Blog 486 – Season 6, Episode 7: “You are Cordially Invited”
Synopsis: Lt. Commander Worf and Lt. Commander Dax are married.
This episode can be seen as an illustration of the transcendent function, here seen as the union of opposites of the Logos-driven rational conscious ego and the Eros-driven irrational unconscious.
In “You are Cordially Invited” the arrangements for the wedding between Lt. Commander Worf and Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax are being made, when the wife of General Martok, Sirella arrives. Sirella’s part in the proceedings is to judge whether or not she deems Dax worthy of being invited to join the House of Martok, of which Worf is now a member. Dax is put through the Bre’Nan ritual by Sirella. Meanwhile, the Klingon pre-wedding rituals for Worf and the males are austere while Dax and the females are enjoying a raging party.
This episode, which is considered one of the most comical of this series, partially because it contrasts so deeply the differences between Worf and Dax, and between the regimented Klingon joining rituals and the fun-loving and joyous celebratory rites that Dax prefers. Here, the Klingons are embodying the rationality of the conscious ego and Dax symbolizes the unbridled energy of the unconscious. But because this is a Federation station, and Dax is a Starfleet officer, she bends to Worf’s will in order for the marriage to be sanctioned by the House of Martok. One way to understand this is as a representation of how our rational culture still holds onto the belief that the conscious ego can control the unconscious, just as Worf was able to convince Dax to amend her behavior so that the wedding could take place. Depth psychology does not believe that this is the case, that instead the unconscious is complementary to the conscious ego, and that the goal is to integrate bits of it into the conscious ego through the union of opposites. This making the ego stronger and the psyche more whole.
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