Students Still Read Bradburys Fahrenheit 451

Students Still Read Bradburys Fahrenheit 451 HBO’s enticing trailer for its upcoming film Fahrenheit 451, adapted from Ray Bradbury’s dystopian classic novel, appears to adhere closely to the book. There is the fireman Montag, the book’s hero, at the beginning of the tale, as he completes fireman’s duties of setting fires to the homes of anyone who harbors books, claiming in a daze, “I love to burn.” And then there is Montag, the viewer feeling his terror and fear as he hurtles through the city’s rain-slicked streets trying to escape certain doom after he confronts his authoritarian society. These scenes from the trailer are an enticing tease: the brooding music and stylish noir science fiction settings of Fahrenheit 451 are dominated by hanging television screens with a calm male voice repeatedly saying, “Yes, a little knowledge is a harmful thing.” This is Fahrenheit 451: one of the seminal books of the twentieth century that presents a chilling cautionary tale regarding a society that foregoes reading and knowledge in favor of non-stop television entertainment that lulls a person into a contented complacency. Published in 1953, Bradbury’s eerie prescience on the rampant abuse of television remains remarkable. The book is often placed alongside George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World as foretellers of a totalitarian future that we are in danger of bringing to fruition. In these days of the current president of the United States calling for a book to be banned simply because it makes him uncomfortable and these days of that same president being proud of his illiteracy, the need for Fahrenheit 451 is needed now more than ever. But are young people reading? Is Fahrenheit 451 doomed to be burnt at some future time because the next generations have rejected learningâ€"simply because such learning might make them uncomfortable and discontent? Two years ago, when the Los Angeles Public Library chose Fahrenheit 451 as their City-wide Book Club choice, I participated with the highest glee shared by the most enthusiastic Book Rioters.When I received my complimentary copy of Fahrenheit 451, courtesy of the L.A. Public Library, the Palms-Rancho Park Branch, which was also my childhood library refuge and also the branch library of Ray Bradbury himself, I realized the synchronicity. I would be in a Fahrenheit 451 book discussion held in the Ray Bradbury Conference Room at Ray Bradbury’s neighborhood library that he frequented for nearly sixty of his ninety-one years. I was certain that the Palms-Rancho Park librarian, Maggie L. Johnson, would also have good stories about Bradbury since he was a fixture at the L.A. Public libraries. I always wanted to know more about Bradbury and also to ask another burning question of the English middle-school teacher, Jennifer Hunter, who would also serve a discussion facilitator. Ms. Hunter’s white jacket, uniquely painted in reds and golds and yellows, ornately sequined and picturing Montag and the Salamander and books burning and falling, was an unmistakable homage to Bradbury’s novel. That stellar jacket answered most of my questions about students reading Fahrenheit 451 and showing any enthusiasm for reading itself. The jacket was one student’s art project for the novel. Ms. Hunter also described various mixed media projects her students had done with great enthusiasm after reading the book. For her studentsâ€"at a public urban middle school where nearly half of the students live near the poverty lineâ€"Fahrenheit 451 has remained one of the all-time favorite books, as it has for secondary students nationwide. Fahrenheit 451 is a perennial favorite to  read and teach. Students become readers when the material they are given reflect parts of their everyday lives. Bradbury’s prescience on the possibilities of technology is one lure for the student reader. Montag’s wife Mildred will only reluctantly remove her prized seashell headphones to disconnect from the television, and on the few occasions when she does, Mildred makes sure to say a heartfelt goodbye to her family, aka characters on the television. The urban public school student is more likely to relate to Montag’s book burning futuristic society, replete with mechanical dogs and the teenagers’ deadly car games, than the alienated interior monologues of prep school student Holden Caulfield from J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. The tremendous television sets that dominate Fahrenheit 451 reflect our own apathy and indifferenceâ€"which allows governments to wage endless wars without any public input. Our technology has begun to consume usâ€"just as it had in Mildred’s cloistered world. What happens when our world is threatened? For Montag, it meant inevitable escape from his world after Mildred’s unhappiness had her picking up the phone to report the cause of her distress: her husband read a poem to her from an actual book. For teachers, themes of technological encroachment and our relationships within that society lend itself to myriad essay  and mixed media projects: Have Smartphones replaced boredom? Is that good? Is Social Media making you less social? If you knew your neighbor (and good friend) was hiding books, would you report him to the authorities? Students at this critical age, on the verge of becoming lifelong readers and learners, begin with Fahrenheit 451.  