Star Trek and Cultural Exchange

In exchange between all cultures there are times when different ideologies and customs clash. In Star Trek, a television series based on interactions between humanity and alien races throughout the whole of space, these occur as well. In one particular episode, A Matter of Honor, the first ever exchange officer program occurs in which officers from a variety of species exchange commanding positions on starships. Through two exchange programs, A Benzite named Mendon who joins The Enterprise crew and Commander Riker who joins a Klingon war ship, we see how the differences in ideologies and customs clash in several incidents.

One incident that occurred and was not emphasized much in the episode was when as soon as Mendon first came aboard The Enterprise, he was subjected to innocent racism by Wesley Crusher. Wesley immediately mistook Mendon for being another Benzite that he studied with at the Star Fleet Academy, and asked him why he was already out of the academy. Mendon explains to Wesley that he is not the Benzite that he mistook him for, and that his name is Mendon. Wesley then makes asks Mendon “how do you tell others in your species apart?” and Mendon, looking shocked, replies “we just do.” Wesley feels very embarrassed about having asked the question, and apologizes, and Mendon replies that it is not a problem because he is mistaken for others among his kind quite a lot. This circumstance can and does occur commonly in different human societies as well. To many Caucasians, a lot of Asian people look similar if not the same, and the reverse is also true of many Asians and their view of Caucasians. Only through spending more time among people from these different societies will physical distinctions become much more apparent.

Perhaps the greatest cultural clash incident that occurred in this Star Trek episode was when Mendon was reprimanded for not having followed proper protocol on the ship. If anything is out of the usual, one is to report the...