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Here is the novel that will be forever considered a triumph of the imagination. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, who would become the mysterious man known as Muad'Dib. He would avenge the traitorous plot against his noble family--and would ...
Here is the novel that will be forever considered a triumph of the imagination. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, who would become the mysterious man known as Muad'Dib. He would avenge the traitorous plot against his noble family--and would bring to fruition humankind's most ancient and unattainable dream.
A stunning blend of adventure and mysticism, environmentalism and politics, Dune won the first Nebula Award, shared the Hugo Award, and formed the basis of what it undoubtedly the grandest epic in science fiction.
This Hugo and Nebula Award winner tells the sweeping tale of a desert planet called Arrakis, the focus of an intricate power struggle in a byzantine interstellar empire. Arrakis is the sole source of Melange, the "spice of spices." Melange is necessary for interstellar travel and grants psychic powers and longevity, so whoever controls it wields great influence.
The troubles begin when stewardship of Arrakis is transferred by the Emperor from the Harkonnen Noble House to House Atreides. The Harkonnens don't want to give up their privilege, though, and through sabotage and treachery they cast young Duke Paul Atreides out into the planet's harsh environment to die. There he falls in with the Fremen, a tribe of desert dwellers who become the basis of the army with which he will reclaim what's rightfully his. Paul Atreides, though, is far more than just a usurped duke. He might be the end product of a very long-term genetic experiment designed to breed a super human; he might be a messiah. His struggle is at the center of a nexus of powerful people and events, and the repercussions will be felt throughout the Imperium.
Dune is one of the most famous science fiction novels ever written, and deservedly so. The setting is elaborate and ornate, the plot labyrinthine, the adventures exciting. Five sequels follow. --Brooks Peck
Dune has been in print for over 40 years and is deeply rooted in Science Fiction culture. What is your personal exposure to the story of Dune? Have you read any of Herbert's books before? Have you seen any of the moive/tv shows?
With the extreme conditions on Arrakis, do you think you personally would be able to live as a fremen?
Every “chapter” starts with a quote by Princess Irulan. Do these help you understand the novel or detract from it? Why do you think Herbert put them in the book?
Here are the questions we used to start a conversation about Frank Herbert's Dune:
1. Dune has been in print for over 40 years and is deeply rooted in Science Fiction culture. What is your personal exposure to the story of Dune? Have you read any of Herbert's books before? Have you seen any of the moive/tv shows? Have you seen any influence of the Dune story in other aspects of culture other than Scifi?
2. Why do you think Herbert starts his book out with the story of Paul and the gom jabbar test? What kind of mood dose this set for reading the rest of the book?
3. What are the diffrences in house policies, Atreides versus Harkonnens.
4. On Arrakis, is the limiting factor is water. “Growth is limited by the necesity which is present in the least amount. And, naturally, the least favorable condtion controls the growth rate (pg 138).” On Earth, we have lots of water, but what is our limiting factor to our civilization?
5. With the extreme conditions on Arrakis, do you think you personally would be able to live as a fremen?
6-8 FROM: http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-dune-frank-herbert/topicsfordiscussion.html
6. How does the Missionaria Protective prepare the way for Paul and Jessica Atreides?
7. Is Jessica overall a good mother? What are her best and worst traits?
8. Why is Paul-Muad'Dib concerned that Stilgar is turning from a friend into a worshiper?
9. Every “chapter” starts with a quote by Princess Irulan. Do these help you understand the novel or detract from it? Why do you think Herbert put them in the book?
10. What technologies and sciences dose Herbert described in Dune? Do any of these seem plausible or do they seem to be stretching real-life science and technology?
Once you have read and understood Dune, the numerous sequels can extend the experience - a real payoff for the work of understanding another world.
"Inspired World Building"by Linda S. (see profile)04/20/11
Only half of us managed to read the book. It is long and detailed, but a worthwhile feat of an extraordinary imagination. "Dune" is a science fiction classic; a genre-defining epic. Given the time it... (read more)
This was our groups first book read. All of us sci-fi nerds loved it! This classic sci-fi novel opens the door to non-traditional ideas that tell very human archetype themes and stories. Our discussion... (read more)
