Many people take the act of seeing for granted and don’t realize the dazzling sights surrounding them. Caught up in our own preoccupations of life, we usually miss what is happening around us. The author Annie begins with an anecdote from her childhood. She writes of how her impulse and curious compulsions led her to see new perspectives of the world. Followed by her explanation of how people hardly care to take their time and embrace the things right in front of them. There are free surprises and unwrapped gifts, as the author states, that many pass by everyday. Seeing was not the only way she experienced new perspectives. Annie goes on to tell of sitting in the darkness to feel and hear what is going on around her. Blindness was another …show more content…
way of being oblivious to what is happening, unintentionally of course, but it was a different perspective that many people obtained. Annie Dillard’s 1974 article “Seeing” persuades the reader to take a break, slow down, and consider what is actually occurring. In the article “Seeing”, Annie begins with her childhood when she was about six or seven years of age.
Her curious compulsions pushed her to take a penny every now and then to hid it along the sidewalk. To hid the penny, she would put it in an unexpected spot that people wouldn’t normally find a penny. After the precious penny was hidden, she would take a piece of chalk to draw huge arrows leading to the coin. Annie thought of this as, “a free gift from the universe.” (Dillard, 1) Impulses would tug at her feelings to hide another penny occasionally. The impulses she felt began to make her think about the act of seeing. “There are lots of things to see, unwrapped gifts and free surprises.” (Dillard, 1) Annie is stating there are free gifts all around, not just the ones that people leave for others, but the surprises that the world hands to you. The world has many sights to see. Free surprises such as simply seeing a flock of birds fly in formation and how they rely on each other is just one gift that the world hands you. In the article Annie Dillard writes that what you see is what you will …show more content…
get. We see what we expect at times but it goes beyond the visual. For instance when you sit outside in the dark to listen and feel the things happening around you. This is the first type of not seeing completely with the naked eye that Annie experiences. “I saw only a cylindrical sleekness. Head and tail, if there was a head and tail, were both submerged in cloud I saw only one ebony fling, a headlong dive to darkness; then the waters closed, and the lights went out.” (Dillard, 4) In this quote, the author expects the object that had a cylindrical sleekness to be some sort of animal taking a dip in the creek. Annie cannot fully see what is happening around her, but she still expects what the subject is. She can hear the splash of the water and she can feel the world spinning when she sits with her eyes closed. Allowing herself to explore the darkness is to be submerged into a new perspective. “In general the newly sighted see the world as a dazzle of color-patches. They are pleased by the sensation of color, and learn quickly to name the colors, but the rest of seeing is tormentingly difficult.” (Dillard, 6) The author proceeds to tell about blind patients and their sense of perception after operations are successful. This quotes expresses just how some people see beyond the visual. When the patients were blind, they had no idea of how certain objects were meant to look. They had their own ways of seeing by feeling the objects. Touching things and people was how they saw the world. The patient’s prior to their operations knew how certain objects felt. But, when being shown the objects after surgery they could not recall what it was until they felt it with their hands. Many would close their eyes and touch all over the objects set in front of them because it was how they used to see. There are several ways in which our perceptions of our world is the product of our preconceived and inherited notions.
