4. Coming To Terms With Jennifer Siskos Death - Emissary DS9
The first episode of Deep Space Nine begins with a traumatic event. The battle with the Borg (known as the Battle at Wolf 359) sees Commander Benjamin Sisko trying to evacuate his family off the USS Saratoga. In the course of the attempt, his wife Jennifer is killed. The sudden loss of ones partner is truly traumatic experience, regardless of the circumstances. But this episode is truly unique in that it begins with such a loss. As this type of event sets the context for the rest of a persons life, this plot event sets the context for the entire episode. It is filled with loss, resentment and cynicism. Sisko has grown disillusioned with Starfleet and is resentful of it as it took his wife from him. Also, the orders he receives to take over Deep Space Nine come from Captain Picard the man he also sees as the master architect of Wolf 359. At the beginning of the episode, he informs Picard that he plans on resigning his commission from Star Fleet to seek a civilian career. This is a picture of a man trying to come to terms with what he has lost and also trying to live his life for his son. Parents who have lost a spouse forget about their own welfare but realize that their children depend on them. While this is not the healthiest attitude, grief overwhelms a parents sense of well-being and prevents them from fully living in the now. Sisko eventually understands that he needs to put the moment of his wifes death in the past where it belongs. The wormhole aliens he encounters live a non-linear life and perceive existence past, present and future as a whole. As a representative of a species that lives a linear temporal existence, they question why he continually returns to that moment when she died. Through their help, he understands the need to focus on the present and the future. Though he will never lose the memory of her death, he is finally able to move past it. Though it is a heartbreaking process to watch, there is a purpose to it and a constructive catharsis.
John Kirk is a Teacher-Librarian and currently a History/English Teacher with the Toronto District School Board.
But mostly, John teaches Geek.
Comics, Sci-Fi (Notably Star Trek), Fantasy and Role-Playing and table-top games all make up part of John’s repertoire, There is a whole generation of nerds-in-embryo who rely on him to make sense of it all, to teach that with great power comes great responsibility, that the force will be with us always and that a towel IS the most useful thing to have in one’s possession.
When John isn’t in the classroom, he can be found in his basement writing comic reviews for www.popmythology.com and features for Roddenberry Entertainment's www.1701news.com.