Bradbury’s masterpiece gives a perpetual light for the here and now and for the future to connect books and people. Just one more facet of the teaching strengths of Fahrenheit 451: for many of the public school students, reading Fahrenheit 451 is the first time they are introduced to Aristotle, Dickens, and Tolstoy. Fahrenheit 451 is about us: the citizens who would much rather relinquish their rights to an open society for the realization of constant gratification and conformity. George Orwell’s  1984  utilized television screens to dominate and indoctrinate their citizens; in these same outsized television screens are an opiate: the citizenry would much rather be soothed. Television keeps one from thinking at all. For sixty of his nearly ninety-one years, Bradbury would leave his modest pastel-yellow house and visit Palms Rancho-Park Branch. Bradbury was nearly blind and wheelchair-bound in his last few years, but as soon as he was in front of his library audience, Bradbury became electric and fully alive; a perpetual force of brilliance as he told his tales. One place to ensure a reading future is to value librariesâ€"fund them and use them. The public libraries are where Bradbury received his education after graduating in 1938 from Los Angeles High School. He devoured the classics and contemporary writers. Bradbury’s distress over the book burning at the ancient Alexandria library made a tremendous impact on his work. For Bradbury, who perceived the public library as the homes of thousands of authors: behind each book on all those shelves was a human being. To burn the book was to burn a human being. To burn a human being is to deny our own humanity. So, after that trip to the library and a few hours spent reading, be sure to watch the HBO film adaptation. The colors and sound will astound you, but it is with words that we begin to change ourselves and the world. Sign up to Swords Spaceships to  receive news and recommendations from the world of science fiction and fantasy.

Students Still Read Bradburys Fahrenheit 451

Students Still Read Bradburys Fahrenheit 451 HBO’s enticing trailer for its upcoming film Fahrenheit 451, adapted from Ray Bradbury’s dystopian classic novel, appears to adhere closely to the book. There is the fireman Montag, the book’s hero, at the beginning of the tale, as he completes fireman’s duties of setting fires to the homes of anyone who harbors books, claiming in a daze, “I love to burn.” And then there is Montag, the viewer feeling his terror and fear as he hurtles through the city’s rain-slicked streets trying to escape certain doom after he confronts his authoritarian society. These scenes from the trailer are an enticing tease: the brooding music and stylish noir science fiction settings of Fahrenheit 451 are dominated by hanging television screens with a calm male voice repeatedly saying, “Yes, a little knowledge is a harmful thing.” This is Fahrenheit 451: one of the seminal books of the twentieth century that presents a chilling cautionary tale regarding a society that foregoes reading and knowledge in favor of non-stop television entertainment that lulls a person into a contented complacency. Published in 1953, Bradbury’s eerie prescience on the rampant abuse of television remains remarkable. The book is often placed alongside George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World as foretellers of a totalitarian future that we are in danger of bringing to fruition. In these days of the current president of the United States calling for a book to be banned simply because it makes him uncomfortable and these days of that same president being proud of his illiteracy, the need for Fahrenheit 451 is needed now more than ever. But are young people reading? Is Fahrenheit 451 doomed to be burnt at some future time because the next generations have rejected learningâ€"simply because such learning might make them uncomfortable and discontent? Two years ago, when the Los Angeles Public Library chose Fahrenheit 451 as their City-wide Book Club choice, I participated with the highest glee shared by the most enthusiastic Book Rioters.When I received my complimentary copy of Fahrenheit 451, courtesy of the L.A. Public Library, the Palms-Rancho Park Branch, which was also my childhood library refuge and also the branch library of Ray Bradbury himself, I realized the synchronicity. I would be in a Fahrenheit 451 book discussion held in the Ray Bradbury Conference Room at Ray Bradbury’s