The Shattering Point
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Riva bolts from the room in complete turmoil; Picard pauses, calls to Data, and both exit in pursuit—transitioning the scene from emotional crisis to immediate action.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Calculated frustration masking deep concern for mission success
Deliberately provokes Riva with escalating personal attacks about his authenticity, transitioning from diplomatic formality to confrontational intensity when initial strategies fail to break through Riva's resistance.
- • Force Riva to confront his dependence on technology
- • Break through Riva's emotional barriers to enable authentic mediation
- • Riva's current state makes him ineffective as a mediator
- • Only extreme measures will force necessary change
Concerned about linguistic limitations but committed to functional accuracy
Serves as the linguistic bridge in the confrontation, accurately translating both spoken words and signed emotions while demonstrating concern about the communication limitations between the parties.
- • Facilitate accurate communication between Picard and Riva
- • Prevent catastrophic misunderstanding between desperate parties
- • Literal translation cannot replace the Chorus's nuanced interpretation
- • His role requires absolute honesty in language conveyance
Alarmed tension concealed behind professional calm
Witnesses the emotional explosion from a strategic vantage point behind Picard, offering quiet counsel about changing tactics while empathically monitoring the escalating psychological crisis.
- • Prevent irreversible psychological damage to Riva
- • Guide Picard toward more constructive engagement
- • Riva's trauma requires gentle handling despite the urgency
- • Picard's methods risk catastrophic personal consequences
Turmoil turning to existential panic
Transforms from composed diplomat to panicked fugitive when Picard's verbal attacks strike at the core of his identity, first responding with physical threat before choosing desperate escape from the emotional battlefield.
- • Protect his damaged self-concept as a mediator
- • Escape unbearable confrontation about his authenticity
- • Without his Chorus, he cannot function effectively
- • Picard's accusations confirm his worst fears about himself
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Though physically absent during this confrontation, the specter of Riva's malfunctioning Chorus device looms over the entire exchange as the central point of contention—Picard's attack specifically references Riva's dependence on it, making its functional absence critically narrative.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Observation Lounge transforms into an emotional proving ground where verbal blows land as heavily as physical ones. Its formal Starfleet setting heightens the dramatic contrast with the raw, unmediated human conflict unfolding within.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Data's study and rapid acquisition of gestural languages directly enables Picard's tactical idea to use Data as Riva's temporary translator at the summit."
"Data's study and rapid acquisition of gestural languages directly enables Picard's tactical idea to use Data as Riva's temporary translator at the summit."
"Picard's deliberate provocation—labeling Riva a 'fake'—directly triggers Riva to bolt from the room, shifting the crisis from argument to immediate, personal collapse."
"Picard's deliberate provocation—labeling Riva a 'fake'—directly triggers Riva to bolt from the room, shifting the crisis from argument to immediate, personal collapse."
"The proposal that Data translate for Riva sparks a sequence of exchanges (Data's objections, literal translation concerns) that escalate when Picard presses Riva and accuses him of hiding behind the Chorus—provoking an intense emotional reaction."
"The proposal that Data translate for Riva sparks a sequence of exchanges (Data's objections, literal translation concerns) that escalate when Picard presses Riva and accuses him of hiding behind the Chorus—provoking an intense emotional reaction."
"Picard's deliberate provocation—labeling Riva a 'fake'—directly triggers Riva to bolt from the room, shifting the crisis from argument to immediate, personal collapse."
"Picard's deliberate provocation—labeling Riva a 'fake'—directly triggers Riva to bolt from the room, shifting the crisis from argument to immediate, personal collapse."
"The proposal that Data translate for Riva sparks a sequence of exchanges (Data's objections, literal translation concerns) that escalate when Picard presses Riva and accuses him of hiding behind the Chorus—provoking an intense emotional reaction."
"The proposal that Data translate for Riva sparks a sequence of exchanges (Data's objections, literal translation concerns) that escalate when Picard presses Riva and accuses him of hiding behind the Chorus—provoking an intense emotional reaction."
"Riva's flight from the Observation Lounge leads Picard to find and reach him in his quarters, setting up the intimate confrontation that reignites Riva's agency."
"Riva's flight from the Observation Lounge leads Picard to find and reach him in his quarters, setting up the intimate confrontation that reignites Riva's agency."
Key Dialogue
"PICARD: You're right. Maybe you are all show. You hide behind your Chorus. You're a fake."
"DATA (translating Riva): What I have got. I have got nothing. Do you not understand - I cannot do it."
"TROI (softly): It's not working. Go another direction."