List of fiction inspired by Dune
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
As one of the best-known and best-selling science fiction novels of all time, Frank Herbert's Dune series has inspired many works both inside and outside the SF genre. The series makes use of the Hero's Journey, as do many of the works that it inspired.
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[edit] Fading Suns
The Fading Suns role-playing game shares many similarites of setting with Dune; the game is set in a galactic empire in the far future made up of feuding houses and guilds and based in part on cultures and societies of Earth's past. As with Warhammer 40,000, the Middle-Eastern feel of the Dune setting is abandoned in favour of something more similar to the Holy Roman Empire or the Crusades, although the influence of Dune is obvious.
[edit] Metabarons
In Metabarons by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Juan Gimenez, the third Metabaron, Aghnar, was conceived as part of an elaborate ploy by a matriarchal secret society called the Sisterhood of Shabda-Oud in order to create an androgynous superhuman. However, the Shabda-Oud Sister charged with conceiving Aghnar instead chose to make the child male and use him secretly as a weapon to almost eradicate the Sisterhood. This scenario is similar to Jessica Atreides' betrayal of the Bene Gesserit in Dune.
[edit] The Terminator
The Terminator movies starring former bodybuilder and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger are each about the attempt by future humans to change history through time travel. In this future Earth, the world is overrun by intelligent machines similar to the Butlerian Jihad as described in Dune.
[edit] Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
The manga, and particularly the film, of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind share many similarities with Dune, including the ecological tone of the story, Nausicaä's role as a chosen one foretold by prophecy, Nausicaä's ability to tame and ride the giant Ohmu creatures, and indeed the Ohmu themselves, which closely resemble the sandworms of Dune. In fact, one of the inspirations for the word Ohmu comes from "Sando Uomu", the Japanese pronunciation of "Sand Worm"[1].
[edit] Matrix Trilogy
The Matrix and its sequels are similar to Dune in that both series feature unwitting messiahs as the main protagonists. Like Paul Atreides from Dune, characters are trapped by their destiny. Both series contain religious overtones, something more evident in the two sequels to The Matrix. The history of Dune features a great campaign against machines, similar to Zion's war against the machines. Neo loses his eyes in Revolutions but can still see, resembling Paul's ability to see after he loses his eyes. Dune has a distinct ecological theme in that humans need water which kills worms, but humans need spice from the worms. In The Matrix, it is briefly touched upon that humans and machines need to coexist, and who is in control is often impossible to determine. Moreover, the Mentat Miles Teg in Heretics of Dune is able to perceive his environment in slow motion like Neo in The Matrix's bullet time.
[edit] Star Trek
In Star Trek, the Vulcans, like the Bene Gesserit of Dune, suppress their emotions as dangerous. As well, their devotion to logic is very similar to the Mentat abilities and are often derided by humans as being too computer-like. In addition, the total control of humanoid populations by machines or computers is a common theme in the series.
[edit] Star Wars
The Star Wars universe is also said to be heavily influenced by the Dune novels. This is a hotly debated topic among fans, as many of the themes present could be said to be archetypes of science fiction and fantasy novels, as well as of world mythology; other fans contend that the Star Wars films are only action-movies, with almost no deeper meaning. Thus, by this logic any ties between Star Wars and Dune would be very much surface level and coincidental.
The similarities are more common with the early drafts of Star Wars' script. Princess Leia is transporting a crate of spice instead of station plans, the Jedi are identified as Jedi Bindu and the galaxy is divided into great houses. Herbert decided not to sue Star Wars creator George Lucas because the court battle would have gone on for years, making it more costly and troublesome than it was worth.
[edit] Desert Planet
Both Arrakis (Dune) and Tatooine (Star Wars) are desert planets with no naturally-occurring rainfall and only sparse habition and a few main cities. Arrakis has two moons, Tatooine orbits two suns. Inhabitants of both planets make use of artificial means of water collection, such as vapor harvesters (windtraps in Dune, moisture vaporators in Star Wars). The Fremen on Arrakis and the Tusken Raiders on Tatooine have adapted to the extreme, hostile climate and both are considered feared and mysterious warriors. Because Tusken Raiders are minor characters in Star Wars, and the Fremen are characterized and elaborated upon, there is insufficient data to make a good comparison. Smugglers are common on both worlds. In Dune this is the result of a guild monopoly and taxation due to the nature of their governance. In Star Wars smuggling occurs due to high tariffs and the rebellion.
[edit] The Jedi
It could be argued that the Jedi are inspired by the Bene Gesserit order of Dune. The Jedi ability to control weak minds ("These are not the droids you are looking for") resembles the Bene Gesserit skill of verbal control over a subject (known in the novels as Voice). Dune, being a novel, was able to explore the Voice as the ability to analize an individual's character and formulate a specific tone to appeal to them. Star Wars, being a movie, leaves the nature of such vocal control unexplained. However, many contend that the Jedi religion and movement was based largely on Eastern and particularly Taoist faiths.
Both organizations have prophesies concerning a Messiah ("The Chosen One" in the Star Wars prequels, and the Kwisatz Haderach in the Dune universe). In Dune the messiah myth was implanted by the Bene Gesserit so they could gain leverage over a primitive culture should a Reverend Mother be trapped on the planet; in Star Wars The Chosen One is left largely unexplained.
The Jedi also have a code of ethics very similar to the one of Ginaz, Duncan Idaho's training school. Trained this way, Duncan gives his life saving Paul and Jessica Atreides, just as Obi-Wan Kenobi gives his saving Luke Skywalker in Star Wars.
A closer match to the Bene Gesserit, at least in terms of the superstitions surrounding the order, are the Force-using "witches" of Dathomir.