neighborhood library that he frequented for nearly sixty of his ninety-one years. I was certain that the Palms-Rancho Park librarian, Maggie L. Johnson, would also have good stories about Bradbury since he was a fixture at the L.A. Public libraries. I always wanted to know more about Bradbury and also to ask another burning question of the English middle-school teacher, Jennifer Hunter, who would also serve a discussion facilitator. Ms. Hunter’s white jacket, uniquely painted in reds and golds and yellows, ornately sequined and picturing Montag and the Salamander and books burning and falling, was an unmistakable homage to Bradbury’s novel. That stellar jacket answered most of my questions about students reading Fahrenheit 451 and showing any enthusiasm for reading itself. The jacket was one student’s art project for the novel. Ms. Hunter also described various mixed media projects her students had done with great enthusiasm after reading the book. For her studentsâ€"at a public urban middle school where nearly half of the students live near the poverty lineâ€"Fahrenheit 451 has remained one of the all-time favorite books, as it has for secondary students nationwide. Fahrenheit 451 is a perennial favorite to  read and teach. Students become readers when the material they are given reflect parts of their everyday lives. Bradbury’s prescience on the possibilities of technology is one lure for the student reader. Montag’s wife Mildred will only reluctantly remove her prized seashell headphones to disconnect from the television, and on the few occasions when she does, Mildred makes sure to say a heartfelt goodbye to her family, aka characters on the television. The urban public school student is more likely to relate to Montag’s book burning futuristic society, replete with mechanical dogs and the teenagers’ deadly car games, than the alienated interior monologues of prep school student Holden Caulfield from J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. The tremendous television sets that dominate Fahrenheit 451 reflect our own apathy and indifferenceâ€"which allows governments to wage endless wars without any public input. Our technology has begun to consume usâ€"just as it had in Mildred’s cloistered world. What happens when our world is threatened? For Montag, it meant inevitable escape from his world after Mildred’s unhappiness had her picking up the phone to report the cause of her distress: her husband read a poem to her from an actual book. For teachers, themes of technological encroachment and our relationships within that society lend itself to myriad essay  and mixed media projects: Have Smartphones replaced boredom? Is that good? Is Social Media making you less social? If you knew your neighbor (and good friend) was hiding books, would you report him to the authorities? Students at this critical age, on the verge of becoming lifelong readers and learners, begin with Fahrenheit 451.  Bradbury’s masterpiece gives a perpetual light for the here and now and for the future to connect books and people. Just one more facet of the teaching strengths of Fahrenheit 451: for many of the public school students, reading Fahrenheit 451 is the first time they are introduced to Aristotle, Dickens, and Tolstoy. Fahrenheit 451 is about us: the citizens who would much rather relinquish their rights to an open society for the realization of constant gratification and conformity. George Orwell’s  1984  utilized television screens to dominate and indoctrinate their citizens; in these same outsized television screens are an opiate: the citizenry would much rather be soothed. Television keeps one from thinking at all. For sixty of his nearly ninety-one years, Bradbury would leave his modest pastel-yellow house and visit Palms Rancho-Park Branch. Bradbury was nearly blind and wheelchair-bound in his last few years, but as soon as he was in front of his library audience, Bradbury became electric and fully alive; a perpetual force of brilliance as he told his tales. One place to ensure a reading future is to value librariesâ€"fund them and use them. The public libraries are where Bradbury received his education after graduating in 1938 from Los Angeles High School. He devoured the classics and contemporary writers. Bradbury’s distress over the book burning at the ancient Alexandria library made a tremendous impact on his work. For Bradbury, who perceived the public library as the homes of thousands of authors: behind each book on all those shelves was a human being. To burn the book was to burn a human being. To burn a human being is to deny our own humanity. So, after that trip to the library and a few hours spent reading, be sure to watch the HBO film adaptation. The colors and sound will astound you, but it is with words that we begin to change ourselves and the world. Sign up to Swords Spaceships to  receive news and recommendations from the world of science fiction and fantasy.

