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Lost again with Dan Brown in The Lost Symbol
Random House reports record breaking sales of the latest episode in the saga of Robert Langdon, The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown. The famed author of Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code has turned his eye towards the United States of America. In this thriller-meets-art history novel, set in Washington D. C., a mystery of code unfolds within the historic city monuments in much the same manner as in previous Dan Brown works. The author has provided Random House with a highly lucrative page turner once again. Yet one cannot help suspect that The Lost Symbol record sales reflect more strongly on the reputation of The Da Vinci Code than anything else. And while comparison of the two novels may form an accurate assessment of the The Lost Symbol contextually, it hinders honest appraisal of its quality.
Replace the words Leonardo Da Vinci, Paris, and the Priori of Sion in The Da Vinci Code with George Washington, Washington D.C., and the Masons and you've got a decent idea of how the novel will unfold. Professor Langdon races from monument to monument cracking codes to save the world from a religious fanatic. Again. He's accompanied by a very slightly less intelligent but stunningly attractive female sidekick. Again. He risks certain death to uncover the truth only to decide to obscure it's whereabouts to the general public and save the day. Again. It is this kind of repetition that prevents The Lost Symbol from being a truly successful mystery.
The narrative that jumps from perspective to perspective attempts to rectify this monotone format. Yet with every character viewing the world in the exact same way, making the same connections, and the same mistakes, repetition once again discredits the plot. Not one character expresses suspicion of a man wearing a blond wig covered from head to toe in bronzer. And another frustrating repetition; every time our heroes are on the brink of capture their following chapter explains how they had been safe all along. Loyal readers remember that Langston will always overcome, as he always does here and in The Da Vinci Code. The pattern has been set from the beginning. Yet to rely solely on this comparison of the two texts would be a mistake. There are marked differences in content between the most famed and most recent of Brown's works.
Three years ago Brown was accused of plagiarizing: the main theory of the The Da Vinci Code and that of Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln's Holy Blood and the Holy Grail are similar to the point of being identical. Alas for Brown, the latter was published twenty years before the former. The highly publicized suit was dismissed only because Holy Blood, Holy Grail, was published as non-fiction and therefore could not claim ownership of their research. That Brown copied their ideas never was in doubt; only that legality of duplication. Perhaps this experience mellowed Brown's quest to uncover hidden truth; for the underlying message of Brown's most recent endeavor has a less scandalous slant; that some secrets are best kept hidden.
Readers looking for the fantastic conspiracy theories of the previous texts will find instead a book with a much more conservative tone. Brown celebrates both the traditions and the ideology of the elitist Mason Society that he claims holds Washington in the palm of its hand. His praise places him clearly to the political right. That these all powerful men refuse to admit women into their organization is not discrimination, Langdon admonishes a naive and female undergraduate, it is merely tradition. Torture is unpleasant, Brown narrates, but always effective. According to Langdon, the rumors that the Mason's are a cult are the results of liberally biased media. If The Lost Symbol has an unbelievable secret it is that in Washington, despite all evidence to the contrary, all is as it should be. Perhaps this would seem more credible if America wasn't facing an economic crisis commonly paralleled to the Great Depression.
So perhaps in the end it is the sheer fantasy of Robert Langdon's world that appeals itself to millions of readers around the world. For those who need it escape into a world with an all-knowing paternal icon has it's merits in comfort. And in this unrealistic setting there is some basic pleasure to be had from solving puzzles that baffle the supposedly ingenious plot of characters, even if their simplicity is indisputable. That the head of the CIA cannot recognize, as I can, roman numerals turned upside-down only means that I must possess a brilliantly subtle and capable mind... right? For those not so easily deluded I would recommend a more challenging brain teaser. The Trompe d'Oeil (Illusionary Art) exhibit that opened just last Friday at the Palazzo Strozzi is holding a city wide competition. Those who can unravel the clues from local art gain the chance to win a paid vacation to Rome. Visit www.palazzostrozzi.com for more information. You might not be saving the world with your discoveries, but take heart: when Harvard finally gives in and realizes Dan Brown's fictional Department of Symbology you'll be well prepared for admission. Just pray that no Masonic cult icons go missing since, as Brown will tell you, it only makes for trouble.
Written By: Kathleen Culliton
Lifestyle, Arts and Entertainment - a9.10.27.11.14
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