Benny Russell and Doctor Wykoff. Star Trek Deep Space Nine Shadows and Symbols.
“Even so, his story was never published and the terrible disappointment, as well as a physical assault, led to his eventual commitment to a psychiatric hospital for treatment for a delusional breakdown. In Sisko’s mind, the [Evil] Pah-wraiths tried to deter him from opening the Orb of the Emissary by making him think that Sisko was Benny, writing out his actions on his room walls. Dr. Wykoff tried to have him paint over the writings, making Sisko bury the Orb. Ezri Dax was able to remind Sisko of his promise to Jadzia as Benny finished the story, opening the box.”
Benny Russell page on Fandom Memory Alpha wiki.
In this brilliant episode we have the scene depicted in the picture above. Benny has been refused paper to write upon so resorts to writing on the walls. He’s struggling a writer but, classically, this form of psychiatry have no interest in helping him with that. They even think its making him ill ! They ignore completely the effect of a physical attack on him. This evil vision that is sent to Benny (actually the Captain of Deep Space Nine Benjamin Sisko) comes courtesy of the Pah-wraiths. These are the evil spirits in the Star Trek Deep Space Nine universe. The opposites of the good spirits/aliens that inhabit the wormhole to the alpha quadrant that the Deep Space Nine station oversees. Sisko is The Emissary conversing with these spirits (notice how Shamanic this all is).
I won’t spoil the resolution of the scene, but DS9’s genius brilliantly depicts what these totally evil forms of psychiatry are.
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