bashir’s “mistook a preganglionic fiber for a postganglionic nerve on the final exam and thus became the salutatorian rather than the valedictorian of my class at starfleet medical” story is hands down one of my favorites of his, particularly as one he delivers so early on in the show, and because, medically and anatomically speaking… it… doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.
any student in so much as an introductory anatomy and physiology course could make the distinction between them. no individual who has trained for years to become a medical doctor is going to confuse the two–its a basic differentiation, and not one that can be waved away as a mistake. there’s just no doing it. their functions and histologies are so vastly different that there’s no similarity between them beyond sounding similar (which, in the case of this being a television show, and having a story that rolls off the tongue with a little fluidity, makes sense, but putting that doyalist analysis aside for a moment..)
hearing this, someone with even a little (human) anatomical knowledge under their belt perks up an ear…
now, considering the implication that bashir made this mistake deliberately–being “genetically enhanced” with his perfect memory to boot, there’s no way that he might have forgotten their classifications–and that the question was missed so he could maintain his high class rank without raising suspicion (as the assumption would be that any genetically enhanced individual would be at the top of their class, should the question of his intellectual abilities ever come up), a question is begged as to what his intentions are in spouting the story off so freely, obviously without worry that someone will see through the charade.
then, consider: a) the fact that humans are (relatively) new to bajoran space, so it can be assumed that the knowledge about human anatomy among bajorans is limited–thus, there is an expectation that few species within bajoran space would find any issue with his story, and b) as bashir is the chief medical officer aboard deep space nine, his medical knowledge is (generally) assumed to be the most complete and thorough bank on the station. he may imagine (in all his season one overconfidence) that no one (including his human/starfleet medical staff) would pick up on the puzzling fact of his “accidentally” confusing the two
by repeating his story (and framing it as a trying, intellectual ordeal), he is attempting to establish himself as a source of (generally) infallible medical brilliance. but what is particularly remarkable to me is that he’s choosing a story where he (from the point of view of his audience) makes a rather unremarkable blunder that dethroned him swiftly and suredly from the top of his class. though of course, in actuality, this was a choice he made to protect himself from watchful, suspicious eyes.
and what we arrive at is a strange dichotomy in bashir himself. by exposing that (albeit, fabricated) vulnerability, he’s amassing sympathy from his audience while humanizing himself–he’s aware, at this point, that he can come off as disconnected and haughty, and wants to communicate as best as he can, that he is both capable of error, aware that he can make mistakes, and that he has the drive and motivation to correct them.
tempering his presentation of the story with the knowledge that he’d been genetically enhanced adds another layer of meaning on top of it. for the first time in his life, bashir finds himself in a place where his species is so unfamiliar that he’s not looked at as an oddity, regardless of his abilities. any trait he demonstrates could very well be indicative of his species or may be a reflection of himself–to those unfamiliar with humans, there’s no knowing what’s universal and what’s individual. and for someone like bashir, who has spent so much of his life isolated and in fear that others will find him anomalous, this is freedom.
i think, in (small) part, that must be what he meant in comparing bajor to the “frontier”. though he mistakenly implied bajor was simple and uncivilized (a core takeaway from that encounter–but not to be unpacked in this post), what he also may have been suggesting was that this was a place to establish himself without restraint or fear, and in the end bajor, for bashir, would serve as new territory upon which to build his life, to inform his developing ethical standards, and to change his anthropocentric outlook on life.
what i mean is this–despite the fact that bashir is the cmo, and despite the fact that his species is unfamiliar in the region, and that both of these fact suggest that no one would find his story suspicious–bashir practically shouting it from the rooftops is an interesting choice. by talking about it, he’s ultimately saying: 1. ‘i am not perfect, and i don’t believe i am’ and, 2. ‘look a little closer’. the remarkable thing about the whole narrative is that it comes off as a supplication. he seems to be saying–ask about it–ask why, ask how it was possible. he’s desperate for someone to be interested, and (though perhaps more reservedly) for someone to find him out. he’s spent his whole life shying away from the limelight, and is finally able to be the wunderkind he’s become–but only at the edge of federation space, only 52 light years from earth. he’s isolated, but is finding it rich and wonderful rather than lonely. for the first time in his life, he wonders if perhaps it is safe, or acceptable, to be himself, openly. if he can get someone to be interested enough to pry.