Privateering and its Impact on the American Revolution

Privateering and Its Impact on the American Revolution Emma Utesch History 201-122 September 18, 2012 In the 1700s, a privateer was someone who was mandated by the government to attack ships from abroad during war time. 1During the Revolutionary War, privateer ships would receive Letters of Marque, a decree that authorized ships to act on behalf of the nations from which they were issued for the purpose of retaliating against another nation for some wrong such as border incursion. The Continental Congress of the United†¦show more content†¦There are also several people that joined the privateer movement that were younger and wouldn’t have been let in the Navy. An example of is James Forten, an African American who joined the crew on the privateering ship the Royal Lewis when he was fourteen as a powder boy.5 He was given this opportunity because the privateers did not have as many restrictions on clientele as the Navy did; it is highly probable that James Forten would not have been able to join the Continental Navy because of his age and his race. Forten invented a new type of sail that was better for maneuvering and for maintaining higher speeds for a longer stretch of time. Even though he did not patent his product, it became the most widely used and prosperous sail in Philadelphia. James Forten’s innovations involving sails have influenced sailing technologies even to this day. The fortune he made by doing this was substantial for any man, black or white. After his privateering days, he devoted more than half of his fortune to abolitionist causes. He frequently purchases slaves freedom, opened his home as an Underground Railroad Depot, and started a school for black children. Overall, American privateer ships overtook and raided roughly 600 British ships duringShow MoreRelatedThe Growth And Transformation Of A Continent1811 Words   |  8 PagesShaabain Carmen Muà ±oz-Schira, M.A. Modern World History 3/19/2015 Revolution in Europe Introduction The growth and transformation of a continent is based on social, economic, and political reforms. This paper discusses Europe’s political, social, economic, and especially religious developments of the 15th and 16th centuries, the formation of England during the reign of Elizabeth 1, Luther’s reformed Christianity, scientific revolution, and the enlightment in Europe and the United States. It focusesRead MoreAmerican Revolution and Study Guide Essay example5377 Words   |  22 PagesTo what extent had the Massachusetts Bay colonists endorsed the idea of the â€Å"separation of church and state?† (10pts) 4. To what extent was the New England Confederation a first step toward colonial unity? (10 pts) Chapter 4 Study Guide â€Å"American Life, 1607-1692† 1. Compare and contrast the colonies of New England and the South based on the following: a. Economies b. Geography climate c. Mortality rate d. Sex ratios e. Family relationships/profiles (30pts) 2. Define indentured servitudeRead MoreMing Dynasty and B. Warehouses. C. Essay4779 Words   |  20 Pagesvariety of fibers. 11. During the Heian period, Japan: a. enjoyed a period of stable, centralized political rule. b. had an alliance of local potentates and military commanders that overthrew the Heian aristocrats. c. had a peasant revolution led by Lady Murasaki Shikibu demanding land reform. d. had to seek alternative food sources due to the collapse of rice production. e. developed multiple sources of political and cultural power that were often at odds with each other. Read MoreNational Security Outline Essay40741 Words   |  163 Pages(Difficult to define) -Safety from foreign coercion or intimidation -UN Charter Article 2(4) - prohibition against â€Å"the threat or use of force against the political independence or territorial integrity of any state† Analytical Tasks: How Americans Think About National Security -Identifying Values: What is at Stake? (What are we trying to protect) -Territory -Traditional views of national security center around defending territory -Protecting homeland not a major concern until after

The Definition Of Art As An Art Essay - 1155 Words

The definition of art seems to be somewhat of a blurry line for many. What some may consider art, is just trash to others. What looks to some people like blotchy colors on a piece of canvas, may look to others like an elegant master piece beaming with life. Everyone sees art through a different set of lenses. Looking at art sometimes takes a good imagination. One person may interpret what the creation was intended to be, but often it is a different interpretation from what another person may say. Webster s dictionary gives the definition of art as â€Å"an activity (as painting, music, or writing) whose purpose is making things that are beautiful to look at, listen to, or read†. (Webster Dictionary). That definition seems to leave some things out that are currently considered art. What can art vaguely be defined as, â€Å"the idea may be about anything, from gender to technology, social issues, religion, and even perception itself. And it doesn’t matter if the o bject or idea has any sense of beauty at all.† (Ford Crull). Art is a hard thing to give a specific definition to because there is always going to be some new form of art that will mix up whatever definition is given to the word art. Many have their own opinion on the matter of what art is and what art is not. Although there are many opinions, most seem to settle with art being a subjective subject that mean different things to different people. Art is something perceived through life experiences,Show MoreRelated Original Definition of Art Essay1489 Words   |  6 Pages My definition of art is imagination and passion expressed by creating a visual feature. I consider art to be a figurative of the imagination because everything starts with thought. People create life by thinking of ways to develop; this then creates art. It is as simple as watching a child draw a picture. I can recall imagining a picture in my head and expressing my thoughts on paper. 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Types Of Ideologies And Practices For Successful Project...

