Tapestry Ending Insults Ordinary People

[polyharmonic]

In the TNG episode "Tapestry", we see that Picard led a very different life due to wanting to change it. Instead of one that takes risks, is ambitious and pushes the envelope to get noticed and make Captain, he leads an ordinary, risk-averse life and is stuck at LTJG rank as some lowly nobody science officer.

Upon realizing this, Picard then declares that he would rather die as captain of the Enterprise than continue to live as a nobody.

On reflection, I started to think. Wait a minute, most of his crew members are probably nobody lowly crew members that never advance very far. Does Picard think that low of them? And IRL, most of us are that lowly nobody science officer. I mean is living an ordinary life that bad? Few of us can become extraordinary by definition and most of us IRL (and most people even in the Trekverse) live "dreary lives doing tedious jobs".

Don't get me wrong. I loved this episode. But there's no escaping that Picard would rather be dead than live some comfortable but ordinary life. Well most of us are that lowly nobody science officer IRL, I know I am. So it did feel a bit insulting to me.

 

[Vger23]

But the entire point is that Picard is not an ordinary man. He has extraordinary gifts in leadership and intelligence, and I think the whole point of this episode is that wasting those gifts because he chose to play it safe is a crime.

 

[marsh8472]

Q appealed to his pride and rattled off a bunch of Picards accomplishments. The Pirate family has a lot of pride

 

[marsh8472]

Picard not pirate^

 

[DonIago]

If you'd been captain of the Federation's flagship, would you be able to live your life as a nobody science officer with no chance of reaching your former height?

TL;DR: Q made Picard a washed-up movie star, and he couldn't handle it.

I have to admit, I wish we'd gotten a bit more time to see this Picard. The point is made, but I found Riker and Troi's inflexibility off-putting to the point that it was almost out of character (OTOH, we know very little about what this Picard was up to prior to what we see of him here), and I would have liked a bit more insight into Picard's "new life" before he ran screaming from it.

 

[Devilpogostick]

Yeah, it's not exactly what I see is insulting. It's Picard realizing that while he was ashamed of his past actions as a hot headed risktaker, those actions are what made him who he truly is. No doubt that LTJG Picard is rather content with his life...If we didn't see our Picard take his place.

This is less about how Picard views the crew not in his circle and more on how he views himself. He knows he's capable to do more and there's proof of that but this life of taking little to no risk had squandered such potential and he's painfully aware of it once it dawns upon him this is not the life he wanted. Again this is his life he's considering, not a lower rank officer who isn't part of his bridge crew. I'm sure he's fine with his crewmates and their content with their lives, it's their choice and he surely respects that.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Just because a life you don't choose for yourself wouldn't fulfill you, doesn't mean someone else wouldn't enjoy it. We're unique. You can't fit a square Picard into a round position.

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

Yeah, it's not exactly what I see is insulting. It's Picard realizing that while he was ashamed of his past actions as a hot headed risktaker, those actions are what made him who he truly is. No doubt that LTJG Picard is rather content with his life...If we didn't see our Picard take his place.

To the OP's point, I've felt the same way about the episode from time to time. But what would've been interesting is if we saw that Lt. (JG) Picard had a fuller life in a way that Captain Picard didn't. Perhaps, LT (JG) Picard had married (maybe even Beverly), had a family because he was less focused on career advancement. And that gave him another kind of purpose.

But family and marriage isn't the life Picard ever really wanted and thus realizes that being a hot-headed risk taker gave him the life he prefers. Thus, Picard arrives at the same ending but through different means.

"Tapestry" is about Picard's ego. His ego couldn't accept the life choices of Lt. (JG) Picard. But it would've been nice if there'd been more to that alt-Picard than just being a lowly junior science officer.

 

[Devilpogostick]

To the OP's point, I've felt the same way about the episode from time to time. But what would've been interesting is if we saw that Lt. (JG) Picard had a fuller life in a way that Captain Picard didn't. Perhaps, LT (JG) Picard had married (maybe even Beverly), had a family because he was less focused on career advancement. And that gave him another kind of purpose.

But family and marriage isn't the life Picard ever really wanted and thus realizes that being a hot-headed risk taker gave him the life he prefers. Thus, Picard arrives at the same ending but through different means.

