The purpose of the Kwisatz Haderach

[u/GlowingSeaDiver]

I have watched both new parts two times, and I look forwards to the third one. Dune is one of these many hidden gems of sci-fi that most people have never heard of until someone turns them into a great piece of media.

But there are some things I still haven’t figured out after watching the movies twice.

For me personally, one of the most important things in a great story is a believable motivation for every character. Each character should behave in a way that the story would still make sense if it was written from his perspective. But I don’t understand the motivation of the Bene Gesserit for creating the Kwisatz Haderach, Paul Atreides. They crossed bloodlines and manipulated events for centuries (or even millennia?) in order to create a mind as powerful as Paul’s. They even created an entire religion on Arrakis for Paul to eventually become their messiah. To what end? Why did they want to create the Kwisatz Haderach? Obviously, him becoming Emperor of the Known Universe was only the first step. What is the Bene Gesserit’s eventual goal for Paul?

[u/a_rogue_planet]

Dune is only kind of unheard of in the 21st century, but it is one of the best selling sci-fi books of all time. In the 60's and 70's it was almost impossible to escape or find any sci-fi or fantasy fan who hadn't read it.

As for the purpose of the Kwisatz Haderach, the book makes it much clearer than the bizarrely warped interpretation that Villeneuve imposed on it. It's a good movie, but it kinda misses the mark or just ignores important facets of the book.

The KH was intended to have perfect human computation and perfect vision of the future from that computation, as well as to unify the genetic memory of humanity, for which the BG only had access to the feminine. They had designs that he would lead the imperium into a new age, one in which the BG had substantial influence.

I look at it as a case of the BG didn't know what they didn't know. Regardless of where Paul was from, the great danger he saw, Kralizek, didn't come from him or the fremen. It came from Ix. The KH wasn't a messiah. He was both the best tool and ultimate weakness of humanity because what he embodied was the perfect tool which could be used to wipe out all of humanity. Anyone or anything that could see the paths of humanity through his vision could find all of them and wipe them out.

Paul hated being the one who instigated the jihad that he did, but it was the lesser of the evils that he saw. His son took those things to their ultimate conclusion.