Tag: feudalism

3,667 words

Frank Herbert’s six Dune novels fall into three pairs. Dune (1965) and Dune Messiah (1969) chart the rise and fall of Paul “Muad’Dib” Atreides, a man who becomes a superman and the God Emperor of the known universe. Children of Dune (1976) and God Emperor of Dune (1981) narrate the rise and fall of Paul’s son, Leto II, a superman who transforms himself into a monster and rules for 3,500 years. Heretics of Dune (1984)[1] and Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)[2] are set 1,500 years after God Emperor and focus on the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood’s struggle with their evil twin, a sisterhood that calls itself the Honored Matres. (more…)

6,101 words

Come out, ’tis now September, the hunters’ moon’s begun,
And through the wheaten stubble we hear the frequent gun;
The leaves are turning yellow, and fading into red,
While the ripe and bearded barley is hanging down its head.

— “All Among the Barley,” British folk song (more…)

1,719 words

Like most Westerners, I got to know Akira Kurosawa through his classic samurai films: Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, The Hidden Fortress, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, Kagemusha, and Ran. Thus I was surprised to discover that fully half of his thirty films are actually set in contemporary Japan over the stretch of Kurosawa’s long lifetime (1910–1998). High and Low (1963) is one of the best of these films, along with Drunken Angel, Stray Dog, and Ikiru. (more…)

1,248 words

English original here

Wenn Science-Fiction typischerweise „progressiv“ und Fantasy-Literatur „rückwärtsgewandt“ ist, dann brauchen wir eine dritte Kategorie für die sechs Dune-Bücher von Frank Herbert (1920-1986) – gar nicht zu reden von George Lucas’ sechs Star Wars-Filmen –, die futuristische Sci-Fi-Elemente mit den archaischen Werten und magischen Welten der Fantasy verbinden.

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1,610 words

German translation here, Greek translation here

If science fiction is quintessentially “progressive” and fantasy literature is “reactionary,” then we need a third category for the six Dune books by Frank Herbert (1920–1986)—not to mention George Lucas’ six Star Wars movies—which combine futuristic, sci-fi elements with the archaic values and magical universes of fantasy.

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