Martinez Dettinger: Darmok and The Black Robe

 In both the Star Trek Episode "Darmok" and The Black Robe, there is a disconnect in communication between two groups at different levels of sedimentation. In Darmok, The Enterprise crew cannot discern the meaning of the mythic Tamarians until Picard faces camping on another planet and a battle with the Captain of the Tamarian ship. In The Black Robe, Father Laforgue is separated from connecting with the Native American because of his prioritization of evangelization and his preoccupation with the written word. He often is reading or contemplating religious doctrine rather than interacting with the landscape or the Native Americans, which leads to his condemnation as a demon and his abandonment. Both of these instances illustrates the importance of shared tangible experiences to communication. It isn't until Picard and the Tamarian Captain are united by their conflict with the beast, and their shared stories around a fire that their communication ensues. This is a stark contrast to the setting of the Enterprise in which all communication is mediated by technology and the SOP dictated by man-made conception of communication rules. In the Black Robe, Daniel, Father Lafrogue's travelling companion, interacts with the Native Americans through their own understanding of the world. He leans into their way of life and customs, thus interacting with the world alongside them. His shared experience with Annuka, though sexual, flows with the open sexual nature of the Native Americans, and this allows him to connect with the Native American through shared tangible experiences that grant him a deeper understanding of their culture. I think that sedimentation is really just the loss of rooting oneself in the tangible experiences that we share with others. Both of these situations are evidence of this. With the advent of the technologically dominated culture, I wonder if more shared experiences with the natural world and others at the developing stage could be useful for building empathy and better communication skills in our society because it would root us in that which is similar between us. 

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