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Epilogue
Themes and Colors
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Da Vinci Code, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Conspiracies and Secrets
The plot of The Da Vinci Code revolves around fictional secret knowledge and historical conspiracies. After Louvre curator Jacques Saunière’s mysterious death, Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu find themselves pursuing an ancient mystery protected by the fictional secret society known as the Priory of Sion. According to the novel, the Priory’s members were tasked centuries ago with protecting the Holy Grail—proof of Jesus Christ’s marriage to Mary Magdalene. They operate in complete…
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Art and Symbolism
The Da Vinci Code is a work of speculative fiction in which researchers and historians use art and symbols to subtly subvert historical narratives and resist mainstream ideologies. While the novel’s premise that a secret society guards the truth that Jesus Christ married and had a child with Mary Magdalene is widely considered false, The Da Vinci Code uses this premise to explore how people can engage with art and symbolism to either confirm or…
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Faith vs. Knowledge
The plot of The Da Vinci Code pits faith and knowledge in opposition to each other before exposing this as a false dichotomy. At the novel’s start, Silas and the church he represents—the fictionalized ultra-conservative Catholic sect Opus Dei—are immediately villainized when he murders Louvre curator Jacques Saunière. Later, the reader learns that Saunière possessed secret knowledge which could destroy the church’s reputation: that Jesus Christ was married to and had a child with…
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Sacred Femininity and Revisionist History
The central mystery of the speculative fiction novel The Da Vinci Code revolves around the concept of sacred femininity and its historical suppression. At Saunière’s crime scene, Langdon draws the reader’s attention to the murdered curator’s love of goddess symbolism, including the pentacle drawn on his abdomen. As Saunière’s message unfolds, references to divine femininity pile up until Langdon becomes convinced the curator is alluding to what the novel suggests is one of Christianity’s…
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Power and Manipulation
In The Da Vinci Code, Langdon and Sophie encounter numerous people who exert immense power over their personal spheres of influence. Captain Bezu Fache of the Direction Centrale Police Judiciaire is a commanding man who uses manipulation and aggression to catch criminals and keep his agents in line. Several times, Fache’s presence alone is enough to attain his desired results, illustrating how wielding authoritative power and threatening violence are effective means of control. More…
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