I spotted a social media post the other day. You know the type: someone stirring the pot just for the joy of watching people argue, boldly declaring that Dune is “just epic fantasy in spacesuits.” The kind of hot take designed to start a flamewar.
I womanfully resisted the urge to jump in. I didn’t post, I didn’t reply, I didn’t even like a snarky comment. But the rant? Oh, the rant is still simmering. And what’s a blog for if not to vent safely where I control the scroll?
So here it is: Dune is not fantasy.
Fantasy is magic. Actual magic. Not merely mysterious or unexplained phenomena, but forces that operate outside the natural laws of the universe.
Dune, Frank Herbert’s masterpiece, for all its mysticism and spice-fueled visions, is firmly science fiction. Even the mind-melding and prophesying is rooted in science: Genetics, in this case. The extraordinary powers of some of the characters were bred into them.
Specifically, Dune is classic space opera.
Yes, most of the action happens planetside, but every single thing that happens on Arrakis, every duel, betrayal, revolution, and prophecy, revolves around one fundamental fact: the spice controls space, and whoever controls the spice controls the stars.
As Orson Scott Card points out in How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy, the very first decision a science fiction writer must make is how characters cross the vast gulfs of space. The means of interstellar travel shapes everything: the kind of societies that emerge, the wars they fight, even how power is structured. If it takes a century to crawl to the next star, that’s a very different story than one where you can zip across the galaxy in an afternoon via wormhole or folded space.
And space opera distills this perfectly. It’s all about power: who can project influence across interstellar distances, who controls movement between the stars, who wields that advantage to build—or topple—empires.
In Dune, that control hinges entirely on the spice. Spice isn’t a symbol or metaphor; it’s the essential mechanism by which ships cross the cosmos. The galactic struggle over Arrakis is not about ancient prophecies or mystical birthrights, it’s about political, economic, and military power in a vast interstellar empire.
So yes, Dune has duels and destinies and prophecies, but at its core, it’s science fiction. Big, bold, operatic SF about politics, empire, ecology, and power, and who holds that power by mastering interstellar travel.
Okay, rant over.
What other “borderline” works do you think get misfiled or misunderstood? Tell me in the comments…unless you’re going to say Star Wars is fantasy. That’s a whole other blog post.
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