The Da Vinci Code 1

The Da Vinci Code
By Dan Brown

Has anyone read this book? I did, and enjoyed it.

A murder in the silent after-hours halls of the Louvre reveals a sinister plot to uncover a secret that has been protected by a clandestine society since the days of Christ. The victim is a high-ranking agent of this ancient society who, in the moments before his death, manages to leave gruesome clues at the scene that only his daughter, noted cryptographer Sophie Neveu, and Robert Langdon, a famed symbologist, can untangle. The duo become both suspects and detectives searching for not only Neveu's father's murderer but also the stunning secret of the ages he was charged to protect. Mere steps ahead of the authorities and the deadly competition, Neveu and Langdon embark on a breathless flight through France, England and history itself.

Brown has created a page-turning thriller that also provides an amazing interpretation of Western history. Brown's hero and heroine embark on a lofty and intriguing exploration of some of Western culture's greatest mysteries--from the nature of the Mona Lisa's smile to the secret of the Holy Grail. Though some will quibble with the veracity of Brown's conjectures, therein lies the fun. The Da Vinci Code is an enthralling read that provides rich food for thought.

To create the anagrams in this book, the author has used Anagram Genius (so they claim).

If you dare, you can try the WEB quest, but it is easier after you read the book.

 

[ESquared]

Anagram Genius is interesting. It has some of the functionality I'm envisioning for my own anagramming program.

 

[strongm]

I've owned it for a number of years. It's pretty good.

 

[GwydionM]

The story sounds like a speculative-history novel that I read ages ago, The Holy Blood And The Holy Grail. ALso rehashed by Harry Harrison and John Holm in their The Hammer and the Cross series.

The core idea never impressed me as likely. The early Church had no centralised power and did not have the means to suprress significant facts about its founder. Nor the motivation: at that time it was highly dangerous to be a Christian and no one would do this and also mess around with what they regarded as God's Message.

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A view from the UK

 

[ESquared]

The DaVinci code is full of unwarranted and spurious content. Of course, it's fiction, which is supposed to be full of that. But people are treating it like fact, which is sad, given there's no scholarly support for it.

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A sacrifice is harder when no one knows you've made it.

 

[Zathras]

It reminds me of the saying "A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth can get
its shoes on." (usually attributed to Mark Twain)

This form is attributed to Sir Winston Churchill:
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."

But you get the idea...

 

[SkipVought]

Lady: Winston, you are drunk.

Churchill: And madam, you are ugly, but in the morning I shall be sober.

!!!

Skip,
[sub]
[red]Be advised:[/red]
Alcohol and Calculus do not mix!
If you drink, don't derive! [/sub]

 

[johnwm]

Another Churchill gem

Nancy Astor: “Sir, if you were my husband, I would give you poison.”
Churchill: “If I were your husband I would take it.”

________________________________________________________________
If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

'If we're supposed to work in Hex, why have we only got A fingers?'

 

[BabyJeffy]

The story sounds like a speculative-history novel that I read ages ago

It's not. It's a clever work of fiction wound through the classic Grail Quest storyline. It does utilise many references to secret societies... which are accurate references that do (contrary to what esquared2 posted) have scholarly support.

Any book that encourages people to think is a good book. Here we have a book that exposes the corrupt practices of the early christian church and provides a very well researched glimpse into an alternative view of history (not the one that was carefully edited by Constantine's church in the 3rd century).

The Vatican should be worried about this publication. If nothing else, it's going to re-open a lot of old wounds that they thought they had settled a long time ago.

You don't have to like the book... you don't have to like the church... you don't have to like secret societies... you don't have to comment. But at just over 400 pages it's not going to take you long to reach your own conclusions... and it's not going to break the bank either.

Jeff

 

[Slonoma]

Jeff,
I agree, this is a good book regardless of what you're into. But the Vatican worrying about this publication? I don't think so.

The book is a lot of propaganda surrounding a little bit of truth... I think the Catholic church has more important things to worry about, like priests and little boys...

Besides, the Catholic Church encourages people to always question their faith...

And if reading isn't your thing, just wait a little while and you can watch this on the big screen. Ron Howard directing.

 

[ESquared]

Every good work of fiction set in history has factual "dressing-up" to lend it verisimilitude... to increase the readability of the book and help the reader suspend his disbelief. I am sure there are loads of accurate references in the book.

This doesn't change that the book is also full of many pure fabrications out of whole cloth.

Anyone who reads the Da Vinci Code to learn history is making a mistake and committing intellectual self-contamination. Just as anyone who reads any fiction book so, is doing the same. Suspending disbelief is great for pleasure-reading, but not for real life thought.

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A sacrifice is harder when no one knows you've made it.

 

[SkipVought]

Sort of like a book or movie by Michael Moore?

Skip,
[sub]
[red]Be advised:[/red]
Alcohol and Calculus do not mix!
If you drink, don't derive! [/sub]

 

[TheRambler]

I don't know whether Michael Moore wrote about freemansonry and JAH-BUL-ON. I don't know if the Priory of Sion is a real secret society...

Many of the topics in Brown's book like: Opus Dei, the Holy Grial, the lost sacred feminine, the act of Hieros Gamos, Mary Magdalene or the Knights Templar, are interesting to discuss but are beyond the scope of this forum (although I wouldn't mind if somebody could illuminate us about such subjects).

I thought the wordplay, anagrams and puzzles of the book would be interesting for the people of this forum. Like when the protagonist finds the body of the curator of the Louvre Museum lying on the floor naked and posed like the Vitruvian Man, a pentacle drawn on his abdomen, and a message beside his corpse written with a black-light pen:

[b][center]13-3-2-21-1-1-8-5[/center]
[center]O, DRACONIAN DEVIL![/center]
[center]OH, LAME SAINT![/center][/b]

 

[ESquared]

Did you mean to hide that in white?

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It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)

 

[SkipVought]

TheRambler,

I was referring to Michael Moore in the context of

...full of many pure fabrications out of whole cloth.

Skip,
[sub]
[red]Be advised:[/red] When transmitting sheet music...
If it ain't baroque, don't fax it! [/sub]

 

[SkipVought]

Doesn't matter if it's Michael Moore, Swiftboat Veterans for Truth or 60 Minutes, speculation & falsehood laced with truth does not yield a trustworthy product.

Skip,
[sub]
[red]Be advised:[/red] When transmitting sheet music...
If it ain't baroque, don't fax it! [/sub]

 

[chessbot]

I just want to say:

This is a wordplay forum, NOT a political discussion.

[white]I probably would't say that if you were on the other side...[/white]

--Chessbot

 

[ESquared]

Yes, but it's MY wordplay forum.

Anyway, the only 'sides' I perceive here are whether or not the Da Vinci code is full of fabrications or not. Are you saying it's true?

Do you or don't you believe in using logic, evidence, coherent reasoning, the scientific principle, and other such devices of the respectable and reasonable intellectual?

Do I need to start a Logic, Reasoning, and Philosophy forum now? ;-)

-------------------------------------
It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)

 

[chessbot]

I was more thinking the political opinions of of SkipVought (i.e. anti-Michael Moore)

--Chessbot

 

[ESquared]

Ah... thanks for clarifying!

-------------------------------------
It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)