The article examines cryptograms in selected Dan Brown novels as a compositional device that initiates movement, regulates suspense, and converts paintings, numbers, architectural sites, and digital formulas into readable signs. The study shows that decoding in Brown is not a decorative addition to the plot. It organizes the reader’s route through the text and links scholarly interpretation with physical pursuit, historical conjecture, and technological anxiety.

Cryptogram, decoding, semiotics

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