I couldn't find an answer to this question anywhere. Why is that episode where Bones is accused by aliens of causing a plague called Albatross? Maybe it's one of those "Can't see the forest for the trees" situation, but I can't see any connections what so ever between the episode's plot and the title.
shareThe word albatross is sometimes used metaphorically to mean a psychological burden that feels like a curse.
It is an allusion to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798).[1] In the poem, an albatross starts to follow a ship — being followed by an albatross was generally considered an omen of good luck. However, the titular mariner shoots the albatross with a crossbow, which is regarded as an act that will curse the ship (which indeed suffers terrible mishaps). Even when they are too thirsty to speak, the ship's crew let the mariner know through their glances that they blame his action for the curse. He feels as though the albatross is metaphorically hung around his neck - that is, when people look at him, they see him as the albatross killer and that weighs on him. Thus the albatross can be both an omen of good or bad luck, as well as a metaphor for a burden to be carried as penance.
The symbolism used in the Coleridge poem is its highlight.[1] For example:
Ah ! well a-day ! what evil looks
Had I from old and young !
Instead of the cross, the Albatross
About my neck was hung.
Does that answer your question? I haven't seen the episode in years and really can't remember what it's about, so I hope this helps.
Whom the Gods destroy, they first made mad.
Thanks for the in-depth explanation. I guess that metaphor could work for this episode in an indirect way. Bones gets arrested by an alien race because they believe that the plague that eradicated one of their planets was caused by McCoys' vaccination program against some other disease and Bones himself becomes burdened by the possibility that it's not just a freaky coincidence and that he may in fact have somehow inadvertently caused that plague. But the focus of the story shifts at that point, so it's more of a setup for the actual story (Kirk's investigation of the plague-ridden planet) than the point of the episode. But that's probably because the original plot was focused on Bones, but the studio or whoever changed that. They kind of did the same thing to the episode Jihad, where the title has only tangential connection to the actual plot. So yeah, I guess your suggestion does explain the title in a way. Thanks again.
shareI thought McCoy was the albatross ... To Kirk ... Always moaning like an old hen
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