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The Importance and Relevance of Star Trek in the Big Bang Theory

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The Importance and Relevance of Star Trek in the Big Bang Theory Feature 101 Such gender bias is unsurprising as Steinke et al. have The Importance and Relevance of shown that “male scientist characters were found to be both more prevalent than female scientist characters” in Star Trek in The Big Bang Theory this type of media depiction (2). Physical frailty, nerdi- 101 ness and geekiness are equally expected as “[m]ale sci- entist characters were more likely to be shown with the Victor Grech masculine attributes of independence and dominance, but not athleticism” (2). THE BIG BANG THEORY portrays scientists who iden- Sheldon is the principal character, a theoretical physi- tify closely with characters and the lifestyle portrayed cist who obtained a PhD at 16 years of age and went on in Star Trek (ST). The latter is in turn used to highlight to acquire a Doctor of Science degree. While his knowl- their nerdism. This paper classifies references to ST as edge of theoretical physics is unparalleled, his lack of those of simple viewing of films and episodes, passing interpersonal skills is equally breath-taking, leading to allusions to ST in ordinary conversation, the obsessive him being referred to as “the crazy guy across the hall” collection of ST memorabilia, the direct interaction with (Cendrowski, “The Staircase Implementation”). Jim ST actors, intimate knowledge of the fictional Klingon Parsons, the actor who reprises the part, has won both language, the deliberate introduction of ST elements an Emmy and a Golden Globe (Bednarek 202). Sheldon into real life, using ST as metaphor for real life, men- shares an apartment with Leonard, an experimental tal identification with Spock, and ultimately acting out physicist who is much more humanised but is shy and ST roles. The scientists’ uneven enculturation is em- unlucky with women. Raj is an astrophysicist with selec- phasised through ST to humorous effect. Conversely, tive mutism, able to speak to women only while under a blonde female waitress constitutes the representative the influence of alcohol. Howard is the only non-PhD, non-scientist viewing public, an overt observer and a possessing a masters degree in engineering. His ap- surrogate judge of the antics that our eccentric scientists proach to women is the exact opposite to Raj’s, coming indulge in. This paper will also demonstrate that there over too aggressively for any reasonable chance of suc- is bidirectional flow of information, with our waitress cess. gaining knowledge from her friends since they seem to Penny is an attractive, blonde, would-be actress who inspire her to achieve a higher level of education, while lives across the hallway from Sheldon and Leonard. Her she encourages them to cope realistically with life. ST level of education is very poor compared with the boys, is thus utilised to provide both textual and visual cues but in terms of language and diction, she serves as a foil, about character and stereotype. contrasting sharply with Sheldon. Penny is a represen- tative of the non-scientific/nerd/geek public, who Shel- don rejects as “muggles” (Cendrowski, “The Robotic Introduction Manipulation”), a term derived from the Harry Potter series referring to individuals who lack magical ability. THE BIG BANG THEORY (BBT) is a sitcom which pre- Her role is clear. “[N]ot only are audiences interested miered on September 24, 2007. BBT is owned by the Co- in televisual characters; they also engage with them in- lumbia Broadcasting System (CBS), the company which terpersonally” (Bednarek 201). Indeed, it is almost as if also own the Star Trek (ST) television franchise. Penny stands in as an extreme example of the general public, a member of that group which in popular cul- “In The Big Bang Theory, the most relevant social ture is not considered to be “the brightest pixels in the identity […] seems to be that of the nerd or geek” plasma screen: dumb blondes,” thereby constituting yet (Bednarek 203). Indeed, the four principal male another stereotype (Inness 2). characters in BBT are ultimate science geeks and BBT constantly refers to ST and this paper will cat- prototypical nerds, skinny postdocs working at the egorise and analyse these references in an attempt to California Institute of Technology. This accedes to identify the points that the directors endeavour to make. the notion that the frank depiction of geeks and These are mainly that nerdy and geeky scientists can nerds is akin to the “freak show discourse of styl- successfully interact with non-scientists, and vice-versa, izing people as ‘the other.’” (Engelhart 3) both within the show and with the covert audience that 10 SFRA Review 310 Fall 2014 SFRA Review 310 Fall 2014 11 watches the show, and that this interaction can be me- ceive.” Speculation continues: “maybe they had to go to diated and