The Platypus Reads Part XXIII

Following from what I have stated in the last post about my read of "Dune," I want to address what I think is a sub-theme that flows out of it. Since the focal character of the drama is the planet Arrakis, the humans in the book are there as fauna and loci of planetary change. Thus one of the primary lenses through which Herbert views them is in how they adapt to life on Arrakis.

In light of this, it is no surprise that the entire first book of the novel "Dune" deals with the attempts of the Atreides family to adapt to life on Arrakis. Because of the predators on Arrakis, the Harkonnens (indeed, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen is fond of referring to himself as a predator), most of them are wiped out. This is to be expected when a new species is introduced to an area; it will either flourish and displace indigenous life forms (ie. the rabbit or the cat when introduced to Australia), or rapidly decline unless some sort of adaptation occurs (ie. colonial Europeans in tropical Africa before the discovery of a malaria prophylactic and cure). Books two and three, however, deal with the few specimens that do survive via adaptation; Paul, Jessica, Alia, Gurney, and (perhaps) Thufir. Their adaptation is so successful that, together with the native Fremen, they are able to devour House Harkonnen in turn, and replace them as the dominant species on Dune. Moreover, the exceeding harshness of the environment of Arrakis shapes the Atreides/Fremen into super-men capable of becoming the dominant species in the galaxy.

The narrative at the human level, on this read, is not one of treachery and vengeance, but of natural selection in action. Along with the life cycle of the Sandworm, the topography of Sheildwall, deep desert, pan, and graben, and discussions of various flora right down the flowers that the dew collectors harvest each morning, it is just one more feature making up the life of the planet Arrakis.