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The Tragedy of Dune’s Paul Atreides
Dune is one of the greatest sci-fi epics of our time. This modern space opera can stand next to the works of Shakespeare and Hemingway as one of the greatest pieces of media ever created.
However, with the release of the new Dune movies, both of which are superb, I continue to see the narrative becoming more and more warped and misinterpreted by newer fans. Many view the plotline of this series as the glorious rise of a strong, kind and capable young man and his ascension to ultimate power.
Many see Paul Atreides as a saint, a messiah who guides the Fremen people to freedom from oppression and cements himself as the rightful heir to the Emperor of the Known Universe. This is akin to the rise of Jesus of Nazareth and the Prophet Muhammed.
However, this is not the case. It’s been stated by Frank Herbert himself that Dune is a deep, psychological tragedy about the disastrous consequences of placing power into the hands of a “chosen one”, and how that can rip the entire universe apart. Dune is a tale of false power, of a false prophet, and the consequences of vesting the power of the entire universe into one man. This theme could not be demonstrated better than by two of the main factions in Dune’s narrative: The Fremen and the Bene Gesserit.
Both of these factions believe that in a time of ultimate struggle, a messiah will descend from the heavens to return them to the light. For the Fremen, this is the Lisan Al-Gaib. For the Bene Gesserit, the Kwisatz Haderach.
From the very beginning, Jessica — Paul’s mother — believes that Paul is this messiah, and begins to spread the belief that Paul will save the universe from the oppression and violence of the evil Harkonnens.
While it starts off small, this delusion snowballs to new heights when Jessica consumes the mystical Water of Life. This destroys any and all mental barriers and restraint. She begins spewing nonsense and fanatically spreading the word to everyone that Paul is the ultimate savior, groveling at the feet of her son and fanatically revering him, willing others who follow her to do so as well.
Even when they arrive on the planet Arrakis, many Fremen believe that Paul is the one to save them all. He gradually gains more and more followers and support by demonstrating godlike feats, like using revolutionary strategies unknown to the rest of the universe to destroy Harkonnen forces and being able to ride the largest Sandworm of all time, until he has the entirety of Arrakis under his thumb.
But Paul is not ready for this power. Insecurity and anger begin to build at the role that was forced upon him. This culminates in a burst of rage at his mother, yelling at her that he’s not the one, that he cannot shoulder the weight of the universe on his own.
But Jessica and his feverish followers don’t stop, and Paul is forced to continue his crusade against the Harkonnens to take back the planet. He becomes feared and worshipped across the entire galaxy as the legendary warrior-deity Muad’dib. The cracks begin to show in Paul’s psyche as he becomes increasingly paranoid that he will lose his lover, Chani, his leadership, and everything else he loves.
Paul’s journey begins to reach its apex when Jessica visits an ancient temple and extracts Water of Life for Paul to drink and reach new heights of knowledge and power to combat changes in the now more capable Harkonnen leadership.
With Paul’s back to the wall and millions of eyes upon him, Paul has no choice but to drink the Water of Life to gain the power needed to take back Arrakis, and claim the throne from the corrupt emperor.
And this is where Paul fully folds. With the infinite knowledge of the Water of Life, Paul gains the skills he needs to take over, and that knowledge causes him to discard what’s left of his humanity. He leads his forces against the Emperor and the Harkonnens, brutally murdering the emperor and the new Harkonnen leader, forcefully asserting himself as the Emperor of the Known Universe and kickstarting a holy war between his forces and the remaining galactic powers, fueled by his followers’ religious frenzy that he is powerless to stop, and throwing the known universe into turmoil.
Paul is not a savior, a powerful and capable leader, a god-like figure. He’s a boy pushed into a role nobody could handle and forced to carry the weight of the universe on his shoulders.
Dune is a cautionary tale. It warns of the consequences of placing too much power into a single person and pledging your entire being to them. Dune warns that unwavering fanaticism will only leave death and tragedy in it’s wake.
