Great minds think alike!
I have, more than once, expressed my chagrin that it seems that fewer and fewer postings are Bradburian.

Mr Dark, I too would like to be a more productive participant. If only I had the time! I generally only have time for quick responses. Must try harder!

Phil / Braling II ~
Much of Bradbury's stories have a very fundamental spiritual/religious basis to them. Within Bradbury's prose we are captured by ...what!!!? Unable to clarify the experience, we give the glowing prose names: like 'Bradburied Treasure', for instance.

'The Man' is a good case in point. Some of us, I for one, tend to grab onto this hard to handle concept of God introduced in Ray's stories and poems and grapple with it like Ahab in the last scene of the book fighting the Leviathan. I for one tend to because thru Ray's works I was brought to that mountaintop experience of connecting to the Jesus that Ray occasionally writes about, and in my endeavor to explain that Christ to Ray, I find an ear tuned to self invocation instead.

Certainly I do not strive to discolor all the beauty and experiences I have had with Ray by this futile, seemingly unyielding, viewpoint Ray has about scripture. Maybe hidden in some corner of his mind and heart he is writing the great Christian book. I thought that was a possibility, but now tend to think it's more of mere fancy on my part. Was Ray always so harsh a critic of Christian religion? From the days on a hillside with a bottle of Orange Crush to what he must now consider to be a morass of convoluted lies and distortions of everything that looks like orthodox Christian religion, Ray has written and spoken about his idea of God.

But today I'm disappointed. Disappointed with myself for a long while as well. I have put Bradbury too high on the pedestal of those who I actually thought had feet of gold. And when the image is seen as tarnished, it affects one to painfully rethinking in terms of priorities. Just what is the ultimate end should learned studies lavish understanding on all of Ray's works and dissect and analyze all the meanings and innuendoes of every last line of Bradbury's prose?

This is a fascinating discussion, and as I write this I'm listening to an audiobook version of The Man that is very well-made and very faithful to the story. Now here is my point: As I see this story, it's an exploration of how different people look for hapiness. Some, like the Captain, are always looking outside of themselves, and as long as they keep searching in this way they'll never find it. Others, like Martin, understand that you can be hapy wherever you are. However, I do not understand the very ending of the story at all. The last line or two implies that the man is actually a real person (perhaps Jesus, though he is never named). This contridicts the point of the story. Can someone explain this?

DavidTVC15~

THE MAN is about meeting Jesus Christ.

I'd find it interesting how Ray ever came up with this story, particularly what was going on with him at the time in terms of his faith. Along the way Ray has veered into a sort of re-incarnation or re-experiencing life in some way, almost a 'Groundhog Day' movie type of scenario. Where Christ promises that His life will be introduced into the sinner's life to restore him back to the original intent of the Creator because Christ is the original intent, Ray lately has been immersed in the idea of living forever in the deeds, life, or his art into the future. Or at least the future as far as the local universe exists.

Every time the Captain lands on another planet, he misses Christ. Tho not named, Jesus Christ has been the person identified with the story. Ray has also mentioned this in previous interviews. Ultimately, Jesus is found in the peace and serenity of knowing Him. This would deliberately suggest a personal relationship with Christ is what is necessary to meet Christ.

If you do not see Christ as the central figure the Captain is trying to meet, the story may be confusing.

By the Captain insisting on his own personal terms in meeting Christ, he forever misses meeting Christ, even into the infinite nano-seconds...

I understand that The Man is about Jesus Christ. This is obvious. But I also understand that he is never identified as such in the story. I believe that this is because Ray did not want the reader to see it as a story ABOUT Jesus, which it most certainly is not. It is about the eternal search for happiness, and Ray uses Jesus as a metaphor only.

quote:

Originally posted by DavidTVC15:
...and Ray uses Jesus as a metaphor only.

Ray using metaphors!?

Kidding, I'm kidding. You'll learn how I am after awhile.