, treating his crewmates as logical creatures, and things go awry, with much resentment directed at Spock. If Spock were truly super-intelligent, then he would realize that humans have certain properties, including the need to be inspired and treated with sensitivity. He would then act accordingly, doing whatever is necessary to encourage his crewmates to perform as best they could. He did not act this way, so he can't be as all-knowledgeable as is generally assumed. p. rowley, U. Toronto
rjnoe@ihlts.UUCP (Roger Noe @ 41:48:31 N, 88:07:13 W) (01/16/84)
> > In "The Galileo Seven" . . . 2 security folks get killed (THEY always > get killed) . . . > Spock shows a considerable lack of intelligence or knowledge. > Spock uses only logic, treating his crewmates as logical creatures, > and things go awry, with much resentment directed at Spock. > If Spock were truly super-intelligent, then he would realize that > humans have certain properties, including the need to be inspired and > treated with sensitivity. He would then act accordingly, doing > whatever is necessary to encourage his crewmates to perform as best > they could. He did not act this way, so he can't be as all- > knowledgeable as is generally assumed. > p. rowley, U. Toronto First off, it is incorrect to toss of the statement that security guards who beam down to a planet ALWAYS get killed. It's just not true. A lot do. Now, on to Spock in "The Galileo Seven". No one ever claimed that Spock was omniscient. He has a human half which he suppressed almost all the time in the TV series. In doing so, he failed to take advantage of the opportunity to understand human nature. This is why he so often misunderstood humans. He was a product of his logical society (and his mixed genetic heritage) and has limitations as any being does. In STTMP Spock DID come to the realization that he had failed to appreciate his own humanity and began a conscious effort to enjoy the diversity within himself, instead of always trying to suppress it. While it is true he does have very formidable mental abilities, it is wrong to assume that superior intellect always leads to correct decisions. Many otherwise intelligent humans cling to false and misleading beliefs which blind them to reality. I can personally appreciate Spock's difficulty in rejecting the societal values he was brought up with in order to be closer to reality. It is just such pressures which hamper individuals from enjoying one's own uniqueness. Spock's major mistake was not in treating his crewmates as logical beings, but in treating the planet's hostile natives as logical beings. Remember how baffled he was when his tactics against them didn't work? But the end of the episode shows us there is hope for Spock (which began to be realized much later in STTMP); he illogically takes the gamble of jettisonning and igniting the remainder of the shuttlecraft's fuel as a signal flare to attract the attention of the Enterprise should it be nearby. --- Roger Noe ihnp4!ihlts!rjnoe