"Teaching with Trek": Star Trek, the LGBTQ+ community, and college composition

Abstract

The premise of "Teaching with Trek" is to illustrate the benefits of using the iconic science fiction (sf) franchise in a college composition classroom. Various science and technology topics for research and exploration can be readily found in Star Trek, but this chapter will have a more humanities-based focus. Its narrow focus on the Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes, "The Outcast", "The Host", and "Liaisons" will allow for a detailed discussion of Star Trek's place in LGBTQ+ history. I discuss process composition theories and multidisciplinary writing situations in relationship to the topics found in these episodes. These examples will be discussed thematically and rhetorically, and I will propose real examples of composition pedagogy that can be facilitated through Star Trek texts.