In Raymond Carver’s short story “Cathedral”, the narrator’s characteristics and traits are displayed through various forms of linguistics and general speech. An example of this is when the narrator first begins to give us an understanding of who the blind man is by telling us that “[he]claiming, “I wasn’t enthusiastic about [the blind man’s] his visit. [The blind man] He was no one [he kI Knew. And his being blind bothered [the narrator]me”. (86). In these linesthis phrase from the text, Carver has established set a base personality for the narrator in order to demonstrate his close-mindedness and arrogance. Readers gain an understanding of this when presented with the narrator’s thoughts, such as, “[a]nd his being blind bothered me”.(86) As …show more content…
the story progresses, these traits are displayed in greater detail when the narrator is hesitant to allow begins to show hesitance in regards to allowing the blind man to enter his home, he states, “now this same blind man was coming to sleep in my house. ‘“[m]aybe I could take him bowling,’” [he] said to [his] wife” (87), reactions such as this display the narrator’s feelings of being ‘invaded’. He also demonstrates sarcasm when speaking of the blind man in an attempt to belittle him, an example of his belittling sarcasm would be when the narrator implies that, “[m]aybe [he] could take him bowling.” (87) The blind man obviously cannot go bowling, due to the fact that vision plays a key role in the sport. After the blind man finally arrives at the household, relations between the narrator and the blind man begin to evolve slowlyin a slow manner, but is made apparent by small things. An example of this is when the narrator claims, “[t]he blind man let go of his suitcase and up came his hand. I took it. He squeezed hard, held my hand, and then he let it go. “I feel like we’ve already met,” He boomed” (89), by shaking the blind man’s hand, the narrator has taken the first step in progressing their relationship. With the blind man finally being ‘welcomed’ into the home, the narrator displays characteristical changes by holding his tongue instead of boasting his opinion, most likely in an effort to not anger his wife with a guest present, regardless of his reasoning, the narrator begins to show restraint when he “started to say something about the old sofa.
But [he] didn’t say anything.”(89) Instead, the narrator substitutes this ‘lash’ remark with small talk, stating “Then I wanted to say something else, small talk, about the scenic ride along the Hudson.” (89) The narrator fails in his attempt to keep the mood between him and his wife subtle, by mindlessly making small talk with the blind man, “Did you have a good train ride?” [he] Said. “Which side of the train did you sit on, by the way?” (89) His wife responds in place of the blind man in a sarcastic tone, remarking, “What a question, which side” [she] said. “What’s it matter which side?” She said.” (89) Although the narrator has displayed persistence in keeping smart remarks towards his wife at bay, he is still very critical of the blind man, but in a more mundane manner than when they were first introduced. The narrator’s criticisms begin to turn from outwardly rude to being more curious. The narrator demonstrates this by stating, “But he didn't use a cane and he didn't wear dark glasses. I’d always thought dark glasses were a must for the blind. Fact was, I wished he had a pair”. As we can see, the narrator still …show more content…
displays arrogance towards Robert, the blind man, but he is just being critical of his appearance, rather than wishing he wasn't in his home. The Narrator even begins to show slight hospitality towards Robert when he insists, “Let me get you a drink. What’s your pleasure? We have a little of everything. It’s one of our pastimes”. (90) By offering Robert a drink, the narrator further progresses the relationship by sharing one of his ‘pastimes’ with him. As the night progresses, the three talk and continue to drink until the wife finally goes to bed.
With Robert and the narrator left awake, the narrator takes the final step in progressing their relationship by asking, “if he wanted to smoke some dope with [him].” (92) The narrator changes from being intensely critical of Robert: “Now this same blind man was coming to sleep in my house”,(87) to offering him, “a drink. What's your pleasure”, (90) and finally offering him, “to smoke some dope with [him]”, (92) which in most cases is extremely illegal, therefore showing the importance and trust of this gesture towards Robert. The story ends with the narrator’s worldview being changed in a major way as Robert and the narrator share an enlightening moment together, and the narrator blooms into a new perspective of life when he states, “[m]y eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like i was inside anything”. (97) In perspective, the narrator is claiming that even though his eyes were physically open when he first met Robert, he didn't truly view the blind-man with open eyes. Instead, he demonstrated arrogance and belittled him with ideas such as the, “thought [that] dark glasses were a must for the blind”. (90) As the story closes, the narrator physically closes his eyes, only to find that a new metaphorical perspective has been brought into fruition, allowing him to view the Robert with ‘new’
eyes.
Raymond Carver’s short story “Cathedral” opens with a narrator whose wife has invited a blind friend to spend the night. The narrator depersonalizes the man right off the bat and repeatedly throughout the story by referring to him, not by name, but as “the blind man” (Carver 513). He admits that hi...
The close outside friendship between the narrator’s wife and Robert, the blind man, provokes the narrator’s insecurities. This friendship has lasted for ten long years. During those years, they have exchanged countless voice tapes wherein they both tell each other what has happened in their respective lives. Because of this, the narrator feels that his wife has told Robert more than Robert needs to know. The narrator laments, "she told him everything or so it seemed to me" (1054). The narrator’s fear is somehow confirmed when Robert arrives and says that he feels like they have already met (1055). The narrator is left wondering what his wife has disclosed. This murky situation leaves the narrator feeling insecure, especially when he sees the warm interaction between his wife and Robert.
The short story, “Cathedral,” by Raymond Carver, is about a blind man who changes the way the narrator views life by giving him some insight on how he sees things. The characters in this short story are constantly developing into better versions of themselves by sharing their insights with one another.