"Tapestry" really is about Picard's ego. His ego couldn't accept the life choices of Lt. (JG) Picard. But it would've been nice if there'd been more to that alt-Picard than just being a lowly junior science officer.

Agreed, having Captain Picard look more into LT(JG) Picard's life would make things a bit more interesting. Make it more that there are upsides to it that Captain Picard would find appealing but ultimately decided that it's not really the life he wants as you mentioned.

The message is there still there yes, but it'll give Picard more in the thought of "I'll never advance in my career and I realize I can live with that...But that's not who I am" and less "this life sucks, I want out."

But well, the story needed Picard being humbled after all so knocking him down a peg for regretting the actions that led to his artificial heart (since said action and its aftermath led to how Picard would define himself in the long run) was more the focus than his life as LT (JG) though a glimpse of it is integral to the story.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I didn't see it as not wanting to live an ordinary life or any insult to ordinary people. I saw it as being about the personality characteristics that placed him there. Total risk-aversion, adventurelessness and satisfaction with the status quo.

One can live an extraordinary or interesting life in an ordinary position, and Ltjg Picard was not doing that. Captain Picard sacrificed having a family for his extraordinary career, and Ltjg Picard didn't even get that family. The man had nothing in his life except blending into the background.

 

[JesterFace]

I think this episode was insulting. Many people in this world (myself included) would be happy to live a healthy life in a job or other position that may not be ideal.

Sure, this episode was about Picard... but the writer looked into Picard's situation from a "ordinary people" perspective.

 

[DonIago]

Okay, but how many of those people would be content if they were thrust into an "ordinary people" scenario after having spent a good chunk of their lives being "extraordinary"?

 

[polyharmonic]

To the OP's point, I've felt the same way about the episode from time to time. But what would've been interesting is if we saw that Lt. (JG) Picard had a fuller life in a way that Captain Picard didn't. Perhaps, LT (JG) Picard had married (maybe even Beverly), had a family because he was less focused on career advancement. And that gave him another kind of purpose.

But family and marriage isn't the life Picard ever really wanted and thus realizes that being a hot-headed risk taker gave him the life he prefers. Thus, Picard arrives at the same ending but through different means.

"Tapestry" is about Picard's ego. His ego couldn't accept the life choices of Lt. (JG) Picard. But it would've been nice if there'd been more to that alt-Picard than just being a lowly junior science officer.

This is exactly what I had in mind too and reminds me very much of Picard's life as Kamin in "The Inner Light".

AFAIK, Kamin was just some nobody family man that probably lived a somewhat dreary and tedious day to day life. I don't get the sense that Kamin lived some extraordinary life as some great political, scientific, or cultural figure. Kamin didn't strike me as some adventurous, ambitious, risk-taker kind of guy. Yet when he awoke to his real life as Enterprise Captain, it seemed like a life experience he will forever cherish rather than "I'm glad that crappy life is over".

Now people will say that Kamin at least lived a rich life of love and companionship of family and friends even if he was a nobody. But I don't see why LTJR Picard couldn't have lived a rich if ordinary life. I mean the real Picard was very shy and risk-averse when it came to intimate relations. But LTJG Picard was bold in shacking up with Betanides and I would think this Picard might have been far more successful in his romantic life.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I always wondered what would have happened if Picard had come clean to the rest of the crew in the alternate timeline and flat-out told them that Q was interfering in his life. (It would depend, of course, if that version of the crew ever HAD encountered Q.)

I mean, I'm sure Troi would be able to tell that Picard wasn't lying, couldn't she? So they'd know that it's not just some old washed-up lieutenant making up stories.

 

[A Chimpanzee & 2 Trainees]

It's not that being lowly Lt. Nobody is that bad, per se, but the the knowledge of what he had is.

He was dealing with the sense of loss that most of us lowly science officers IRL will never know precisely because we can't run an alternative history. We can daydream about it and speculate, but we can't KNOW. He does, and it's eating him up inside.

If that wasn't the case, there'd be no Lt. Nobody for Picard to be in the alternate present. "Safe" Picard would have become depressed and probably left Starfleet in dissolusionment. As it is, Lt. Picard was probably perfectly happy until Q came along and plopped "real" Picard's memories in his head.