Part One During the course I learned various types of ideologies and practices for successful project managing. I may not be an expert, although I feel more knowledgeable and aware of how to manage projects effectively. There were six areas of project managing that I found to be very crucial to the success of completing projects and managing teams. The Priority: It was a tremendous eye opener, learning about how to prioritize the task within a team. I am completely guilty of usually wanting to knock out the easiest task first and save the challenging task for last. I learned the importance of tackling the easy projects last, consequently they do not require using up valuable resources and time. Projects that we are not familiar with or†¦show more content†¦Due to the nature of my job in the military, I often need more information than was provided to me. Why would I possess a top-secret clearance, if I am not worthy of information that is crucial to the mission. The military on occasion has that mentality that you are on a need to know basis. The reality is that it is their way of manipulating and controlling the mission. Experiencing this on a daily basis was extremely aggravating. I would have been more empathetic and better prepared for the task if I was provided all the information instead of receiving small pieces along the way. Managing task: I have always heard about the fifteen-minute stand up meetings throughout my business courses. I have never had a project leader or manager that utilizes a stand up meeting in the beginning of the day or shift. Devin Dean explains how you can manage your team’s task daily without micromanaging. I agree you should review your project schedule daily to ensure that there is no surprises. The stand up meetings are a great way of keeping people on track and informed. I thought it was undoubtedly interesting that he brings up a valid issue with checking in with team members using email or phone calls. This gives the person the ability to blow you off or say what needs to be said to draw you off his back. I agree with Devin since I have had experience blowing off superiors with an email. Checking in on what s going on throughout your

Strict Liability free essay sample

Topics in Criminal Law May 25, 2010 Abstract Strict liability crimes require no culpable mental state and present a significant exception to the principle that all crimes require a conjunction of action and mens rea. Strict liability offenses make it a crime simply to do something, even if the offender has no intention of violating the law or causing the resulting harm. Strict liability is based philosophically on the presumption that causing harm is in itself blameworthy regardless of the actor’s intent (Schmalleger, Hall Dolatowski, 2010). Strict liability crimes require no culpable mental state and present a significant exception to the principle that all crimes require a conjunction of action and mens rea. Strict liability offenses make it a crime simply to do something, even if the offender has no intention of violating the law or causing the resulting harm. Strict liability is based philosophically on the presumption that causing harm is in itself blameworthy regardless of the actor’s intent (Schmalleger, Hall Dolatowski, 2010). Mens area is the mental aspect of criminal law; it can be easily summarized as the idea of motive. A guilty mind in isolation doesn’t necessarily make him/her criminally guilty. There are essentially four different kinds of Mens rea, intention, where it was planned. Knowledge, negligence and recklessness are the other circumstances where an individual can be describe as being guilty of the mind(Simons, 1997). Criminal liability is what unlocks the logical structure of the Criminal Law. Each element of a crime that the prosecutor needs to prove (beyond a reasonable doubt) is a principle of criminal liability. There are some crimes that only involve a subset of all the principles of liability, and these are called crimes of criminal conduct. Burglary, for example, is such a crime because all you need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt is an actus reus concurring with a mens rea. There are crimes that involve all the principles of liability, and these are called true crimes. Homicide, is such a crime because you need to prove actus reus, mens rea, concurrence, causation, and harm. The requirement that the prosecutor must prove each element of criminal liability beyond a reasonable doubt is called the corpus delicti rule(Simons, 1997). Strict criminal liability is understood as criminal liability that does not require the defendant to possess a culpable state of