The Big Picture
- The Emperor’s relationship with House Atreides is one of jealousy and fear, as he sees them as a potential threat to his power and reputation.
- The Emperor betrays Duke Leto and supports the House Harkonnen in taking over Arrakis to ensure that there is no influential figure like Leto who could inspire others to challenge him.
- Duke Leto’s strength, nobility, and influence are what make him a target for betrayal, ultimately leading to his son Paul’s journey to become the Muad’Dib. #DunePolitics
The politics of Dune are complicated and deeply layered. This is the case for both the original novel by Frank Herbert and the recent film adaptation from director Denis Villeneuve, the first part of the massive two-part epic that’s primarily interested in intriguing, political setup. The landscape and political structure of the world of Dune are explained as best as Villeneuve and company could hope in the two-and-a-half-hour runtime. However, one couldn’t be blamed for having a bit of a muddled perspective on the inner workings of the Emperor’s relationships with the other houses in Dune. More specifically, the Emperor’s relationship with the House Atreides, and his betrayal of Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac) in the book/film.
What Is the Emperor’s Relationship with House Atreides?
Dune Part One slowly paints a tragic portrait of what is to become of House Atreides, who have now taken up residence on the planet Arrakis per the Emperor’s decree. After years and years of Arrakis being under the control of the Harkonnen, the sudden and drastic change of leadership was thought to be an opportunity for House Atreides to gather more power and even greater reputation than they already have.
However, for House Atreides, that reputation was exactly the problem. Throughout the film, the leader of House Harkonnen, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, is seen conspiring to take the planet back from House Atreides and Duke Leto by force. To do so, he not only has a traitor in the Duke’s ranks, but backing and ground support by the Emperor’s army, the Sardaukar. The army, nicknamed The Emperor’s Blade, boasts the reputation that those who stand against them fall. With their support, Baron Harkonnen’s victory against the House Atreides is all but guaranteed.
Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, although played brilliantly by Stellan Skarsgård, was at times hard to understand in important bits of dialogue. One particular scene that bears heavy importance as to why the Emperor would betray Duke Leto is one of those barely audible scenes. Taking place on the home planet of the Harkonnens, Giedi Prime, the Baron has a conversation with his nephew Glossu Rabban (Dave Bautista) in regards to the Atreides taking the planet of Arrakis from them. The hard-headed and brute nephew complains to his uncle about the situation, to which Baron Harkonnen explains to him that the Emperor is a very jealous man. The House Atreides is one that the other Houses look to for guidance in the guild, and one that could potentially inspire change and usurp even the Emperor himself.
Why Does the Emperor Betray Duke Leto?
So, to put it simply, the Emperor’s betrayal of Duke Leto is one that comes from jealousy. In fear of losing the power he has, the Emperor would rather lose a good and faithful household like one of the Atreides, turning a blind eye and even providing discreet support to the Harkonnens via the Sardaukar so as to assure there is no inspiring figure like Duke Leto to rally others to usurp him. Unfortunately, in what would be something like a self-fulfilling prophecy, the Emperor’s wishes to destroy House Atreides would only send the Duke’s son Paul (Timothée Chalamet) down a path that would lead to him usurping the emperor himself.
Duke Leto was a strong, noble, and inspiring leader. It was because of these admirable qualities, strength, and influence the House Atreides had over other houses that the Emperor betrayed him, putting Paul on the path to becoming the Muad’Dib.
