The Da Vinci Code

I'm not going to respond to this post anymore... meet me in the other one (sooner of later the mods should merge these posts togther).

 

World of Dan,

Sure, I agree! And I am not worked up LOL. Just wanted to point out some things.

 

I couldn't be bothered reading all the posts, but is there someone else in the universe who hates dan brown as much as i do?

 

I can't say I hate him, but I think I know what you mean. I don't really think it's his fault, though. It's just all the bloody hype, mate. Every bookshop you go to, there's the obligatory Babel's Tower of DV Code, accompanied by a vast assortment of DV Code explanation books, videos, DVD, illustrated hard copies, kids coloring in books, and I'm quite surprised they haven't released a computer game, too and knitting patterns. It was an enjoyable novel, but not worthy of its status. There are far better books out there. All it's given me is indigestion. Hate? No. Fed up? Mais oui.

 

Fiction. Fiction fiction fiction. Brown is a good writer and a good story teller. Beyond that, fact is fiction and fiction is... still fiction.

Don't hate him because he fooled you.

And while we're at it, big laughs to the Catholic Church who felt it necessary to publish a heavy book refuting Brown's claims, when anyone with a modecum of intelligence and knowledge of theology would know that it is FICTION!

But of course, so is the bible, so there you go.

 

I dont mind that he fooled anyone, and I don't mind what he said about biblical history. I just think dan brown's writing is pure shit

 

He didn't fool me either. I just can't stand all this hype we have to go through every time they find a new fashion to market, be it music, books, or film. It's all about making a quick buck, rather than offering something of value. I'll only make an exception for Harry Potter, because I sincerely enjoy that, but Dan Brown has been well over-rated, including by me. Still, I'll probably buy his next book

 

I never wanted to read harry potter for the simple reason that its just another hype but I'd have to say seeing some of the movies and reading a few chapters out of the first book, it seems like a lot of fun, one of the better 'trends' out there.

 

Hmmm... so now we blame the author, or worse, the CHARACTERS for the publisher's marketing scheme?

They have nothing to do with the hype. They sell the book, it gets edited, printed, bound and marketed by others.

Yeah, I know. You already knew this and I'm just being a wanker. But somewhere you have to draw the line between not being part and party to a multi-million dollar marketing scheme and not reading a good book just because it was over-hyped. I prefer to read the book and make up my own mind. As for not being part of the hype, the answer is simple. Get it from a library. If you want to hurt the publishing house, just steal it from a bookstore.

 

You're entitled to your opinion, Zoomie. This would be a very dull forum if we all thought the same You most certainly do not sound a wanker, and if anyone thinks that, well, it's their ignorance. Just to recap, I myself do not put the blame for the hype on the author and his dull characters. The way I see it, the source of this frenzy lies between the media and ourselves. After all, when people go around praising this book as if it will change our perspective and suddenly make this world a better place, then surely we, as a society, are the biggest muppets after all.

I don't want to be harsh on Dan Brown. He has written about an interesting subject and has exemplary descriptive talents as a writer. Where it all falls apart for me, is with his shallow characters. I cannot identify with them, or feel sympathy for them. The other thing I don't like is the over the top, James Bond style jumping out of helicopters over the River Tiber sort of shit. In 'Angels and Demons' this ruined the whole book for me. In 'Desolation Point' a whole section of an iceberg is blown away into the freezing Arctic Ocean, but the hero survives and then flies to the coast of Florida where he ends up battling hammerhead sharks. On the same day! Without any sleep, or going to the toilet! Can you see what I mean, or am I being too cynical? This is 10 year old boyscout stuff, for Christ's sake.

If these were books had been written 'tongue in cheek', I would overlook such folly in certain scenes, but the rest of the stories tend to be serious, well researched and informative. This spoils the illusion. Imagine talking to a scientist about global warming and then he suddenly starts talking bullshit. What would you think?

Other than that, I don't think he is a bad writer. I just don't think he belongs on the pedestal that we, the public, have placed him on.