Perceptions of our world mainly comes from our experiences of reality. Different ways of perceptions come into play in certain situations. When people are born blind, they perceive the world in a different way compared to people born with full vision. When some people are born blind and get operations done so that they can see, the patient’s perceptions change drastically. They do not have the sense of perceptions they should have when visually observing objects. “no idea of depth, confusing it with roundness.”(Dillard, 6) This particular quote is from a patient who had been operated on. Many patient’s had no clue whatsoever of what they were seeing. Height, distance, and size were meaningless conceptions. Annie Dillard also writes in her article that the artificial obvious is hard to see.”I once spent a full three minutes looking at a bullfrog that was so unexpectedly large I couldn’t see it even though a dozen enthusiastic campers were shouting directions.” (Dillard, 2) This quote specifically expresses how our perceptions of our world leads to the preconceived notions of how certain things in life should look. Looking back, I can recall one specific situation in which I had misunderstood due to me seeing what I expected. I have seen and observed many trees throughout my teenage years of life. Around three to four years ago, my parents and I took a trip to
Hawaii and met up with some of our family members. While driving along the roads of Hawaii, I was mesmerized by the scenery and trees. There were many tall palm trees, colorful eucalyptus trees, and some very broad trees along the landscapes. We stopped off at our hotel to unload the car and get ready to go exploring nature. Several minutes after getting our travel bags packed, we went walking along the palm trees. I took my camera with me to capture our adventurous travels. All of the sudden we came across a tree I had never seen before. The leaves of this particular tree looked like any other. Although, what was unique about this tree was the trunk, or should I say trunks of this tree. It looked as if various trees had merged together into one. It was very unexpected to see such an abnormal characteristic of a tree. I had studied trees before and this tree, which is called a Banyon tree, stunned me when I looked up at it. The tree branches grow out of the tree normally, yet they have areas that grow back into the ground. I had expected to see various trees that I had been introduced to before, but what I thought was misunderstood. Thumbing through Annie Dillard’s article on seeing along with perceptions directs me to believe that expectations come from experiences. Being human, we usually see what we expect even if our perceptions of the world are not accurate. Certain experiences lead many people to believing their preconceived notions how of thing look and work. Expectations come from knowing a specific way of the world and not knowing any different. Exploring the various ways of sight is important for being able to understand the depths of perceptions and what to expect. The second chapter from Annie Dillard’s book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, she does a phenomenal job showing the ways that humans perceive the world. She examines the various forms of sight. She not only writes about the ways of seeing; for she speaks of thinking, feeling, and various experiences. She thoroughly explores the act of observation, visual and nonvisual when writing about the multiple ways
In the short story “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver, the narrator, Bub, is as metaphorically blind as his guest, Robert, is literally blind. Bub has many unwarranted misconceptions about life, blind people in particular. He also has many insecurities that prevent him from getting too close to people. Through his interaction with Robert, Bub is able to open his mind and let go of his self-doubt for a moment and see the world in a different light.
In the short story Cathedral, by Raymond Carver, there is a direct contrast between a blind man named Robert, and the narrator. The narrator has full use of his senses, and yet he is limited to the way he sees things, and the way he thinks. Robert however, has a very different outlook on life and how he sees things, as well as the use of his senses. At the end of the story, Robert has the narrator close his eyes to try and get him to experience the world the way he does. The narrator ends up being able to not only see the way Robert does, but he also is able to feel the world in a completely different way. The author suggests that the mind is most important in how people view things, and the judgements we make are based on what we see in our heads, instead of what is really there.
Within Oliver Sacks, “To See and Not See”, the reader is introduced to Virgil, a blind man who gains the ability to see, but then decides to go back to being blind. Within this story Sacks considers Virgil fortunate due to him being able to go back to the life he once lived. This is contrasted by Dr. P, in “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat”, Sacks states that his condition is “tragic” (Sacks, “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat (13) due to the fact that his life will be forever altered by his condition. This thought process can be contributed to the ideas that: it is difficult to link physical objects and conceptualized meanings without prior experience, the cultures surrounding both individuals are different, and how they will carry on with their lives.
From one end, what we see right away tends to be the natural obvious. We notice these things right away because they are in plain sight and we are used to seeing them every day without thinking or analyzing what we perceive. For example, the grass is green and the sky is blue. Dillard speaks of a time where she saw a frog and because of the surroundings it was in and its appearance it was hard for her to recognize it for what it was. Dillard described, “I once spent a full three minutes looking at a bullfrog that was so unexpectedly large I couldn’t see it even though a dozen enthusiastic campers were shouting directions… When at last I picked out the frog, I saw what pain...
By becoming close with Robert, the man in this story experienced what was necessary to gain an understanding of what life is like for the blind. The man began to draw the cathedral to try and help Robert visualize what one looked like. What he didn't realize at the time was that Robert was helping him to visualize what blindness felt like. Bibliography: Carver, Raymond. "Cathedral".
