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Research Paper

Anna Stevovich Mrs. Hamm AP Literature Composition 7 February 2023 The Road to Destiny in Dune Garth Nix, an award-winning author, once wrote in his book Sabriel, “Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?” This antimetabole may provoke many thoughts but after reading it one question remains, ‘which part of this statement do I believe to be true?’ For this paper's purpose, I will choose the more morbid and ‘glass-half-empty’ perspective: one’s path is determined by external forces and is outside one’s control. This disheartening idea accurately aligns with the premise of the book Dune by Frank Herbert. To clarify, Dune is a story about a duke’s family who gets assigned by the emperor to rule over a new mysterious desert planet, Arrakis. This change in surroundings affects one person in particular, Paul, the duke’s son. The book follows the journey of young Paul and his ongoing challenges in Arrakis. Specifically, Paul Atreides, the archetypal rising hero, and Baron Harkonnen, the antagonist, in Dune both allow Frank Herbert to create a unique approach to the idea that one's destiny can be sealed before they are even born. In Herbert’s Dune, Paul Atreides's fate was sealed when he discovered that his birth was planned through careful cross-breeding and the preservation of bloodlines. For context, Paul was visited by someone from the Bene Gesserit, a school that deals with manipulating and controlling the mind in superhuman ways. They informed Paul that his mother, Jessica, was told specifically by the school to have children with Duke Leto in an attempt for the emergence of the Kwisatz Haderach, a male Bene Gesserit. This position holds religious meaning in the story of Dune because it was believed that whoever was confirmed as the Kwisatz Haderach would hold superhuman abilities. It was later revealed in the book that Paul was destined for this position. It should be noted that although many readers believed Paul to be all-knowing, an opposing point of view is asserted by Kevin Williams, who stated in his literary article “Paul Atreides.” that, “Paul's heroic rise and tragic fall create a cautionary tale. Even with the ability to see far into the future he cannot control a chaotic universe”. This perspective provides an interesting viewpoint of Paul’s destiny; although he was perceived by many as a god-like figure, his abilities were his ultimate downfall later in the series. Often in these classic dystopian books, someone's fate is sealed by prophecies, but in Paul Atreides’s case, his fate is sealed by visions. This storyline is a common archetype in books that have enthralled readers because of the rise and descent of hero characters. Victoria Gaydosik in her article “Archetype.” defines this literary element as, “a pattern of characteristics that can be deployed in many different ways without losing its coherence”. Expanding on this, from the start of the novel Paul dreams of his future life on Arrakis without really piecing together that these are no ordinary dreams, but rather visions of his own future. The aspect of visions also clearly fit within the mythological literary criticism because of the authors ability to add science ficiton aspect such as the visions in such a way that helps explain the plot of the story as articulated by Don D'Ammassa in their article “Dune Series.”. This insight marks the beginning of Paul’s quest to find himself in the story. Eventually, Paul confides in his mother to help explain these dreams and the mother enlists the help of the Bene Gesserit. The visions are one of the aspects which help determine Paul to be the Kwisatz Haderach. This part of the storyline can be seen as the initiation because Paul now travels to an ominous world with his newfound ability. Although it may seem at first glance that Paul’s actions are his own, it soon can be discerned that everything in his life has been carefully planned out, and Paul must choose to walk the path laid out for him before he was even born. This definitive archetype serves to support the claim that one’s fate is sealed at birth in the Dune. Another aspect of the plot which contributes to Paul’s inevitable rise to power is the death of friends and family around him. In Dune, when the Duke’s family arrives on Arrakis they meet with many new faces, one in specific that is prominent throughout the plot of the story is the Ferman, the native people of Arrakis. As Paul continues to be acquainted with these people he soon forms bonds with them given that many of them are willing to sacrifice their lives for his own safety. As the book continues, the road of the trial