Synopsis: An alien captures Commander Riker and creates an imaginary future based on his own memories.
In this episode, Commander William Riker’s own memories are used by an alien in order to create an imaginary future. The alien first appears to Riker as his son, and then later as a young boy in distress, and finally in his true form. The alien had been placed on the planet Alpha Onias III by his mother for safe keeping, with scanners that could create for him anything he needed. In a way, this can be interpreted from a depth psychological perspective as the psyche containing all that we need to create anything it needs in order to become more whole.
Carl (C. G.) Jung wrote that “image is psyche” (1967/1969, p. 50), and depth psychology also uses the process of projection as a way that individuals can become conscious or unconscious aspects of themselves. For example, individuals project their unconscious shadow traits onto others, and this is how they become aware of them. On the other hand, individuals also project their ideal inner opposites onto others, and this is how they fall in love with that individual.
In “Future Imperfect” the young alien who is all alone projected a world that nurtured him. He had a need for a father figure and projected that onto Riker. As it turns out, Riker actually accepted this projection, at least partially, enough so that he felt the need to care for the needs of the alien and take him with him to the Enterprise, so that he would no longer be alone.
Reference:
Jung, C. G. (1969). Alchemical studies. In R.F. C. Hull (Trans.), The collected works of C. G. Jung (Vol. 13). Princeton University Press.
Original post created 31 August 2021
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