Interview With Kara Kennedy, Author of 'Women's Agency in the Dune Universe'

We're back for our first release of 2022! On this Dune Talk show we're joined by Dr. Kara Kennedy (Dune Scholar) for an insightful interview about 'Women’s Agency in the Dune Universe: Tracing Women’s Liberation through Science Fiction', the new book based on her PhD and years of research. She goes in-depth into the Bene Gesserit—and female characters in general—focusing on their abilities and influence throughout the entirety of the 'Dune' saga by Frank Herbert.

Kara's study places 'Dune' within the context of the time period when the series was first published, including second-wave feminism, the new wave science fiction, and other key influences. We discuss how Frank Herbert's writing the Bene Gesserit's strengths in 'Dune' speaks to key themes of women's agency both in history and today's current issues. What are Kara's thoughts on the movie? She shares her critique and reactions to Denis Villeneuve’s 'Dune: Part One', and its portrayal of women.

Segments:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:18 - Interview: Kara Kennedy's New Book on Women in 'Dune'

0:24:17 - Female Characters in 'Dune: Part One' movie

0:38:03 - Bene Gesserit and Themes in Later Books (Spoilers)

1:08:07 - Outro

This episode focuses on the new book by by Kara Kennedy, PhD: 'Women’s Agency in the Dune Universe: Tracing Women’s Liberation through Science Fiction'. For more information, see our report:

https://dunenewsnet.com/2021/12/first-book-exploring-bene-gesserit-dune-saga/

For details on how to purchase a hardcover copy, while supporting Kara, visit her publications page:

https://dunescholar.com/publications/

Visit https://dunenewsnet.com/ for more features and follow us on social media to be the first to hear exciting Dune announcements and movie news:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DuneNewsNet | Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dunenewsnet/

This show's hosts:

• Marcus Gabriel | https://twitter.com/DuneNewsNet

• Simon Daoudi | https://twitter.com/sdaoudi

Special guest:

• Kara Kennedy | https://twitter.com/DuneScholar

Do you have a question or suggestion for a future episode of Dune Talk? Tweet out to @DuneTalkShow: https://twitter.com/DuneTalkShow, reply to our posts on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dunetalkshow/, or email us at DuneTalkPod 'at' gmail 'dot' com.

Special thanks goes out to Ashton GIeckman for music and Sheldon Lee for voice overs.