It is not hard to realize the associations between science fiction and religion. Science fiction explores the surreal, often inexplicable, phenomena transcending space and time, while religion provides an explanation for its own miraculous and divine occurrences. In Frank Herbert’s Dune, there are several prophetic elements woven into the Science Fiction narrative. The intersection of Prophethood and nature largely contribute to Paul’s transformation from Paul Atreides to Paul Muad’Dib, the Madhi of the Fremen people.
In the case of Dune, Prophethood refers to both the incarnation of Paul as a religious figure and the prophecy foretelling of him becoming a savior. The Fremen prophecy that foretold of Paul’s arrival in Arrakis stated that a …show more content…
Being one with the natural elements allows Paul to undergo a transformative experience; Paul realizes his prophetic abilities in the desert, and the desert requires Paul to give part of himself in return. The desert requires sacrifice, which Paul enacts in the form of killing Jamis after their fight because combat results in the loss of water through perspiration, which is seen as an act of stealing water due to the wastefulness from the fight. When Paul kills Jamis, he earns his Fremen name of Muad’Dib, a name he saw in his prophetic visions, in which he recalls seeing “fanatic legions following the green and black banner of the Atreides, pillaging and burning across the universe in the name of their prophet Muad’Dib” (Herbert 224). The death of Jamis is one of Paul’s most insightful breakthroughs because he must grapple with the fact that he killed someone and has to be accountable for that. Paul struggles to find what to say to a group of Jamis’s friends, but he tearfully says: "Jamis taught me . . . that . . . when you kill . . . you pay for it. I wish I’d known Jamis better” (Herbert 229). The isolation of the desert forces Paul to confront the obstacle within him of accepting and addressing all that it takes to become and live as the
In the case of Dune, Prophethood refers to both the incarnation of Paul as a religious figure and the prophecy foretelling of him becoming a savior. The Fremen prophecy that foretold of Paul’s arrival in Arrakis stated that a …show more content…
Being one with the natural elements allows Paul to undergo a transformative experience; Paul realizes his prophetic abilities in the desert, and the desert requires Paul to give part of himself in return. The desert requires sacrifice, which Paul enacts in the form of killing Jamis after their fight because combat results in the loss of water through perspiration, which is seen as an act of stealing water due to the wastefulness from the fight. When Paul kills Jamis, he earns his Fremen name of Muad’Dib, a name he saw in his prophetic visions, in which he recalls seeing “fanatic legions following the green and black banner of the Atreides, pillaging and burning across the universe in the name of their prophet Muad’Dib” (Herbert 224). The death of Jamis is one of Paul’s most insightful breakthroughs because he must grapple with the fact that he killed someone and has to be accountable for that. Paul struggles to find what to say to a group of Jamis’s friends, but he tearfully says: "Jamis taught me . . . that . . . when you kill . . . you pay for it. I wish I’d known Jamis better” (Herbert 229). The isolation of the desert forces Paul to confront the obstacle within him of accepting and addressing all that it takes to become and live as the