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I have not read the DaVinci Code, but I am well aware of the storyline upon which it is based. It is also my understanding that scholars are pretty much in agreement that there is no basis in truth behind the book; it is a work of fiction and fiction it is.
Then why does this book have such a following? Why the high demand?
I think it has something to do with imputing convenient motives behind historical facts as we know them. We can readily gain concrete data about historical dates, names of rulers, and so forth, but what is much more difficult is understanding why decisions were made. In this gray area of some speculation, asserting motives – especially hidden ones that involve scandal – is quite intriguing to the public. If I tell you that Napoleon often kept his hand tucked inside his shirt, you might say “big deal”; but if I tell you some story about why he did this (involving a scar, a jealous woman, diamonds, and the murder of 50,000 people) and I link it to other events which tangentially support my story, you may sit up and take notice. My story will be plausible, as it is based on some facts which are universally accepted. These facts might even overshadow the shady places where I “connect the dots”, and so some people will believe my story.
Of course, these are the kinds of stories that interest people; the problems come when these “stories” move beyond fiction books and enter into the history books.
the DaVinci Code is one thing that I will never believe, people come in and say this and that about it but I believe it a load of rubbish!
Enough people have read this book to make it a bestseller, probably many times over. It would be interesting to learn just how many people think that the book’s thesis has truth to it or not.
Not so fast, ipodman – I believe the story is at least possible.
For those who don’t know the story, essentially Mary Magdalen had a baby by
Jesus, born after he was executed. Mother and daughter escaped to France.
They were able to enter noble society, and the daughter (presumably very
dark or black, unique for France at the time) grew up and interbred with
royalty. The royals’ name was St. Clair, later anglosized to ‘Sinclair.’
(Presumably anyone with the last name of Sinclair is indirectly related to
Jesus.)Through history, one person (the head of a secret priary) at a time was
allowed to know of this secret, one of them being DaVinci. In an attempt to
make sure the secret was not lost, he ingeniously left clues in his works.Wild enough to possibly be true!
I've read the book. It's all fiction. There was no priory of Sion. And there is no list of Caretakers of the secret of the holy grail (Of which Davinci was supposed to have been on). Anyway I thought it was good fiction, but just that.
In the past year or so, I have seen many shows on TV which explore the Davinci Code storyline. They all say in so many words that the story is fictitious. I also saw an episode of Digging for the Truth (on the History Channel) where the guy actually took a bone fragment from a member of the Merovingian royalty for DNA testing purposes. He found that it shared no commonalities with DNA taken from certain people living in the Biblical lands (I think it was in Jerusalem).
Lots of shows and books debunking it. He brought this on himself by trying to pass it off as factual. I did read it and it was a page turner, though I thought the premise was a bunch of malarky.
I thought it was a great book. Its listed as fiction. Aside from that, look how much interest has been generated about art, archetecture, literature, religious history! How many people now want to go to the Louvre and count the panes of glass in the pyramid? Regardless if some want to think it could be true, I think the work has done a great deal of good by stirring the interest in the subject.
