Widely regarded as a pillar of the science-fiction genre, Frank Herbert’s “Dune” is a timeless portrayal of politics, free will, and complexities of the human psyche presented through a story of humanity’s survival in an intergalactic, dystopian setting. Generations after its release in 1965, the novel’s ageless socio-political and environmental commentaries hold true today.
Set 20,000 years into the future, “Dune” dives into the thick of humanity’s existence within the endless expanse of the cosmos. Within an established feudal society, different noble houses vie for political conquest, power, and most importantly, melange–a powerful and addictive commodity fundamental for interstellar travel and technological advancement.
Enter the honorable House Atreides, who is bestowed custody of the desert planet of Arrakis, or also known as Dune, the sole source of melange. Members of the family include the house’s patriarch Duke Leto Atreides, Lady Jessica Atreides, the Duke’s concubine, and Paul Atreides, the novel’s messianic protagonist and heir to House Atreides.
Once the Atreides family relocates to the brutal environment of Arrakis, however, they are sabotaged and nearly wiped out by long-time rival family House Harkonnen, headed by the tyrannical Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. Despite the savage bloodbath, young Paul and his mother, Jessica, manage to flee and employ the aid and support of the Fremen, a nomadic people who have learned to survive the treacherous dunes of Arrakis.
From there is a grueling journey of redemption, religion, and human morality, with each character given their own fair share of development, triumphs, and undoings that drive readers to engross themselves in each tale completely.
An ode to the natural world
Despite the number of intriguing characters with their own underlying motivations and complexities, Herbert’s ecological expertise and experience take the limelight as they bring the setting of Arrakis vibrancy and intensity like no other. While political relationships and personal vendettas between feudalistic houses continue to propel the plot forward, they’re fleshed out by the environmental and climatic aspects of Dune’s overarching ecosystem.
Take, for example, the behemoth-like, extraterrestrial sandworms that inhabit the sand sea of Dune, and how their intricate biological processes eventually produce the highly sought after melange. These iconic sandworms, although terrifying creatures, are essential to Dune’s ecology, and are even revered by the Fremen as gods in their own right. It just proves that Herbert’s passion for the environment is solidified through the incredible detail and authenticity of the novel’s setting.
And it’s through his love for the ecosystem that Herbert was able to weave in allegories of the characters’ hunger and conquest for spice and how it reflects on the real world–humanity’s insatiable greed of the Earth’s natural resources. Critics claim that Dune was not just metaphoric, but highly predictive of environmental matters that afflict the world at present, with an emphasis on how human societies interact with their surroundings.
By all means, Dune is not one of the easier stories to digest. With tens upon thousands of terminologies and jargons to remember, spread throughout hundreds of pages, it’s an absolutely dense read that can be daunting to many. Even with director Denis Villanueve’s 2021 superb movie adaptation of the novel, readers may be tempted to skip reading entirely.
However, past these is an enthralling, ingenious, and fantastic experience that even the movie cannot replicate. Herbert undeniably does a phenomenal job of probing into human potential and how it is inexplicably tied to the natural world, and this novel remains a testament to his brilliance.
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