mind. Modern criminal codes typically include as possible culpable states of mind the defendants intention to bring about a prohibited result, her belief that such a result will follow or that a prohibited circumstance will exist, her recklessness as to such a result or circumstance, or her negligence with respect to such a result or circumstance. Strict criminal liability, then, is simply liability in the absence of intention, belief, recklessness, or negligence(Simons, 1997). We must also distinguish between strict liability with respect to a result element of an offense and strict liability with respect to a circumstance element. Felony-murder, in its most severe form, is an example of strict liability with respect to a result-specifically, a death resulting from commission of the felony. The felon will be liable for the resulting death as if he had intended it, even if there is no proof of intent, or of any culpability. Statutory rape is a common example of strict liability with respect to a circumstance-specifically, the circumstance of whether the female victim is below the statutory age. A defendant can be guilty of statutory rape even if there is no proof that he believed, or reasonably should have believed, that she was below the statutory age. Thus, strict liabilities encompass both liabilities for faultless accidents and for faultless mistakes(Simons, 1997). Strict liability can also refer, not to lack of culpability with respect to a result or a circumstance, but to lack of culpable conduct. That is, the actus reus of the crime might specify and prohibit certain conduct (whether action or omission) by the defendant. For example, a prohibition on driving an automobile above the statutory speed limit can be understood as imposing strict liability, insofar as it is irrelevant that the defendant did not have reason to know that she was traveling at that speed(Simons, 1997). Strict liability leads to conviction of persons who are, morally speaking, innocent. Therefore convicting and punishing those who do not deserve it perpetrates a serious wrong. Thus some argue that strict liability is a misuse of the criminal law an institution which, should be reserved only for the regulation of serious wrongs done by culpable wrongdoers. It does not follow, however, that all types of strict liability offences are wrong. In particular, there are reasons for thinking that strict liability may be legitimate in non-stigmatic regulatory offences, there are many reasons that can be considered in t essay but the focus will be on public protection(Simester and Sullivan, 2003). From another perspective the public gains greater protection from pollution. Moreover, there are likely to be fewer instances of the actus Reus when doing so is prohibited on a strict-liability basis, because the use of strict liability tends to encourage a higher level of precautions by potential defendants. As Lord Salmon stated : strict liability encourages riparian factory owners not only to take reasonable steps to prevent pollution but to do everything possible to ensure that they do not cause it Alphacell Ltd v. Woodward [1972]. Another case that reinforces this point is Donovan J, in St Margarets Trust Ltd [1958]. There would be little point in enacting that no one should breach the defenses against a flood, and at the same time excusing any one who did it innocently. The proposition that strict liability increases deterrence is implicit in one of the most common arguments given for abandoning a full mens rea requirement, that protection of the public sometimes requires a high standard of care on the part of those who undertake potential risk creating activities(Simester and Sullivan, 2003). There is however a dark side to the concept of strict liability. One of the main principles of criminal law is that a person should only be liable if they are at fault in some way, nevertheless imposition of strict liability contravenes this principle as people can be guilty of a criminal act whilst having no real fault. A case that illustrates this well is Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Storkwain Ltd 1986. Here a pharmacists conviction was upheld for supplying drugs without a valid prescription, even though he did not know the signature was forged. Strict liability then can be argued as an unjust method of enforcement for certain crimes, resulting in the innocent being labeled as the guilty(Simester and Sullivan, 2003). On a corporate perspective the need for effective regulation and prosecution of corporate defendants could alternatively be met by a negligence-based standard. Proof of negligence can be established without reference to the