Gholas got produced in Axlotl tanks by the Tleilaxu. An Axlotl tank is a woman whose womb gets used to create a Ghola while she is in a vegetative state. Though the Tleilaxu were exclusively the sole producers of Gholas, the Bene Gesserit also tried making one.
The Gholas of Dune – Definition
The word Ghola gets pronounced as “goal-uh.” A Ghola is an artificial human who gets recreated from their dead cells. The Tleilaxu create Gholas in Axlotl tanks. Almost every key figure in the Dune universe gets re-created as a Ghola. From Serena Butler to Xerxes, Paul Atreides, Leto II Atreides, Alia Atreides, Lady Jessica, Duncan Idaho, and Gurney Halleck, the heroes of ‘Dune’ get recreated to try and save humanity from its greatest enemy, the Thinking Machines.
The Impact of Gholas on the Dune Universe
One of the first Gholas to be mentioned in the ‘Dune’ series was Piter De Vries, the Mentat of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. Piter belongs to a class of Mentats called twisted Mentats, who were Gholas with no moral principle. Though Gholas were popular throughout the empire, they only became much advanced in ‘Dune Messiah,’ when the Tleilaxu discovered how to recover their past consciousness using genetic memory from their dead cells.
The first Ghola the Tleilaxu explored the concept of genetic memory on was Idaho. As part of the plan to dethrone Paul, the Tleilaxu create a Ghola of Duncan Idaho, known as Hayt. Hayt’s job was to make Paul doubt himself and give up the emperor’s throne, after which he would kill him. However, when he got activated to kill Paul, Hayt’s love for him created an inner resistance that led to him regaining his former consciousness.
After discovering a Ghola could recover their past selves, the Tleilaxu starts using the same technique of forcing phycological trauma to re-awaken other Gholas.
At the time of Kralizec, Gholas had become a vital commodity in the universe. With Scytale possessing the genetic material of people like Paul and Thufir Hawat, he becomes a formidable foe against the Thinking Machines. Sheeana, leader of the Bene Gesserit, begins creating Gholas to fight against the inevitable war that was to take place. Soon, it gets revealed that Daniel and Marty were Omnius and Erasmus, leaders of the Thinking Machines. Discovering this, Sheeana create Gholas of Paul Atreides, Alia, Chani, Stilgar, Leto II, Jessica, Wellington Yueh, and Liet Kynes to fight against the enemy.
The Thinking Machines also begin creating Gholas and put Khrone as their enforcer. Khrone commanded Uxtal, a Tleilaxu scribe, to make a Ghola of Baron Harkonnen with the goal being to make the Baron raise the clone of Paul Atreides. Finally, the Ithaca gets captured by the Thinking Machines. With the Gholas of everyone from the past, the war stands still. Baron Harkonnen stabs Alia in revenge while Paul fights his clone, Paolo. Yueh kills Baron Harkonnen, and in a twist of events, Paul admits that Duncan Idaho was the ultimate Kwisatz Haderach. After Omnius gets defeated by the Oracle of Time, the war ends.
Later on, Duncan Idaho’s ultimate re-incarnation merges with Erasmus, who gives him all codes to the Evermind machine; this grants Idaho abilities beyond any living thing in history. With his new powers, Duncan unites man and machine in peace.
Physical description of a Ghola
Gholas have specific traits that distinguish them from humans and clones. The first visible traits of Gholas are their metallic eyes; this was due to an issue concerning their creation. However, it got rectified as the Tleilaxu found a way to make Gholas have natural eyes.
Glossary Terms Associated With A Ghola
Here is a list of words and phrases associated with Ghola:
- The Oracle of Time: The Oracle of Time is a supernatural being that possesses tremendous power in the ‘Dune’ universe. With enough power to take a person from one universe to another, The Oracle of Time banishes Omnius from the ‘Dune’ universe, ending the Kralizec.
- Ithaca: The Ithaca was a No-ship that rescued travelers from Bene Gesserit’s home planet. Though the ship tries to escape the reaches of the Thinking Machines, it eventually gets captured.
- Genetic Memory: This is the memory contained within the cells of a dead person.
FAQs
What is the Ghola in Dune?
Gholas are humans produced by the Tleilaxu artificially. With genetic manipulation, Gholas got created from the dead cells of an individual. However, they could not recover the memories of their original self; this changed in ‘Dune Messiah’ when Hayt, Duncan Idaho’s Ghola, got his consciousness back.
Is Duncan Idaho a Ghola in Dune?
In the first ‘Dune’ of 1965, Duncan Idaho got killed defending the House of Atreides from the Sardaukar and Harkonnen troops. However, in ‘Dune Messiah,’ a Ghola is made from him and called Hayt. Being part of an elaborate plan to kill Paul, Hayt goes against the will of his creators and regains Duncan’s consciousness.
What’s special about Duncan Idaho Ghola?
Duncan Idaho is the only person that features in all five of Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune.’ From ‘Dune’ to ‘Dune Messiah,’ ‘Children of Dune,’ ‘God Emperor of Dune,’ ‘Heretics of Dune,‘ and ‘Chapterhouse: Dune,’ Duncan Idaho, through Gholas was the only consistent character.
Who is the protagonist in all Dune series?
The protagonist that features in all Dune series is Duncan Idaho. During the Kralizec, Paul manifests his consciousness through his Ghola to reveal that the true Kwisatz Haderach was Duncan Idaho; this was because Duncan had lived thousands of lives and had gathered enough compassion for humanity.