 

Dude, I haven't read ANY of those yet and you just RUINED it for me!

Actually, I read DaVinci Code during Pennsic this past August as it kept me from spending money I didn't have on animal skins and hardwood staffs. It was a welcome diversion. From the standpoint of being a Pagan, I thought the storyline was interesting because many of the things he tied together are historical fact (i.e. the Nicene Councils, the books of the bible that were not only left out but destroyed, the framework for world domination by Christians, etc etc). And as I stated earlier, I have a particular disdain for the Catholic Church's stance on Paganism when they do much worse. So it was nice to see the Vatican get speared a bit.

OTOH, yeah, a geeky etymologist who can elude professional assassins is not a believeable storyline.

 

im about 10 pages in - its really good so far

 

Sorry, mate. If it's any compensation, the scenes I mentioned are peripheral to the story; have no real substance to the plot, and could have easily been edited out. They are what's generally known as 'page fillers', to make a book more dense. It shouldn't mar your enjoyment of the aforementioned novels too much. I hope.

 

I was kidding. I really have no intention of reading them. Unless I get them as gifts, as I did DaVinci Code. In which case I read them to be polite.

 

Nice one.

 

Michener is a master of the well-researched historical novel, fiction set in real places, including real people and events, yet telling a fictional tale. I enjoy that style of novel, but prefer to read nonfiction mostly. I have read dozens of books on the subject of Browns book, many of which were clearly sources of his information, but I have not read Da Vinci Code itself. It is an area which cannot be proven to be true history, but which is, to me, very interesting. The Holy Bloodline and it's associated topics, like The Templars, Rennes Les Chateaux, Rosslyn Chapel, Henry Sinclair, Pirates, Oak Island, The Shroud of Turin, The Holy Grail, King Arthur, The Crusades, The Gothic Cathedrals, The Merovingians, Freemasonry, Priory of Sion, The Illuminati, etc., are historically controversial subjects. Opinion and conjecture are the closest thing to facts that I have found, and they vary infinitely. Ancient Babylon, Egypt, and Biblical tales can also be tied in to the story, and the material on it is more than I could read in a lifetime. The dozens of books I have read in the last 20 years just scratch the surface.
I applaud Brown for bringing attention to the topic, but doubt I'll read his book, since I have likely already read his source materials for it.

 

Absolutely true, but my efforts to not read "hyped up" novels are pretty much based on the idea that a lot of them are bad.

 

I agree with 90% of what you posted here Slutter, and if you back-read I've said it already. It is fiction. But many of what you call "theories" are historical facts. I'm not talking about a child of Mary Magdalene and Christ. That's a nice theory but there is nothing to back it up. The Vatican DID commission the council of Nicea to edit the bible to a more "flowing text" and anything that was left out was destroyed. Anyone found in possession of texts not chosen was branded a heretic and you know what happened to heretics 1200 years ago... Do a google search on Nicea. You'll find that it's a well documented fact that there were hundreds of textual accounts of the life of Christ, and accounts of the world pre-Christ. But they no longer exist.

The councils further laid the groundwork for The Crusades which targeted primarily Muslims for conversion or death. Do you not see this as a step toward world domination by Christian leadership? You know, kind of like W has been doing lately under the guise of Democratization of Iran, Afghanistan, etc? Both countries have been flooded with "Christian peace workers" (i.e. missionaries). This has been Christian Doctrine since 325AD.

Nah. No conspiracy.

 

Agreed, as far as I know, its accepted by most historians that books now included in the bible now were hand picked by the church to cater for their own brand of religious doctrine. But yeah, its fiction, and Dan Brown is hardly the best source

 

i liked the da vinci code..though i dont know much bout the gospels but he summerised it very well..i cant really agree with all he wrote but over all its a good presentation.i too am fascinated by da vinci.he too was quite a character.i love going through his paintings..i have some colection on my comp.was really surprises me is that if what ever dan brown wrote is true...y have critics not objected yet.i also saw he documentry on history channel but they too havent spacified or okeyed his theories.so the story seems good but its dificult to agree.