[edit] Twins
Another similarity is between Paul's wife Chani giving birth to twins after expecting only one child in the Dune series, and Anakin's wife, Padmé, doing the same in the Star Wars series. In both versions the mothers die during childbirth, an occurrence which is foreseen by the fathers although they react differently to it. The Atreides twins (Ghanima and Leto II) and the Skywalker twins (Luke and Leia), have a mental and emotional contact between them so strong it sometimes borders on being an even closer relationship than simple sibling love. Luke and Leia, in the expanded universe of Star Wars novels, have to deal with this. Ghanima and Leto talk about possible relationships between them in the novel Children of Dune, but they are bound by the Fremen ways not to behave like the Egyptian Pharaohs.
[edit] Father and Son
Just as Leto II completed the Golden Path that his father Paul had begun, it can be argued Luke Skywalker fulfills the prophecy of the chosen one in the place of his father Anakin, bringing balance to the force. In both fictional universes the father is believed to be dead but later returns under a new identity: the heretic Preacher in Dune, and the evil Darth Vader in Star Wars.
[edit] Jabba The Hutt
Jabba the Hutt bears a passing similarity to that of Leto II in God Emperor of Dune. Both resemble worms with almost useless appendages and a human-like face at the forefront of their worm-like structure. Leto II was larger than Jabba the Hutt, and in better physical condition. Some would refute this by saying that while A New Hope carries the most Dune influence, George Lucas used a mere human as Jabba in it, cutting the scenes in favour of a blobular Hutt in Return of the Jedi.
[edit] Stormtroopers
The Imperial Stormtroopers in Star Wars may also have been inspired by the Imperial Sardaukar of Dune. Both of them are specially "manufactured" main forces used by the Emperor of the respective fictional universes. Although the original clonetroopers in Star Wars are clones of a single human (Jango Fett), the stormtroopers of the Galactic Empire are trained on Cardia from an age around 17 (ages vary to the different rotations of the planets). The Sardaukar are individuals raised in a harsh environment, the Imperial prison planet Salusa Secundus, from youth. (Sardaukar troop origin and training are explained in full in the Prelude to Dune prequel trilogy).
[edit] Kessel
The spice-mines of Kessel are mentioned in passing in the original Star Wars film. In the expanded universe, a mind-altering spice created by aggressive creatures is mined on Kessel. The planet and creatures resemble the worms and desert planet of Arrakis, which produce the spice melange. In one supplement for the original Star Wars role-playing game, Kessel was referred to as "Arrakis by any other name".
[edit] Vehicles
Ornithopters, the primary means of on-planet travel in the Dune novels, are seen on the Wookiee homeworld Kashyyyk in the final Star Wars prequel, Revenge of the Sith. In the final battle of Attack of the Clones, large carry-alls very similar to those in the Dune novels are shown dropping off ground vehicles; In the Dune universe, carry-alls are used to transport spice harvesting vehicles away from danger. The Jawa sandcrawlers could be compared to Dune's spice harvesters, having originally been built for mining purposes on Tatooine.
[edit] Tremors
The film Tremors featured desert worm creatures, informally called Graboids, that bear a distinct resemblance to the Sandworms of Dune, though on a far smaller scale.
[edit] Warhammer 40,000
The Imperium of Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 (WH40K) universe shares many similarities with that of Dune; it is a futuristic space opera universe based strongly on cultures from Earth's past. In the case of WH40K the setting is more akin to that of the historical Crusades than the Middle-Eastern flavour of Dune; however the prevalence of old-world religion and ritual in a far future setting is common to both. Both universes also share many similarities in terms of timeline and history, and the importance of those with psychic abilities; for example, the Guild Navigators of Dune are virtually indistinguishable in terms of role and organisation to the psychic navigators of the Warp in WH40K. Similarly, the Imperial Space Marines of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Both Leto II of Dune and the God-Emperor of WH40K possess superhuman and psychic powers, and have an elite army of female warriors (the Fish Speakers and Sisters of Battle, respectively). The inhabitants of both empires are forced to worship their respective God-Emperor, although the God-Emperor of WH40K did not wish to be worshipped. Additionally Warhammer 40,000 borrows some technological achievements from the Dune series, including but not limited to: Lasguns, Personal Shield Generators and Suspensors. Names of some moons and planets are also similar: Caliban (WH40K) is pronounced almost the same as Caladan (Dune) and Baal Secundus (WH40K) uses the entire last part of the prison planet, Salusa Secundus (Dune).
[edit] Wheel of Time series
Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series also has much in common with Dune. The Aiel are a desert warrior people influenced by an external power (in both cases a female mystic tradition, the Aes Sedai and the Bene Gesserit), who imparted many customs, such as a legend concerning the appearance of a saviour or messiah (Rand al'Thor in the Wheel of Time, Paul Atreides in Dune). Wheel of Time FAQ 3.11: On similarities between The Wheel of Time and other SF (including Dune)
[edit] Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden's album Piece of Mind (1983) features a song written about Dune. The epic-length (7:25 minutes) "To Tame A Land" had originally been intended to be named "Dune", complete with a spoken word intro based on a quotation from the book. The band asked Frank Herbert's management for permission, but the answer they received was negative:
- "No. Because Frank Herbert doesn't like rock bands, particularly heavy rock bands, and especially rock bands like Iron Maiden."
Apparently, even a lawsuit was threatened in case of noncompliance. [2] Thus, the title had to be changed, and the spoken intro could not be realised.
The song's lyrics deal with the life of Paul Atreides and his becoming Muad'Dib and the leader of the Fremen. A MIDI file is available here.
| The extended Dune series |
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| by Frank Herbert: Dune • Dune Messiah • Children of Dune • God Emperor of Dune • Heretics of Dune • Chapterhouse Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson: |
