Did The DaVinci Code Borrow Too Heavily From Daughter of God?

Read The Analysis Below and You Decide.

Read the Newsweek article about the controversy.

Go here to express an opinion about this.


Update, September 29, 2003:

Please note that the items below are the original list of similarities sent to Random House and posted on this site in June 2003. Since that time, analysis by my legal team has determined that some of these similarities are not legally protected. However, a far more extensive list of protected similarities has been developed. In addition, the similarities below do not include those from The Da Vinci Legacy and The Linz Testament. Legal counsel has determined that those will remain confidential to avoid "tipping our hand" prior to court proceedings.

Page numbers refer to soft-cover Daughter of God and Hardcover DaVinci Code
"Various" Means the reference or concept appears on the noted page and on other pages throughout

 

MacGuffin:

Secret papers so devastating to Christianity that it would bring the church to its knees. The secret is so powerful the Vatican can be blackmailed with it and must kill to keep the secret.

Daughter = "If this information [about Sophia] were to leak out, Christianity and all that is stands for would be called into question." p. 32 see also p 81 and back cover copy of soft-cover book.

DaVinci = Documents about, "A woman who carried with her a secret so powerful that, if revealed, it threatens to devastate the very foundation of Christianity. p. 239, various

Protagonist:

Daughter = Professor of Religion, Seth Ridgeway. p. 4, 9, 41-45

DaVinci = Professor of Religious Symbology, Robert Langdon. p. 7

Female Protagonist/Love Interest:

Daughter = Detective of art forgeries, art expert, Zoe Ridgeway. p. 70, 91-99, various

DaVinci = Detective, cryptologist, Sophia Neveu. p.51, various

Antagonist

Daughter = Ambitious Cardinal who wants secret documents in order to restore old conservative values. p. 25-33, 72-81, various

DaVinci = Ambitious Bishop who wants secret documents in order to restore old conservative values. p. 58, 107, 173,-175, 195, various.

Antagonist Organization:

Daughter = Shadowy Vatican organization with spies and clandestine operatives ready to die to preserve the one true faith - Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. p. 23-26, various.

DaVinci = Shadowy Vatican organization with spies and clandestine operatives ready to die to preserve the one true faith - Opus Dei. p. 1, 175, various.

 

Odd Coincidence?

Daughter = Sophia is key religious figure. p. 11, 73, various.

DaVinci = Sophia Neveu, love interest, is a religious figure, descended from the bloodline of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. p. 440-445

 

Plot Element:

Daughter = Book opens with the curator of a priceless art collection, Willi Max, p.7

DaVinci = Book opens with the curator of a priceless art collection, Jacques Sauniere, p.2

Plot Element:

Daughter = Curator of a priceless art collection found gruesomely dead, p. 38

DaVinci = Curator of a priceless art collection found gruesomely dead, p. 11

Plot Element:

Daughter = Hero charged with murder (colleague Professor, Tony Bradford), pursued by police, p. 301 and various.

DaVinci = Hero charged with murder (colleague Professor/curator Jacques Sauniere), pursued by police, p. 12 and various.

Plot Element:

Daughter = The shadowy Vatican organization is the heir of the true church. p. 28

DaVinci = The shadowy Vatican organization is the heir of the true church. p. 231-234

Plot Element:

Daughter = A painting launches the adventure. p. 51-57, 134, 154-155, various.

DaVinci = A painting launches the adventure. p. 138-139, various

Plot Element:

Daughter = The painting provides the protagonists with a physical key that accesses to a Zurich bank safe deposit box. p.312

DaVinci = The painting provides the protagonists with a gold key that accesses to a Zurich bank safe deposit box. p132

 

Plot Element:

Daughter = The Swiss bank safe deposit box contains more clues to the ultimate location of the secret papers. p. 316-317

DaVinci = The Swiss bank safe deposit box contains more clues to the ultimate location of the secret papers. p. 199-202

Plot Element:

Daughter = While the protagonists sit amid the opulent surroundings of the Swiss bank and sift through the secret directions to the devastating secret, police are rushing to capture them. The protagonists then make a harrowing, by-the-skin-of-their-teeth escape from their pursuers. p. 318-322.

DaVinci = While the protagonists sit amid the opulent surroundings of the Swiss bank and sift through the secret directions to the devastating secret, police are rushing to capture them. The protagonists then make a harrowing, by-the-skin-of-their-teeth escape from their pursuers. p. 207-224.

Plot Element:

Daughter = Textual riff on a set of mysterious and devastatingly powerful religious documents and how they were passed along for centuries among popes and emperors before going missing so that they could fall into the hands of ambitious people who seek power for themselves. p. 175-179

DaVinci = Textual riff on a set of mysterious and devastatingly powerful religious documents and how they were passed along for centuries among popes and emperors before going missing so that they could fall into the hands of ambitious people who seek power for themselves. p. 157-161

Plot Element:

Daughter = Textual riff on The Great Goddess and how she was gradually subsumed into male dominated religion. p. 157-162, 201-206

DaVinci = Textual riff on The Great Goddess and how she was gradually subsumed into male dominated religion. p. 238-239

Plot Element:

Daughter = Textual riff on the art and archeological depiction of the Great Goddess 157-162, various.

DaVinci = Textual riff on the art and archeological depiction of the Great Goddess. p23,

Plot Element:

Daughter = Mary Magdalene plays a key role. p. 79

DaVinci = Mary Magdalene plays a key role. p. 243-245

Plot Element:

Daughter = Christ as divine and part of the Christian Trinity was forced on religion by pagan Constantine as a political power play. p. 15-18, 77, 120, various

DaVinci = Christ as divine and part of the Christian Trinity was forced on religion by pagan Constantine as a political power play. p. 233

 

Plot Element:

Daughter = Prelude to final chase takes characters through a cave (salt mine). p. 350-370

DaVinci = Prelude to final chase takes characters through a cave (subway). p. 367

Plot Element:

Daughter = The Christian Bible is filled with fabrications. 20, 21, 340-345, various

DaVinci = The Christian Bible is filled with fabrications. 340-342, various

Plot Element:

Daughter = Even if religion is founded on falsified dogma, it is beneficial to the millions who believe in it. p. 28-29, 343

DaVinci = Even if religion is founded on falsified dogma, it is beneficial to the millions who believe in it. p. 242

Plot Element:

Daughter = A key piece of evidence for the elevated position of women in the early Christian church and the way Constantine wrote them out can be found in the Gnostic Gospels, the Nag Hammadi scrolls. p. 78-80

DaVinci = A key piece of evidence for the elevated position of women in the early Christian church and the way Constantine wrote them out can be found in the Gnostic Gospels, the Nag Hammadi scrolls. p. 245

Plot Element:

Daughter = After having the prize within their grasp, the protagonists lose control to a shapeshifting friend who actually works for the antagonist. p. 371

DaVinci = After having the prize within their grasp, the protagonists lose control to a shapeshifting friend who actually works for the antagonist. p. 361

 


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