Frank Herbert and the Dune Novels

During two different parts in this interview, Herbert and the interviewer McNeely talk about the intriguing mysteries behind the characters and organizations in Dune, and why Herbert leaves them unexplained for a reason. For example, how the Spacing Guild got to be the way it was.

youtu.be/A-mLVVJkH7I


Herbert: Now there are other reasons why stories are remembered -- and I'm talking about story in the classic sense -- the stories that are remembered are the ones that strike sparks from your mind. One way or another. It's like a grinding wheel. They touch you and sparks fly.
Now we all have stories that we go on with after finishing reading them. As children we can remember playing Treasure Island or Tom Sawyer, any of these. We remember playing these. The story stayed with us. The characters, and their conflicts, their joys, their play, all stayed with us.

McNeely: And it kindled sparks in our own imagination... so we were then active in creative play.

Herbert: That's exactly right! We went on and told the story ourself. Now, I deliberately did this in Dune for that purpose. I want the person to go on and construct for himself all of these marvelous flights of fantasy and imagination. I want him to - ya see, you haven't had the Spacing Guild explained completely, just enough, so that you know it's existence. Now with lots of people, they've got to complete this! So they build it up in their own minds. Now this is right out of the story though, ya see - the sparks have flown!


They then go on to discuss the unexplained elements of the Bene Gesserit and Shai Hulud...

Herbert: Of course! And I did that deliberately. The value of a good story in the entertainment sense is how much of this it tips off, and how much it starts rolling, so that you start creating your own story - the one that's in all of us, you see?

McNeely: And in that sense there is no right answer to the final, let's say, complete life cycle of Shai Hulud

Herbert: Yeah. You want me to pin it down for you? I can, I mean, I had it in mind...


I think this is great, and I think Lucas understands this as well. As someone who grew up with Star Wars, and enjoys all elements of the saga as an adult, I can attest to it.






What gets me is how, instead, some people complain about unexplained elements.

In this 1969 interview Frank Herbert talks about how his visit to my hometown inspired Dune.

youtu.be/A-mLVVJkH7I

He also mentions a quote that had a large impact him:

"Ecology is the science of understanding consequences."

Which I suspect Lucas must have heard as well. Or seems to understanding either way.

Subtext Mining
Who made those Rockwell-esque Paintings?