jessica found paul's hand, pulled him gently. " we must not get separated, " she said.

Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica in Dune Part Two

page 376 of dune by frank herbert

One of the most interesting things about the Atreides characters to me is the constant tension between formal and informal power dynamics going on in that House.

Leto and Jessica seem to have a fairly equitable relationship where they genuinely love and respect each other. This rests entirely on the fact that Leto is generally a Good Dude on an interpersonal level, who like, sees Jessica as a person and recognizes and appreciates her intelligence, skills and political acumen. While concubine to the head of a Great House seems to be a fairly high-status role in their world, we know it is not equal in social standing to the role of a wife, and certainly not equal to the male head of the House. Leto does treat Jessica as his equal informally, but by the social rules of their world he certainly doesn't have to.

Similarly, Leto treats Gurney, Duncan and Thufir like trusted colleagues and confidantes, and while they formally treat him with a certain amount of deference (addressing him as Sire or my Lord and accepting that he will be the final authority on things), it's also clear that informally, none of them are hesitant to speak their minds in front of him, offer suggestions or contradict him on something.

Paul's relationships with Duncan and Gurney are similarly complex. They're both older than him and serve as his mentors/teachers. Neither of them are afraid to tease him, challenge him, or reprimand him when they think he's doing something risky. They love him in an almost-familial way and would protect him with their lives. It seems like Paul would like to be friends with them on equal terms. But formally they are both his servants. Or, more precisely, while Leto is alive they are his father's servants and know they have Leto to answer to if anything should happen to his son.

The moments when the formal power dynamics assert themselves are always fascinating. When Paul and Gurney are first reunited, I would say Gurney is still treating Paul like a Duke's son and not a Duke. He's loyal and he is overjoyed to know Paul is still alive, but he still calls Paul by his first name and talks to him like he's giving advice to someone who's still learning. But then there is that moment when Paul pulls rank and gives Gurney a direct order to go to the south and Gurney's demeanor immediately shifts. He only ever addresses Paul as my Lord after that, and he treats him with a deference that makes it clear they are lord and vassal, not friends or family members.

(And like, technically once Leto is dead, Paul is the Duke and everyone in House Atreides is Paul's vassal--including Jessica. Practically when it comes to Paul giving Jessica an order she does not want to follow...well I would like to see him fucking try.)

Leto's leadership style with those close to him seems very much based on creating a familial, mutually protective vibe that wins him intense loyalty. (It is really interesting to see him try this on Stilgar who doesn't buy it for a second.) We see Paul try to emulate that, possibly with an even more intense longing for relationships of genuine equality that's born out of growing up with no peers of his same age and status around him.

But there is still always a little bit of power imbalance, because the chill vibes rely entirely on the continued benevolence of the Atreides men, and that benevolence can be withdrawn at any time.

Alia to the Emperor after killing the Baron:

The Hand of God in DUNE PART ONE & DUNE PART TWO

In DUNE 1 the Hand of God is shown as the protective glove of silence around Arrakis, that makes it difficult to use technology to govern the people and planet. In DUNE 2, the new ruler bypasses the need to use technology by calling upon the faith of the people & they willingly submit to the leadership of the Voice from the Outer World (Lisan Al Gaib) . Metaphorically speaking, Maud'Dib eclipses the Hand of God. Qithlas'ha

the beauty and the horror.

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I need everyone to understand about the fremen.

They do not cry. Ever.

To give water to the dead is the most sacred honor that anyone could give but they rarely and never do that because it's ingrained in them to not waste water from birth. A single tear could mean life and death for them. To give water to the living? Unheard of.

Paul crying over killing Jamis in the book was a moment that astonished the fremen around him. Jessica ponders their reactions and knows that this is a holy moment.

Jessica then forcing Chani to cry for Paul(this was not in the book btw but I love it) is the ultimate betrayal of her autonomy. To force her to give what is essentially a piece of her life to him without her consent is sacrilegious and she knows it.

Water of Life indeed.

Jessica spending half the movie scheming with her unborn fetus is the feminist revival Hollywood needed

I cannot stop thinking how House Atreides has really died with Leto. All the inhibitions from Lady Jessica’s hunger for power and passion were removed and she truly became her father’s daughter. The further Paul was from the times his father was guiding him, the more he leaned into anger and cruelty. Reverend Mother Mohiam doomed them all when she advised to wipe out that line. Atreides and Harkonnen were supposed to balance each other, and her fear of Atreides incomplacency lead to full loss of control. Maybe Lady Jessica and Leto actually made someone who’d be able to become a saviour, but everyone who was involved in the making of the saviour has fucked him up beyond recognition - because the balance was lost.

And on this note, I can’t stop thinking about how Feyd-Rautha and Paul are really meant to be for peace; war is a result of many centuries of a feud between their houses, and an alliance - a union of resources, mind you - would change the political landscape in the universe. Sure, it makes sense why House Corrino fuiled that rivalry, because such alliance would drastically shift the power dynamics in the Lanstraad.

And it doesn’t matter if Paul, or Feyd-Rautha, or their offspring would become Kvizats Haderach - an all-knowing being would rise to the throne and elevate Fremen with less blood then a desert prophet if they had this power.

But Jessica is her mothers’s daughter because she seeks power before purpose, and is her father’s daughter because she doesn’t care about the cost of power, so; their love story with Leto could be described as something you would leave as a warning on a nuclear waste site: love was there. It didn’t save anyone. On every chance it could save us, love only lead to more destruction.

"There were a couple of scenes [in Dune (2021)] that were all about the training technique. There was one scene that I was quite sad they cut away. There are physical training methods, where Jessica teaches Paul the art of fighting with the knives that he later uses on Jamis [the Fremen warrior played by Babs Olusanmokun]" - Rebecca Ferguson for The Hollywood Reporter

Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica and Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides photographed by Chiabella James on set of Dune (2021) | "The Art and Soul of Dune" and "Dune: Part One : The Photography"

Rebecca Ferguson in Dune Part 1 (2021)

REBECCA FERGUSON — Dune: Part One (2021) dir. Denis Villeneuve — Dune: Part Two (2024) dir. Denis Villeneuve

DUNE: PART ONE (2021) dir. Denis Villeneuve