List of fiction inspired by Dune
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (February 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
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.
Contents |
[edit] Fading Suns
The Fading Suns role-playing game shares many similarities 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 Lady Jessica's betrayal of the Bene Gesserit in Dune. (This may not be a coincidence: Jodorowsky tried to make a film of Dune that never came about.)
[edit] Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
The manga and the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind share many similarities with Dune, including the ecological themes of the story, Nausicaä's role as a chosen one foretold by prophecy, and Nausicaä's ability to tame and ride the giant Ohmu creatures.
[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. Neo also sacrifices himself to save humanity after losing his lover Trinity. This somewhat echoes Paul walking into the desert immediately after Chani dies giving birth to the twins, whom Paul knows will save humanity. 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. The oracle from the Matrix trilogy possessed prescience.
[edit] Robotech
Series producer Carl Macek cites Dune as one of the inspirations for Robotech in his 1987 book Robotech Art III. Protoculture, like the spice melange was a multipurpose substance obtained from a dangerous organic source (the Arrakis sandworms in the case of melange, the Invid flower of Life in the case of protoculture. Protoculture served as an energy source for Robotechnology and was vital to the survival of the Robotech Masters Empire. In the Jack McKinney novels, protoculture also served as a drug or narcotic that could boost awareness and cause clairvoyant episodes (briefly seen in an episode of the Robotech Masters segment when Dana Sterling is almost electrocuted by a protoculture chamber). The novels also expanded protoculture to metaphysical levels introducing the ability to influence the course of events via "The Shapings" and the ability to influence the Shapings is similar to the Bene Gesserit ability to "pass within". Dr. Emil Lang's (and later Lazlo Zand's) initial exposure to protoculture turned his eyes completely black; similar to the blue within blue eyes of Dune's Fremen who are continuously exposed to the spice.
The Jack McKinney Robotech novelizations contain an additional homage to Dune in the literary style of the fictional epigraphs that appear at the beginnings of each chapter.
[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 much like a computer. The planet Vulcan itself is a desert planet much like Arrakis.
[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 films, with almost no deeper meaning. Thus, by this logic any ties between Star Wars and Dune would be very much superficial and coincidental. However, George Lucas himself acknowledged Herbert's influence by naming vehicles sandcrawlers and by noting that the snake-like skeleton in the original film was meant as a nod to Herbert's sandworms. Biographers of Lucas have noted that Dune was one of several science-fiction texts explored by Lucas while he was developing Star Wars in the early seventies.
The similarities were even more prolific in 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.[citation needed]
[edit] Desert Planet
Both Arrakis (Dune) and Tatooine (Star Wars) are desert planets with no naturally-occurring rainfall, with only sparse habition and few cities. Arrakis has two moons; Tatooine orbits two suns and also has two moons. Inhabitants of both planets make use of artificial means of water collection, such as vapor harvesters (windtraps in Dune, moisture vaporators in Star Wars). Additionally, Smugglers are common on both worlds. In Dune this is the result of a Spacing Guild monopoly and taxation; in Star Wars, smuggling occurs as result of high tariffs imposed by the Empire, as well as the Rebellion against the Empire.
[edit] Sand People
The sand people of Tatooine wear desert-gear which covers their entire body and a mask with an air filter, just like the Fremen. Like the fremen, they also wear sand colored capes and cloaks. Like the Fremen, the sand people always go armed, they live in isolation from extraplanetary affairs, resist the planetary government, and evade census and taxation.
[edit] Sand Worm
On Tatooine there is a sand worm similar to those in Dune referred to as the Sarlacc. However, the Sarlacc doesn't crawl beneath the sand. Instead it lies buried up to its gaping mouth, waiting for prey to walk, fall or fly close to its intra-buccal beak. Luke Skywalker and his party escaped a slow rotting death in the Sarlacc's stomach in Star Wars Episode VI.
[edit] Jabba The Hutt
Jabba the Hutt bears a number of similarities to 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 physiology. Both rule over a desert planet in a gigantic palace. The main differences are that Jabba is smaller, weaker, less intelligent, without prescience, has a shorter lifespan, rules over a smaller portion of his known universe (all of which reflect his smaller role in the narrative), and most importantly, Jabba is a member of an alien race, whereas Leto II is a unique hybrid of two separate species: Human and Sandworm.
[edit] Spice
Growing up on Tatooine, Luke believed his father to have been a navigator on a spice freighter.Star Wars: Databank, <http://www.starwars.com/databank/character/lukeskywalker/>. Retrieved on 30 August 2007 In one of the Star Wars novels they found spice in a market, and the commerce of spice is mentioned in others.
