- Published: November 8, 2022
- Updated: November 8, 2022
- University / College: The University of Newcastle, Australia (UON)
- Level: Secondary School
- Language: English
- Downloads: 34
Angels and Demons book analysis Angels and Demons has been ranked as a best seller is a fictional thriller by Dan Brown first published in 2000, this book tells the story of an American symbolist, Robert Langdon, on a quest to investigate and reveal the reason behind the murder of a popularly known physicist and a canister that is missing at CERN (Burstein, Keijzer, 2009). In the well scripted and adventurous book, it exposes the schemes made by the Catholic Church to create misconceived awareness about the destructive knowledge of science so that people can be drawn back to religion and especially so, the Catholic faith. He brings back to life, an old well known brotherhood known as the Illuminati that was said to be made up of the greatest scientist in time; he uses their symbolism to make the story even more convincing and captivating. The title of the book, Angels and Demons is deeply metaphorical as it has nothing to do with real life angels and demons as we know them , but with the use of these words to describe scenarios whereby the ones who are considered angels might really be demons and vice versa. There are angels sculptures as well in the story that are also used as direction pointers by the scientist in his quest to unravel the mystery and also prevent further deaths of the church officials which was being blamed on the Illuminati. The book is full of suspense with a lot of twists and turns and it successfully manages to conceal the real villain until the end when the conspiracy is also revealed, the tone of the book is casual and relaxed. The writer, Dan Brown is an American author well known for his novel, The Da Vinci Code which together with the book, Angels and Demons have been adapted into films and have generated a lot of controversy (Brown, 2005). Brown who has a Christian background states that his books, despite referring heavily to religion, are anti-Christian and are for entertainment purposes, he is a bold, daring and well informed writer in the work that he does. The book fits well into its intended genre because it is compelling in that it engages the reader, it is simple and clear, it engages a lot of imagery by helping the reader to create pictures with words. Creativity is present in the reading and the excitement does not dwindle as one turns the pages for more, it provokes and invokes the reader to think. The book is informative as the facts about the Illuminati have been clearly written and the message is well brought to view, it is coherent and fast paced. The significance the book has had on the culture is that it has made people raise questions about the truth, authenticity and origin of the Catholic practices. A book by Jim Wicker was written to disprove the facts that had been stated by Dan Brown about the wrong deeds done by the Catholic Church goes to show the impact that the book, Angels and Demons had on the society and how it was about to change the culture of believers. The book not only gives the reader details about the Catholic practices but also about the Illuminati, the book served to show the readers that they should not follow all practices blindly but should apply logic and question some of the believes that have been in place for a long time. Furthermore, its economic success is irrefutable in that the book is considered one of the greatest works ever written and by being turned into film went ahead to cement its place in the literary world just as the other book by the same author, The Da Vinci Code. The Angels and Demons books reinforces the belief that both good and evil exist as culture also seems to dictate all too often, some of the ideas portrayed might be offensive to some people especially through quotes such as God does not protect you, intelligence protects you. It is true to say that faith and not money is the backbone of the church as he also states in the book, but what comes out clearly is that the book seems to be pointing to the fact that the church is losing is popularity and would therefore go to very great depths to regain it. The author seems to be challenging people to open their eyes and not be blinded by the practices of the church; they should question them and find satisfactory grounds as to why they are present in the church. References Burstein, D. Keijzer, A, J. (2009). Inside Angels and Demons: The Story Behind the International Bestseller. New York: Vanguard Press. Brown, D. M. (2005) Dan Brown’s Road to Success: An Unauthorized Biography of the Creator of The Da Vinci Code. North Carolina: Lulu. com,