begins for Paul when his family is under attack by the Baron, leader of House Harkonnen. The reasoning behind this attack can be summarized into one reason, spice. Spice in the story is almost like a currency that holds the purpose of space navigation which is only found on Arrakis. In an interview, “Frank Herbert Interview on Dune”, author Frank Herbert discusses spice as a metaphor for things of real value on Earth. Herbert further discussed in the interview that “Power attracts the corruptible” which is an overbearing aspect of Dune. During the attack on Arrakis, Paul and his mother Jessica narrowly escape, but the same cannot be said for Duke Leto alongside many of the Ferman who sacrificed their lives so Paul could live. The death of his Duke Leto not only means the loss of a father but, forced succession to the throne of House Atredies, and later on leader of the Ferman tribe. Paul must put aside his own needs to rule over House Atredies and the Ferman, who still face threats from the Emperor and House Harkonnen. Ultimately, this ‘unplanned’ inheritance of this thrown only further demonstrates the claim that Paul’s destiny was sealed before he was born. The overwhelming evidence shows that Paul Atredies was destined to face this conflict as the Duke of House Atedies given his heritage, visions, and the death around him. Nevertheless, some still argue that Paul’s journey was of his own free will. In particular, in the Dune story itself by Frank Herbert, it is noted by the author that although Paul could see into the future it was viewed as a spectrum of possibilities where an event can have a hundred different outcomes rather than one. Proponents of this evidence would contend that although seeing into the future implies that actions will occur in the future, it is ultimately up to paul to choose the decision that best fits his needs. Although this claim holds considerable truth, it is ultimately refutable because fate pushed Paul into accepting the title of Duke. Evidence to support this claim lies with Ronny Parkerson in their article "Semantics, general semantics, and ecology in Frank Herbert's Dune." who discusses the Dune series through an ecology lens. The author discusses how Paul didn’t originally want the throne but took up the position to face his enemy, the emperor, and House Harkonnen. The death of his father pushed Paul to make the decision, even if that was not what he originally intended. Overall, Paul Atreides's destiny was determined by where the path has chosen him and not the other way around. Although this frame of mindset casts a more despairing and helpless viewpoint as the reader of the story, I ultimately believe that this is what Frank Herbert intended all along. Paul was to be seen as a Christ figure throughout the novel because of the sacrifices that were made, with many of them being out of his control. Although Paul was seen as a god-like figure with omnipotent power, he was so consumed with pursuing revenge for his father’s death that he lost sight of the world around him which only caused more lives to be sacrificed. Although readers never fully relate to the problems that Paul faced in the novel, there is something that can be said about letting yourself be consumed by the problems around them, because by doing so you are no longer choosing your own fate. Given the novel Dune and the sources provided in the paper, readers can better understand the story of Paul Atredis and his planned destiny as the archetypal rising hero. Works Cited D'Ammassa, Don. “Dune Series.” Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Second Edition, Facts On File, 2013. Bloom's Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index…. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023. “Frank Herbert Interview on Dune” YouTube, uploaded by DuneInfo on Nov 28, 2010 https://youtu.be/-NMOoOD2wp8. Accessed 26 Jan. 2023. Gaydosik, Victoria. “Archetype.” Encyclopedia of the British Novel, 2-Volume Set, Second Edition, Facts On File, 2013. Bloom's Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index…. Accessed 26 Jan. 2023. Herbert, Frank. Dune. Hodder Paperback, 2006. Nix, Garth. Sabriel. 1st American ed. New York, HarperCollins, 1995. Parkerson, Ronny. "Semantics, general semantics, and ecology in Frank Herbert's Dune." ETC.: A Review of General Semantics, vol. 67, no. 4, Oct. 2010, pp. 403+. Gale In Context: High School, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A246949…. Accessed 27 Jan. 2023. Williams, Kevin. “Paul Atreides.” Student's Encyclopedia of American Literary Characters, Facts On File, 2020. Bloom's Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index…. Accessed 26 Jan. 2023.