Discovering Dune

Dominic Nardi is a political scientist and has published academic articles about politics in Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, and Blade Runner. N. Trevor Brierly is a literature scholar and software engineer living in Northern Virginia. He has published and presented on Dune, Tolkien, worldbuilding, Shakespeare, and Northrup Frye.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsForewordTimothy O’ReillyIntroduction: “A beginning is a very delicate time…”Dominic J. Nardi and N. Trevor BrierlyPart I. Politics and PowerDune and the Metanarrative of PowerEdward John RoystonPolitical Prescience: How Game Theory Solves the Paradox of ForeknowledgeDominic J. Nardi“The greatest predator ever known”: The Golden Path and Political Philosophy as EcologyMichael PhillipsHe Who Controls Knowledge Controls the Universe: Leto II and the Golden PathCaroline Anne WomackPart II. History and ReligionFrank Herbert’s Byzantium: ­Medieval-Futurism and the Princess Historians Irulan and Anna KomneneMaximilian LauBeside the Sand Dunes: Arab Futurism, Faith, and the Fremen of DuneR. Ali“A critical moment”: The O.C. Bible in the Awakening of Paul AtreidesN. Trevor BrierlyPart III. Biology and EcologyLocations of Deviance: A Eugenics Reading of DuneLeigha High McReynoldsFrom Taming Sand Dunes to Planetary Ecology: Historical Perspectives on Environmental Thought and Politics in the Dune SagaPaul ReefShifting Sands: Heroes, Power, and the Environment in the Dune SagaWillow Wilson DiPasqualePart IV. Philosophy, Choice, and EthicsThe Sands of Time: Dune and the Philosophy of TimeNathaniel GoldbergThe Choices of Muad’Dib: Goods, Traditions, and Practices in the Dune SagaJeffery L. Nicholas“I suggest you may be human”: Humanity and Human Action in DuneCurtis A. WeyantBelief Is the ­Mind-Killer: The Bene Gesserit’s Transcendental PragmatismKevin WilliamsAppendix: Bibliography of ScholarshipDominic J. Nardi and N. Trevor BrierlyAbout the ContributorsIndex

“Discovering Dune: Essays on Frank Herbert’s Epic Saga offers a welcome addition to critical analyses of Herbert’s Dune series. Spanning topics from politics, history, and religion to science, technology, and philosophy, this collection of essays brings fresh perspectives to bear on this best-selling science fiction universe. Some authors take advantage of new analytical approaches, such as using game theory to explore prescience or discussing Paul Atreides through the lens of disability studies. Others focus on characters and themes that deserve extended critical attention, including Princess Irulan, Leto II, and Arabic and Islamic influences. As a whole, the collection presents itself as relevant to 21st-century concerns and will likely prompt readers to want to reread the series equipped with new insights. We need more thoughtful engagements with all of the books in Herbert’s epic saga, and this essay collection delivers.”—Kara Kennedy, author, Women's Agency in the Dune Universe