Literature
The following essay writing topic is based on the class viewing of the Star Trek episode “The City on the Edge of Forever” and ongoing analysis of the character of Brutus from The Tragedy of Julius Caesar . Please justify and qualify your responses with examples from the episode and the play.
As has been established between Act 1.2 and Act 2.1, Brutus was faced with a harsh dilemma: Should he stay loyal to his friend Julius Caesar or stay true to his own sense of duty and honor? Brutus is tortured by the choice he has to make, and even after he makes it, he is not necessarily happy with his choice. Similarly, Captain James T. Kirk has a dilemma. His is dilemma that, in nature, is similar to that of Brutus. Does he let Edith Keeler live, and thereby sacrifice all of human history as he knows it? Or does Kirk allow her to die as she should have, and thereby disregard his true feelings of love?
How do the choices faced by the two respective characters have similarities? How do the eventual choices made by them test their own moral and spiritual worth? Are either happy or relieved by the decision arrived at? Of the two, who needs more help in arriving at a decision? Further, are there any similarities in the roles played by Cassius and Mr. Spock? How are they possible catalysts for Brutus and Kirk’s decision?