companys mental state, because negligence is based on conduct. It is, true that negligence necessitates that the prosecution establishes an actus reus by an employee that can be attributed to the company but the same constraint applies to strict liability, in finding who was strictly liable(Simester and Sullivan, 2003). References Roe, D. (2005) Criminal Law 3rd edition Schmalleger, Hall Dolatowski (2010). Criminal Law Today Simester and Sullivan, Criminal Law: Theory and Doctrine (2nd ed. , 2003) Simons, Kenneth( 1997). When is strict criminal liability just? Journal of Criminal Law Criminology. Chicago: Summer1997. Vol. 87, Iss. 4; pg. 1075, 63 pgs Smith and Hogan(1999). Criminal law cases and materials 7th edition (1999) Storey T. and Lidbury(2004) Criminal law

Gnostic Jesus Essays - Coptic Literature, Christology, Gnosticism

Gnostic Jesus Gnostic writings of Jesus portray him as a heavenly redeemer made less of flesh than of spirit. The emphasis of Jesus' importance is not on his physical humanness but rather, on his ability to show people the way to the kingdom. Jesus put on flesh in order to give people gnosis and reveal to them where they come from and where they will eventually return. When it is time for Jesus to return to his heavenly home, he is crucified and resurrected before he finally ascends. His body's lack of importance in some Gnostic texts gives this series of events a different connotation than other versions of the story more common today. The Gnostic understanding of Jesus gives us better knowledge of what will happen to us when we leave the body and world in which we are currently trapped. This understanding also gives us insights into the realm in which we belong. The lack of concern for the body is also connected with the Gnostic view that anything that happens on this earth or in this realm is i rrelevant. I will argue that the issue of flesh is very significant in some Gnostic views of Jesus, citing examples from selected Gnostic texts including, the Gospel of Thomas, the Second Treatise of the Great Seth, Hypostasis of the Archons, the Gospel of Mary, the Gospel of Truth, the Treatise on the Resurrection and the Hymn of the Pearl. Most Gnostic books show Christ to be of heavenly origin. The books either explicitly say that he is from the father and heaven above or imply it by saying that he descended into earth. He is part of the ?heavenly triad with the Father and the Mother?(Franzmann, 39). In the Second Treatise of the Great Seth, the author who is supposedly Christ says, I am from above the heavens (Ehrman, 231). He is also sometimes described as a heavenly light, I am the light which is above all of them: I am All. The All came forth from me and the All reached me (G of Th., v.77). Many people, however, look at Christ's incarnation in different ways. According to some Gnostic thought Christ comes to our earth and puts on Jesus' human body so that he may walk among us. I visited a bodily dwelling (Ehrman, 231). Some of the Gnostic writings show Jesus as an earthly being with a heavenly nature, while others show Jesus as a purely heavenly being with a lack of earthly context. In the Second Treatise of the Great Seth, Christ's incarnation was into Jesus' body in which he cast out the original occupier (Franzmann, 75). Christ's arrival on earth in the Gospel of Thomas is described in a docetistic way, I stood in the midst of the world, and I appeared to them in flesh (G. of Th, v.28). He is said to appear to them in flesh only in outward appearance (Franzmann, 78). The Gospel of Truth describes Jesus as a fruit of knowledge that when eaten gives people gnosis (Ehrman, 161). This Gnostic text shows Christ as a revealer. He is referred to as the book or logos, which reveals to us all that is unknown (Ehrman, 162). He put on the book, was nailed to a tree and published the edict of the father on the cross (Ehrman, 162). These actions say that by dying on the cross, which in this text is not in flesh, he is helping people receive gnosis. Many Gnostic views have implied a hatred of the body. The body is what is keeping people from realizing their origin (G. of Thomas, v.29). For Christ to have a human body seems strange because he has gnosis. Woe to the flesh which depends on the soul; woe to the soul which depends on the flesh (G of Th, v.112). According to the Hypostasis of the Archons, the body is just a shell for the spirit. Locked within the material shell of the human race is the spark of this highest spiritual reality which (as one Gnostic theory held) the inept creator accidentally infused into humanity at the creation -- on the order of a drunken jeweler who accidentally mixes gold