[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] The Jedi
It is 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 explored the Voice as the ability to analyze an individual's character and formulate a specific tone to appeal to them, while Star Wars left the nature of such vocal control unexplained. These differences may be the result of differing media: Dune is a lengthy novel, while Star Wars is a film. However the Bene Gesserit is not the only source of inspiration to the Jedi, many contend that the Jedi were based largely on Taoist philosophy and Zoroastrianism, and unlike the Bene Geserit, Jedi can be male or female.
Both organizations have prophecies concerning a Messianic figure: "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, however, the Prophecy of the Chosen One is left largely unexplained.
A closer match to the Bene Gesserit, at least in terms of the superstitions surrounding the order, are the Force-wielding "witches" of Dathomir found in Expanded Universe fiction.
[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 go further. Though Leto "marries" Ghanima, his physical transformation prevents them from carrying out more than an emotional relationship, and Ghanima takes Leto's court historian Harq al'Ada as a male concubine.
[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. Most dramatically, in both narratives the hero discovers he is descended from his adversary--Luke from Vader and Paul from Baron Harkonnen.
[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. It should be noted that most fictional rulers employ large standing armies. Although the original clonetroopers in Star Wars are clones of a single human (Jango Fett), the stormtroopers of the Galactic Empire are trained on Carida from an age around 17 (ages vary according to different rotations of 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. However, Sardaukar are considered to be one of the best fighting forces in the Dune universe, possessing greater than average strength and intelligence and larger overall size, while Stormtroopers are often depicted as hapless drones, useful only in overwhelming numbers.
[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 physically resemble Dune's enormous spice harvesting vehicles, also called sandcrawlers.
[edit] Muad'Dib
In the Expanded Universe novel series The Bounty Hunter Wars, the character of Muad'Dib is present. Muad'Dib is a name used repeatedly in the Dune series of novels.
[edit] Tremors
The film Tremors features desert worm creatures, informally called Graboids, that bear a distinct resemblance to the Sandworms of Dune, though on a far smaller scale. The graboids' mouths consist of four opposing jaws (described as looking like a "grotesque flower" in the screenplay), which are similar to the triple-jawed mouths of the sandworms in David Lynch's earlier production of Dune (the sandworms in the subsequent SciFi Channel production of Dune possess more conventional-looking paired jaws). However, in the Bonus Features to the Tremors DVD, Collector's Edition, director Ron Underwood states that care was taken to make the graboids look distinct from sandworms.
In addition, both sandworms and graboids are attracted to rhythmic vibrations on the surface, such as the footsteps of animals or people, as well as operating machinery. In the case of graboids, this is obviously an adaptation for catching prey. In the case of sandworms, it may be hunting behavior or it may be a response to an irritating stimulus. Although Dune predates Tremors by many years, it remains to be determined whether Tremors co-writer Steven S. Wilson was heavily influenced by Dune, or whether his creations are simply convergent with those of Frank Herbert.
[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 or Islamic 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 mutant-psychic Navigators of the Warp in WH40K. Similarly, the Imperial Space Marines of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, resemble the Sardaukar. WH40K's "Emperor of Mankind" is sometimes referred to as the "God-Emperor", and both Leto II of Dune and the 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 Emperor, although the Emperor of WH40K did not wish to be worshipped.
Additionally, WH40K borrows some of the names of technologies from the Dune series, such as lasguns, suspensors and plasteel.
[edit] Wheel of Time series
A number of similarities to Dune are noted by readers of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time fantasy book series. In particular his Aiel are nomadic desert dwellers (similar to the Fremen) influenced by an external power of female mystic tradition, the Aes Sedai (similar to the Bene Gesserit), who imparted many customs, such as a legend concerning the appearance of a saviour or messiah (Rand al'Thor (like Paul Atreides in Dune) Wheel of Time FAQ 3.11: On similarities between The Wheel of Time and other SF (including Dune). In addition, two of the Forsaken characters mention the giant worms in the Blight.
[edit] Homeworld
Several similarities in Relic Entertainment's Homeworld series of games and the Dune series of books exist. Most notably, the Exiles/Higaarans themselves resemble the Fremen in that they're a religious, nomadic middle-eastern inspired culture which lives on a barren desert planet called Kharak, and were forced there by oppressive enemies. The Vaygr resemble the Fremen as they were during the Jihad, and Makaan himself resembles the cult-like figure that Paul Atreidies became. The Taiidan Emperor is referred to as the "God Emperor" and occuppies a similar tyrannical role to that of Leto II. In addition, both Karan S'Jet and Makaan are human beings who, through technology, are able to transcend biological limitations in terms of mental capability, and who live floating in large liquid nutrient tanks. Finally, the themes of messianic prophecy take a very similar course in Homeworld to the ones found in the Dune books.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