actively fostered using ST since of all of the a clinic. Imagine Spock’s dad in a little room with a copy movie and television franchises that are referenced in of pointy ears and shapely rears.” They naturally also the show, ST is mentioned most often. wonder, again as scientists, “how come on Star Trek ev- References to ST in BBT can be classified into six types. erybody’s private parts are the same. No alien lady ever In increasing order of obsession, the boys constantly told Captain Kirk, ‘hey, get your thing out of my nose’” watch ST, they frequently allude to and quote from ST in (Cendrowski, “The Bat Jar Conjecture”). passing conversation, and they avidly collect ST memo- To Sheldon, ST episodes are so important that as part rabilia. Within the show, they directly interact with past of his “emergency provisions,” should a disaster befall ST characters and display an excellent knowledge of the his apartment, he includes “season two of Star Trek: The fictional Klingon language. The show goes on to intro- Original Series on a high-density flash drive,” along with duce ST elements into real life and explains life through “an eight-day supply of food and water, a crossbow.” metaphors derived from ST. Our characters, particu- When asked “what if there’s a disaster that destroys larly Sheldon, identify with ST’s Spock and they readily all the USB ports?” Sheldon rejoins, in all seriousness, act out ST roles. Since dialog projects a particular social “then there’s really no reason to live, is there?” (Cend- identity, drawing on stereotypes and shared knowledge rowski, “The Plimpton Stimulation”). with the audience” (Bednarek 199), direct quotations With such experts, criticism about new films inevi- will be used. tably ensues. Sheldon remarks “it amazes me how you This paper will show that ST is heavily alluded to in constantly obsess over fictional details when there are BBT, and these references are used as “textual cues that more important things in the real world to worry about. give rise to information about character” (Culpeper For example, why wasn’t William Shatner in the new 163). These clues have been shown to be both explicit Star Trek movie?” (Cendrowski, “The Pants Alterna- (167) and implicit (172), as will be shown in BBT. The tive;” Abrams, “Star Trek”) scripts also “prove to be a masterpiece play on words to Interfilm quality is also a topic of contention: create humor and fun, with mystic science terminology, ingenious use of rhetorical devices, and individualistic Raj: Yeah, Star Trek V, worse than I. expressions” (Yin and Yun 1221), with ST references be- Sheldon: Okay, first of all, that’s a comparison of ing among the majority. ST is also used to highlight “the quality, not intensity. Secondly, Star Trek I is orders- stereotypical nerd’s interest in science and […] identity of-magnitude worse than Star Trek V. as an (intelligent) ‘scientist’-nerd” (Bednarek 214). Raj: Are you joking? Star Trek V is the standard against which all badness is measured. Sheldon: No, no, no. Star Trek V has specific fail- Watching ST ures in writing and direction, while Star Trek I fails across the board, art direction, costuming, music, THE BOYS ARE GREAT FANS of the franchise and sound editing. […] regularly re-watch ST films and episodes such as the Raj: Star Trek V! “Deep Space Nine/Star Trek The Original Series Trouble Sheldon: All right, will you at least stipulate that Star With Tribbles crossover episode” (Cendrowski, “The Trek IV: The Voyage Home is inarguably the best? Hofstadter Isotope”; West, “Trials and Tribble-ations”). Raj: I have three words for you. Wrath of Khan. Their knowledge of ST is encyclopedic. New films are (Wise, Star Trek: The Motion Picture; Meyer, Star avidly awaited and speculated upon. It is mentioned that Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; Nimoy, Star Trek IV: The they waited in line […] for 14 hours to see the midnight Voyage Home; Shatner, Star Trek V: The Final Fron- premiere of Star Trek: Nemesis” (Baird, Nemesis; Cend- tier; Cendrowski, “The Lizard-Spock Expansion”) rowski, “The 21-Second Excitation”). Even the ST reboot was eagerly expected, with conjec- Similarly, Sheldon notes “Did you see Star Trek: The Mo- tures about it, such as “a scene depicting Spock’s birth.” tion Picture? […] Don’t. It’s terrible (Cendrowski, “The The reply is that there would be more interest “in a scene Alien Parasite Hypothesis”). depicting Spock’s conception.” Almost inevitably, as Characters in ST films are not immune to denuncia- scientists the cast wonders that, since “his mother was tion, such as when Sheldon asks Leonard for his per- human, his father was Vulcan, they couldn’t just con- sonal preference when judging whether Leonard would 12 SFRA Review 310 Fall 2014 SFRA Review 310 Fall 2014 13 make a suitable roommate: “Kirk or Picard?” To which Howard marries, Sheldon paraphrases “Boldly go, How- Leonard replies “Oh, uh, well, that’s tricky.
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