The Postmodern Da Vinci Code as a Counter-History: Fact/Fiction, Feminism, Conspiracy

Abstract

The Da Vinci Code is a thriller whose plot concerns the Holy Grail quest. In addition, its story focuses upon the early church, Gnosticism, mythology, symbology, and cryptography to reveal two different conspiracies. One is the eradication of the sacred feminine represented by Mary Magdalene. The other is the Opus Dei's cover-up operation of the royal bloodline of Jesus, which is protected and has secretly survived. This paper deals with how the early church worked on in the formation of Christian doctrine. On this issue, Dan Brown raises some doubts about the divinity of Jesus and his marriage to Mary Magdalene. Consequently, he attempts to create a counter-history of Christianity by fabricating the facts of the early church. After the discussion concerning Jesus, the issue of who Mary Magdalene was is examined to determine if she was the Holy Grail itself or a womb for the descendants of Jesus. Furthermore, she represents the sacred feminine in paganism. Here, Brown laments that Christianity has exterminated any trace of this. As his daring challenges may be the product of postmodernism, a few postmodern ingredients of the novel are dealt with together with the borderline between fact and fiction, the revival of the sacred feminine, and conspiracy theory. Those assumptions are closely related to postmodernism. In this context, The Da Vinci Code is a product of postmodern culture, and its popularity may take root in that culture. Consequently, if its huge popularity is taken into consideration, it is obvious that ordinary people want to read that kind of fiction. In this sense, The Da Vinci Code offers an exemplar for popular fiction in postmodern culture.