Synopsis: Captain Lorca’s plot to overthrow the Terran Emperor in the mirror universe is thwarted and the U.S.S. Discovery returns to its own universe.
This episode can be seen as an illustration of what Carl (C. G.) Jung called a cultural complex, a psychic wound that is shared by an entire society.
In “What’s Past is Prologue”Mirror Captain Gabriel Lorca rallies his remaining followers aboard the Terran Empire flagship, the I.S.S. Charon, and attempts a coup. He also takes possession of a bioweapon created by Mirror Lt. Paul Stamets using the mycelium spores. He believes that the only way to hold power is through strength and order. Meanwhile, on the U.S.S. Discovery a plan is devised that will stop the bioweapon and the destruction of the mycelial network, as well as propel Discovery and her crew into their own universe. The Emperor kills Lorca, but when she faces death, Specialist Michael Burnham brings her aboard Discovery before the ship travels back to its own universe.
In this episode, the way in which the Terran Empire rules its universe has resulted in a cultural complex. The hatred and repression of all species that are not Terran, aka human, led to the creation of a strong alliance among non-human species. The continual need to put down the rebel forces created a culture among the Terrans of ruling by fear and show of strength. This led to only the strongest individual becoming Emperor, and then when any weakness at all is shown, that ruler’s replacement took over by force. This ongoing process of repression and oppression can be seen to have created what Jung called a cultural complex, or psychic wound, for both for the Terrans and the rebels. For the Terrans, it created a culture of ruling by strength alone and devaluing any traits that would lead to a possible peace with the rebels. For the rebels, it created a new alliance among species that are at war in Discovery’s universe. In other words, one way to look at the cultural complexes in the mirror universe, is that the pain that the Terran Empire inflicts upon non-human species has made the non-humans stronger by opening them up to alliances among themselves. However, the Terrans are unaware that this has created a psychic wound in its own society, which will in the end cause the Terrans more pain than it does to the rebels. A cautionary tale for current world situations.
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