ORIENTALISM IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF A SELF-OTHER IDENTITY IN VILLENEUVES DUNE 2021

The discourse about Orientalism, first mentioned by Edward Said has as long history and changed over time by drawing from discoursesin different fields. In this paper, Denis Villeneuves cinematic adaptation of Dune in 2021 was analysed through the lens of Orientalism and through the lens of identity in construction of the self and the other. Firstly, main orientalist themes in Dune that were identified before by other scholars have been discussed. Secondly, the relationship between self-and other was explored by drawing from literature about identity in culture and memory and relating it to scenes in the film. It can be observed that the discourse mentioned in the first half the paperfocuses on binary ideas of the Orient and Occident. The second half of the paper proposes a complex and interwoven view of self and other that stand in relationship as rather dynamic and changing complements than as binaries only, and are made visible through the young heros journey.