 

[Triskelion]

In "Reunion", I believe it was (the one where Worf duels Duras upon the death of K'Ehleyr), Picard said "the Enterprise crew currently includes representatives from thirteen planets. They each have their individual beliefs and values and I respect them all. " He knows respect is more than lip service; he lives with not only tolerance, but validation of difference, in practice. He goes on to say, "But they have all chosen to serve Starfleet. If anyone cannot perform his or her duty because of the demands of their society, they should resign."

Picard puts the needs of Starfleet - the the Federation - ahead of even his own ambition.

It has nothing to do with other people's priorities. Tapestry was Man against Himself.

Is it fair that some people are faster runners than others? Well, that is nature. Slow runners have other strengths, which weren't the point of this particular self-realization. Society can deem fast and slow runners as both equally valid under the law, but tell that to the tiger. Life is unfair, and while talent is unfairly distributed, a little work can go a long way. Are you saying that it's unfair for lower-ranked officers not to enjoy the benefits of leadership? Well they can't all be captains.

Although they can all get the same Participation Award as everybody else - not that it means anything toward actual promotability.

 

[suarezguy]

In the TNG episode "Tapestry", we see that Picard led a very different life due to wanting to change it. Instead of one that takes risks, is ambitious and pushes the envelope to get noticed and make Captain, he leads an ordinary, risk-averse life and is stuck at LTJG rank as some lowly nobody science officer.

Upon realizing this, Picard then declares that he would rather die as captain of the Enterprise than continue to live as a nobody.

That's a clear implication but the actual line was he would rather die with his old personal characteristics (not be without passion, imagination, ambition or risk-taking in general) rather than specifically rank and position. He's at least somewhat disappointed about not having risen in rank but he becomes really frustrated on learning from alt-Riker and Troi about why the lack of promotion occurred, that he was very unexceptional and they doubted he could advance going forward.

On reflection, I started to think. Wait a minute, most of his crew members are probably nobody lowly crew members that never advance very far. Does Picard think that low of them? And IRL, most of us are that lowly nobody science officer. I mean is living an ordinary life that bad? Few of us can become extraordinary by definition and most of us IRL (and most people even in the Trekverse) live "dreary lives doing tedious jobs".

Don't get me wrong. I loved this episode. But there's no escaping that Picard would rather be dead than live some comfortable but ordinary life.

The sentiment, especially if it's specifically related to rank advancement, is definitely uncomfortable and it was probably meant to be (or understood that it could be) controversial. But Picard probably thinks pretty highly the lowly crewmembers as long as they do their best while he would be disappointed if they or he himself didn't.

 

[at Quark's]

I've never seen that decision as a reflection from 'dead' Picard on his rank and position, or on other peoples' lives, but simply as a reflection on whether he (having lived the life he remembered) could bear to be (or become) this different, 'safe' person. So I see no insult here.

 

[urbandefault]

Kirk said it best: "I need my pain!"

 

[Mojochi]

If you'd been captain of the Federation's flagship, would you be able to live your life as a nobody science officer with no chance of reaching your former height?

If it meant not dying ostensibly midway through my life? I might. If you think about it, he's only mid-fifties, & could conceivably live another 60 or 70 years. Another way to look at this is that the life he'd had is over already. He's dying, & this is a 2nd chance at living an additional life of the same or longer length than his decisions had given him. Professor Galen is still out there... Nella Darren, who also works in astrophysics, Beverly, his family on Earth, etc... I do think it is rather insulting to just assume this Picard's life is worth less than dying as Picard Prime. That's some serious hubris

I'm not saying he chose wrongly, but I am saying that if he'd chosen conversely, that doing so is also conceivably not a wrong choice either. The truth is, he is NOT this Picard. He's just thrown into this one's life. He has the benefit of knowing HOW to become more than his current station, even if Riker & Troi are too blind to know that, when he asked them. He has access to a kind of wisdom that is otherwise impossible to obtain.

I find it odd that he actually gave more consideration to reevaluating his life, & altered future in bloody "Rascals" than he does here. This episode goes far deeper into personal choices & what kind of person he is than that one does. It's also a much more dramatic & serious episode. Hell, seriously? I might even consider keeping the extra 40 years he was offered in Rascals, but I'd certainly be thinking LONG and hard about my life in Tapestry, and considering very strongly about remaining LTJG Picard.