Rough ideas - analysis of Dune (novel)

analysis
#1

Since discovering Dramatica I have been a bit sad that there aren’t more analyses of novels out there. I understand why (takes a lot more time to read a novel, and there’s probably a lot more “noise” making it harder to see the storyform sometimes, and/or multiple storyforms). But I enjoy books a lot more than films so I’ve been trying to jot down Dramatica thoughts from the books I’ve been reading. Not to say I don’t love movies, in fact Dramatica has re-kindled my enjoyment of them, but books are the best!

Anyway, here are some rough ideas I had about Frank Herbert’s classic science fiction novel, Dune (1965), which I just finished re-reading.

As I started analyzing it was going well, but then fell into the trap of looking at the Problem level too soon (hard to avoid that in the software). That’s not a good idea because you start seeing all sorts of neat concepts at the Problem/Element and Issue/Variation levels that sound like they’d be so cool, like Interdiction or Prediction or Possibility or Speculation, in a novel that involves prescience as a central concept. But I think it’s a bad idea to start at the bottom like that (until maybe you’ve got decades of Dramatica experience under your belt and can just sense an IC Problem of Determination like @jhull did with Zootopia.)

So to do this PROPERLY I would need to follow the proper procedure of the Domains first, then Concerns, then Issues, then Problem quad, and only look at next level when needed. And of course, the 8 story dynamics / essential questions.

  • Overall Story is “destroying enemies to gain control of Dune and the Spice, and thereby the Imperial throne”
  • Main Character is “Paul Atreides, burdened with being the Kwisatz Haderach and the Fremen Messiah, and with the future jihad that he cannot escape”
  • Influence Character is “Jessica of the Bene Gesserit, Duke Leto’s concubine and mother to Paul”
  • Relationship Story is “Mother and Son: training in the weird Bene Gesserit ways; manipulated by the Bene Gesserit designs”

I have no doubt that Paul is in Situation because I have never known any story that explores all 4 Types (Present, Past, Progress, Future) so blatantly. As the Kwisatz Haderach he can see the many possible Futures, which become part of his Past, but they keep Changing as they reach a nexus in the Present. The term prescient memory (where he accesses Past memories of the Future in the Present, but sometimes the Present has Changed or Progressed slightly from those Future memories) is used over and over again, here is one quote:

He joined her in the ornithopter, still wrestling with the thought that this
was blind ground, unseen in any prescient vision. And he realized with an abrupt
sense of shock that he had been giving more and more reliance to prescient
memory and it had weakened him for this particular emergency.

So anyway, it seems like his biggest concern is avoiding this terrible future (a jihad that consumes the universe, with Paul as its figurehead), so at first glance I would guess the MC Concern is The Future. But I wouldn’t rule out Progress either – he wants to change the future, or at least, control which of the infinite possible future paths the present goes down.

Now if the Overall Story is in Activity like I would guess, then Obtaining works pretty well: obtaining control over the spice, achieving freedom from Harkonnen/Imperial oppression, obtaining revenge, losing Caladan, losing access to the spice, achieving the ultimate human in the Kwisatz Haderach and obtaining control over him, etc. – all of these are terribly important.

For the IC, I think Innermost Desires fits Jessica really well too; she impacts others’ fears through her witchy Bene Gesserits ways and she is often consumed by desperate fears for her mate, Duke Leto, and her son Paul (and later, daughter Alia). And she is also filled with longing for their lost water-rich home of Caladan.

This would put the Relationship Story in Changing One's Nature and I think that also fits, since their mother-son relationship changes drastically once Paul utterly surpasses her with his abilities as the Kwizatz Haderach, and the strangeness of that change in their relationship causes problems between them.

Still, I wouldn’t mind others’ thoughts on this, if anyone has read the book and remembers it enough. There is a heck of a lot of scheming and plotting driving the overall story too, so I guess it could be Manipulation… the phrases “plans within plans within plans” and “tricks within tricks within tricks” come up several times. (But if I’m right about Jessica as IC, Manipulation fits a lot better for the RS than Activity.)

Next up … story dynamics questions.

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About Story breakdown in Novels
#2

I’m going to read this post in detail, later, but as an aside Jessica did not do what she was supposed to do, hence the mess for the plans of an organized universe. Do you think that the prophetic order Jessica belongs to could be the impact character as a player? When I read the book in the 60’s, I felt it was missing something, that something fell flat, some failure to deliver that I had to accept. That was 30 years before reading Dramatica Theory. When I read the theory book, I recognized something great was happening. Understanding literature was becoming more accessible.

I saw your post and will get back on this. They are predicting a big storm here this weekend so we’re hunkering down, inside.

#3

Hi @Prish, yes I think I agree with you that something fell flat, and it may be a problem with the narrative since it is obviously so lauded on so many other fronts.

There may be more than one ‘story’ buried inside it (my paperback copy is over 800 pages), and some of them may not be complete. In fact, I wonder if the main one is complete. When I was trying to figure out Main Character Judgement and Resolve it almost felt like the book didn’t quite finish explaining those. Some people have suggested that the sequel, Dune: Messiah, is like Part Four of the first book (Dune is broken into 3 parts like Acts). I’m not sure about that, but maybe the problem is that the Overall Story of Dune comes to a resolution, but the MC Throughline doesn’t get resolved until the sequel?

I do think that a lot of clarity about MC Judgement in the first book can be gained by looking at the sequel, although that may be cheating.