In Raymond Carver’s story “Cathedral” the narrator learns what it means to “see” through someone who cannot. To see is to be able to view the things around us while putting aside preconceived notions or fear about these objects or people. In order for this to occur once must overcome what they feel is out of the ordinary and learn to accept things as they are. At first the narrator is doesn’t accept the man and uncomfortable around Robert. The narrator soon comes to understand this when he puts aside his fears, and judgments that he can see more than what meets the eye, and the freedom that comes along with this seeing.
In her essay “Seeing”, Annie Dillard focuses on showing how different people have different perceptions. Dillard gives multiple examples to support her main idea, which is that preconceived and inherited notions influence our perceptions. Dillard discusses the different ways of seeing, how people with different backgrounds have different experiences with seeing, and many more. While Dillard’s idea about perceptions is definitely relevant and accurate, but are certainly not complete as there are multiple things that influence our perceptions.
We adopt a larger view of the world and its inhabitants, by realizing that there is much, much more than what meets the eye.
Many people in the world get into an almost unbreakable routine, shielding themselves from the real world. We wake up, brush our teeth, go to school with the same people, go home, and do it all over again. Once there is a roadblock in the way, it forces us to step outside our shell and look at others views for a change. American mythologist, writer, and lecturer,Joseph Campbell once said,”We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.” It is the act of noticing others words and actions that will reshape our lives for the better. In “Secret Samantha” and “Sol Painting, Inc.” the authors suggest that observing someone else’s perspective and taking the time to understand others can be mankind's greatest
In Raymond Carver?s ?Cathedral?, the conventional ideas often associated with blindness and sight are challenged. By juxtaposing his two male characters, Carver is able to effectively explore sight and its seemingly simplistic relationship with learning and knowledge. As well, he addresses the barriers imposed by the human tendency to rely on vision as the sole means of experiencing the world.
...thedral together, so the husband got paper bag and a pen to draw on. They began drawing and after a few minutes, the blind man asked the husband to close his eyes and keep drawing. The husband felt different than he’d ever felt in his life. He kept his eyes closed when the blind man told him to open them and look, the husband replied, “It’s really something. (Carver 147)” The husband never thought he would have the experience he did with the blind man, as they basically became friends. The husband’s view of a blind person had changed. He saw life from a blind man’s perspective and actually appreciated it. Never judge a book by its cover, as you have no idea what may be inside of it.
Vision is something many people take for granted every day. Society only deals with the matter of being blind if they are the less fortunate ones. According to the Braille Institute, "every seven minutes a person in the United States loses their sight, often as part of the aging process" (1). Only two percent of legally blind people use a guide dog and thirty-five percent use a white cane. Blindness can be caused from various different types of things including (in order) age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and age-related cataracts. (Braille 1). However being blind does not mean a person is in total darkness. Some people can see lights and the shapes of objects, but the most import thing is for family and friends to provide hope and encouragement. The last thing a person who has lost their sight wants is to lose their family and support, which will led to loneliness. Likewise, in the short story "Cathedral," by Raymond Carver's, blindness is the key element in the story and shows in detail how the characters manage it. The theme Carver conveys in the short story is being able to see without sight and is revealed through the characters, tone and plot of the story.
In today’s society, people are more concerned with their own “little world,” rather than looking at the extensive perspective of life. One reason why people can sometimes be classified as being “blind” is because people fear the unknown, and rejects the unfamiliar. Many people are not comfortable with stepping out of their shell and exploring their surroundings, let alone trying to look through the eyes of the segregated minority. In the novel Blindness, Jose Saramago metaphorically uses the word “blindness” as a term meaning, the truth that we cannot bear to see. To avoid the outside world, many people tend to shelter themselves from the obvious reality, and tend to focus of their “own” meaning of reality.
Anthony Doerr’s award winning novel, All the Light We Cannot See allows the reader to see into the lives of Marie-Laure LeBlanc and Werner Pfennig. Despite their age and geographical distance, these two kids are insightful and curious about the world around them, and are discovering and learning how to handle situations beyond their control. The theme of sight and the lack there of is a key idea presented within the novel. The idea of sight and losing sight of insight, intertwines the lives of Werner and Marie-Laure, even though they have not met, because they share similar experiences as they face new challenges.
Visual perception plays a big part on how we perceive life. If we didn't have perception I don't know where we would be now.