The narrator is not only insensitive, but ignorant as well. His beliefs about the blind are based on only what he has seen in the movies. He believes that the blind are led by seeing eye dogs, wear sunglasses, carry walking sticks, and move very slowly. Robert does none of these things, much to the narrator's surprise. When Robert lights a cigarette, the narrator is surprised.
In the story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver, the main character, goes through a major personal transformation. At the beginning of the story, his opinions of others are filled with stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice. Through interaction with his wife's blind friend Robert, his attitude and outlook on life changes. Although at first he seemed afraid to associate with a blind man, Robert's outgoing personality left him with virtually no choice. During Robert's visit, he proved to be a normal man, and showed the speaker that by closing his eyes, he could open his mind.
The narrator in Raymond Carver’s "Cathedral" is not a particularly sensitive man. I might describe him as self-centered, superficial, and egotistical. And while his actions certainly speak to these points, it is his misunderstanding of the people and the relationships presented to him in this story which show most clearly his tragic flaw: while Robert is physically blind, it is the narrator who cannot clearly see the world around him.
In Raymond Carver's "Cathedral," the husband's view of blind men is changed when he encounters his wife's long time friend, Robert. His narrow minded views and prejudice thoughts of one stereotype are altered by a single experience he has with Robert. The husband is changed when he thinks he personally sees the blind man's world. Somehow, the blind man breaks through all of the husband's jealousy, incompetence for discernment, and prejudgments in a single moment of understanding.
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.
He didn’t like the fact that his wife had a new friend that was going to stay with them and he felt threatened by their closeness. He selfishly says, “ I wasn’t enthusiastic about his visit. He was no one I knew. And his being blind bothered me” (Cathedral 86). He clearly didn’t have compassion for that fact that Robert was disabled and that his wife had just died. All he cared about was his own feelings and his own relationship with his wife. He also had the nerve to go on and say, “ My idea of blindness came from the movies. In the movies, the blind moved slowly and never laughed. Some times they were led by Seeing Eye dogs. A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to” (Cathedral 86). He was clearly uninformed and biases when it came to people with disabilities or people that were different from him. He didn’t look at the situation as an opportunity to get to see something different and learn but to complain for pretty much the entire short
In the story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver, it tells of how a blind man is open to new experiences and how he views the world compared to the husband (narrator) who is blinded by the material things of life. The husband is given the gift of sight but the true gift comes from seeing the cathedral. At the beginning of the story, the husband’s outlook on others is filled with stereotypes, discrimination, insecurities and prejudice. After interacting with Robert, his wife's friend, his outlook begins to change significantly.
In Raymond Carver’s story, “Cathedral,” the story tells of how a close outside relationship can threaten a marriage by provoking insecurities, aggravating communication barriers, and creating feelings of invasion of privacy. The husband in the story is given the gift of seeing the cathedral through a blind man’s eyes. Although the title suggests that the story is about a cathedral, it is really about two men who come together and share a vision and realize it is he who is blind. As the story begins, the character of the husband has a negative personality. He lacks compassion, is narrow-minded, and is jealous of his wife’s friendship with a blind man named Robert.
Throughout the majority of the story Carver uses a variety of devices to portray the narrator negatively. One reason is that he lacks compassion. At the beginning of the story he says, "I wasn?t enthusiastic about his [the blind man?s] visit. He [the blind man] was no one I knew. And his [the blind man] being blind bothered me."
...ry there are many instances in which the narrator seems to dislike Robert, in which case it is because he is “blind”. Not only is he blinded in the way that he cannot understand Robert, but it leads him to believe that Robert is not human at all because of his disability that he possess. The narrator develops with the aid of Robert, to see Robert as an actual human being. Raymond Carver gives the narrator a transformation through characterization as well as the aid of Robert to show his development and progression throughout the story.
The husband in Raymond Carvers “Cathedral” wasn’t enthusiastic about his wife’s old friend, whom was a blind man coming over to spend the night with them. His wife had kept in touch with the blind man since she worked for him in Seattle years ago. He didn’t know the blind man; he only heard tapes and stories about him. The man being blind bothered him, “My idea of blindness came from the movies. In the movies, the blind moved slowly and never laughed. Sometimes they were led by seeing-eye dogs. A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to. (Carver 137)” The husband doesn’t suspect his ideas of blind people to be anything else. The husband is already judging what the blind man will be like without even getting to actually know him. It seems he has judged too soon as his ideas of the blind man change and he gets a better understanding of not only the blind man, but his self as well.
Raymond Carver, in his short story Cathedral uses a first-person narrator, whose point of view is very much limited and flawed. The narrator in Cathedral has full use of all his senses, unlike the blind man, Robert, who is introduced very early in the story. When comparing the two again, however, Robert is the character that is open to new ideas and willing to experience the joys of life, while the narrator limits himself due to his close-minded thinking. It brings up the question, who is truly blind in the story? Is it a physical ailment or a mental block? The narrator is never given a name in the story, making him the most impersonal character in the story. This also adds to the fact that the narrator is highly ignorant about his surroundings and has a one-sided, self-absorbed view of the world. The perception of the narrator leaves much to be inferred in many points in the story, and at first, it seems pointless to have such a closed off character and the one telling his point of view. I would like to hear the story from the wife’s point of view or Robert’s. Ultimately, however, the limited point of view of the narrator shows where the true ignorance in the world lies.