But despite all that, I do get the feeling that if you step back and see the forest instead of the trees, there is the shape of a proper narrative in there, with all four throughlines and most of the necessary appreciations.

#4

MC Approach

Paul is definitely a Do-er. He tries to resolve his personal issues of his “terrible purpose” and being responsible for future jihad through actions – by DOING what is necessary to push the universe onto a better path.

MC Problem-Solving

I think he is Logical (his prescience is described as being part of his Mentat abilities, where he computes possible futures through advanced logic)

MC Growth

I think he is a Stop character (he wants to hold out to Stop the universe from going down the path of jihad)

Story Driver

I think it’s Action driven, though I’m not sure. Paul does seem Willing and he helps keep the narrative flowing throughout (seeking out the Fremen, bringing things to a conclusion by attacking the Emperor’s ship-tent), so that’s a good sign it’s Action-driven. The book doesn’t really discuss the decision for the Atreides to go to Arrakis; it’s already been decided before the novel begins and apparently they didn’t have much choice anyway. Sudden attacks of Paul’s spice-driven prescient vision seem to force decisions and drive the narrative forward. Baron Harkonnen’s quick escape from the poison gas in Leto’s tooth shifts the narrative, setting things up for Act 2. Even Paul’s passing the gom jabbar test by enduring more pain than anyone ever has was an Action that drove some decisions.

Story Limit

Definitely Optionlock. Time is discussed often and always shown running forward – never a concern about a specific point in time like a deadline. But they have to try several different options to maintain Atreides power of Dune (or the antagonists try different options to defeat the Atreides) before we reach the final option at the climax with the Emperor. Even at the climax several options to prevent Paul from becoming Emperor are attempted, which he knocks down one by one.

Story Outcome

… is Success: the Atreides avenged Duke Leto, gained control of Arrakis and the Spice, and the Imperial Throne.

MC Judgment

Judgment is Bad, I’m pretty sure. What makes this less clear is that the when the book explains the Bad Judgment it’s easy to miss its importance as it comes at the start of a highly anticipated fight scene. As a reader you sort of feel like this is a “hint” towards the possible Bad Judgment and it will be explained more later, but it’s never touched on again (at least until the sequel, Dune Messiah). Anyway, here is that section from Dune (bolding mine):

And Paul saw how futile were any efforts of his to change any smallest bit
of this. He had thought to oppose the jihad within himself, but the jihad would
be. His legions would rage out from Arrakis even without him. They needed only
the legend he already had become. He had shown them the way, given them mastery
even over the Guild which must have the spice to exist.

A sense of failure pervaded him, and he saw through it that Feyd-Rautha
Harkonnen had slipped out of the torn uniform, stripped down to a fighting
girdle with a mail core.

MC Resolve

I think he is Steadfast (i.e. in trying to resist the Jihad). It’s a bit tricky because he sort of seems to accept the jihad just before he fights Feyd-Rautha (same quote, above), but it’s not like he embraces some Solution or Changes, it’s more like he just realizes that he will always be in this Situation of being the jihad’s Messiah no matter what he does, whether he lives or dies. So I guess maybe his MC Throughline does complete here, sort of just dies out without much fuss.

Some comments

Maybe there’s something about the anti-climactic nature of the MC Throughline that contributed to @Prish and me feeling like something fell flat? Or maybe something else was misplaced in the narrative, like the MC signposts were mixed up, or something. Or maybe it’s just a personal taste thing, since obviously, lots of people love Dune. Maybe something bugs us about Steadfast-Bad stories?

#5

Maybe, his being a logic MC is what made him a little boring? Oh, I loved Dune, with such fantastic characters (except for Paul…go figure), back stories, plotting and story weaving, what was there not to love (except for Paul, of course). Could this be an example of a too objective MC? Was the MC in the OS somehow, instead of his proper MC or MC/IC place?

#6

Interesting thoughts Prish. I think there might be two reasons that are very close to what you describe:

  • I think there is a proper MC throughline, separate from the OS, but the problem with it is that the MC’s “personal baggage” is very non-human. Paul’s personal issues are all about his being able to see the future, and being a messiah, and the burden of those things. Those are his own issues separate from everyone else – even Jessica never fully understands the nature of his gifts. But the problem is, those are really weird issues that are hard to relate to, which makes them not work so well for the Main Character whose eyes we’re supposed to see the story through.
  • The other potential issue is that Dune is so full of every character’s POV – the narrator is literally telling you what almost every character in each scene is thinking. This makes it a bit hard to identify the Main Character, especially in the first part when it seems like Jessica could be the MC.

I felt the same way as you about Dune, everything about it was awesome (my favourite thing is the Princess Irulan quotes that open every chapter, they are so awesome!!) – except for the boring parts about Paul. And even Paul was awesome sometimes, but sometimes he fell flat.

#7

I, almost, wonder if Jessica is the MC with Paul as the IC Contagonist Protagonist. Her pov is what we want, and I wonder if Paul’s pov is, actually, a narrator-type of the Overall Story. (if that mental shorthand means anything)

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#8

Interesting! I will think about that. Towards the end, it definitely seems more from Paul’s point of view … but maybe that’s the problem with the narrative, that it actually switches MC and IC partway through (or switches back and forth)

#9

Hi Guys. Quick update. I’m more than half way into the Dune book. Hope to give my findings soon. Thanks.

#10

That’s great Ede (@Khodu). Since my earlier posts, I had been re-thinking a few things, mostly about the MC (who I still think is Paul). But it will be great to have someone else to bounce ideas off of, who’s read the book recently.