(2009) Is the Latest Novel Written by Dan Brown, an American Famous Author Who Has Already Released Four Marvelous Novels Before; Digital Fortress

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Study

The Lost Symbol (2009) is the latest novel written by Dan Brown, an American famous author who has already released four marvelous novels before; Digital Fortress

(1998), Angels and Demons (2000), Deception Point (2001), and The Da Vinci Code

(2003). Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code also succeeded grab an award as the bestseller novel several years after released to public. Shortly, The Lost Symbol novel tells about Freemasonry, a big famous old fraternal organization which has the biggest amount of members in The United States. There is a young symbolist professor from

Harvard, Robert Langdon, who has forced by a man to find out the Mason’s Pyramid and the Lost World, two heirlooms owned by Freemasonry which are deliberately hidden somewhere underground in Washington D.C. This man is accidentally kidnap the professor’s mentor, Peter Solomon, who is also the head of the Smithsonian Institution in order to make the professor do all this man’s instructions until the professor find and bring the heirlooms to him.

The writer is interested in a character in this novel, the man who has forced the

Harvard symbolist professor to find out the Freemasonry heirlooms, and kidnap the head of the Smithsonian Institution. This man called himself as Mal’akh means Angel in

Jewish. He also has another three pseudonyms, Anthony Jelbart, Dr. Christopher

Abaddon and Andros Dareios. His real name is Zachary Solomon, and he is also a

Freemason, member of Freemasonry. He likes to own more than one identities;

1 2 pretending to be someone else with different names and professions. This character is interesting because he is unique; different from another characters with own many identities. He is also interesting because he seems take some important roles in made the story smooth through the actions that he did. The writer tries to raise issue about someone who likes to own more than one identity in this research.

Thus, the writer uses Structuralism theory, specifically five codes by Roland

Barthes, to analyze that character and the things that the character’s brings out through the actions that he did, like what the writer have explained above. Barry (2009: p.49) clarify the five codes by Roland Barthes are proairetic code (bring out indication of actions which not raising questions), hermeneutic code (bring out conflict or tension), cultural code (bring out people stereotype), semic code (bring out process of character’s transformation), and symbolic code (bring out contrast and pairings use binary concept).

1.2 Problems Formulation

How are Roland Barthes five codes applied in the story of The Lost Symbol novel by

Dan Brown according to the main characters and how is the main characters’ role in determining the smoothness of the story?

1.3 Scope and Limitation

The scope of the research is The Lost Symbol novel by Dan Brown, and the limitations are Zachary Solomon/Mal’akh/Dr. Christopher Abaddon/Andros Dareios,

Robert Langdon, and Peter Solomon character in that novel and Roland Barthes five codes.

1.4 Goal and Function

The goal of the research is to prove Roland Barthes five codes in Zachary

Solomon/Mal’akh/Dr. Christopher Abaddon/Andros Dareios character and the actions that he did which bring the story smooth supported by another two character’s role,

Robert Langdon and Peter Solomon. The function of the research is to share information and knowledge to other people about Roland Barthes codes in the Structuralism theory which exist in The Lost Symbol novel specifically.

1.5 Research Methods

The writer defines the research through library research which belongs to qualitative research method. The media is The Lost Symbol novel by Dan Brown, and the instrument is Structuralism theory and Roland Barthes codes of Structuralism. Time when the story occurred is 21 st century or 2000s. Place where the story occurred is in

Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The data compilations are the explanation of the character of Zachary Solomon/Mal’akh/Christopher Abaddon/Andros Dareios, Robert

Langdon, and Peter Solomon and settings in the story. The data analysis: first analyze the elements of fiction such as character, setting, plot, point of view, and theme. After that, give the evidences of the codes from the novel, paraphrase and analyze that using references from the elements of plot analysis. The last makes the conclusion of the analysis.