The Blind Man In Raymond Carvers Cathedral - 701 Words

Raymond Carver’s short story â€Å"Cathedral† shows the interaction of two men, one physically blind and one prejudiced, with contrasting personalities. Overall, the story illustrates how having a closed mind is much more debilitating than permanently closed eyes. Carver tends to revolve his stories around the bleak lives of middle class members and the situations they face; this could be due to his personal life as an alcoholic, who struggled to support his family. â€Å"Cathedral† embodies certain aspects of his personal life and makes the story appear more genuine. Carver successively conveys the theme of looking versus actually seeing in â€Å"Cathedral† through point of view and symbolism. Carver’s decision to write â€Å"Cathedral† in first person†¦show more content†¦When she showed her husband a poem she wrote, he said â€Å"In the poem, she talked about what she had felt at the time†¦I can remember I didnt think much o f the poem† (page 35). These poems represent the important times in her life, and his indifferent treatment of the works as something trivial shows that he has trouble connecting to his wife on a deeper level. While he can not give more than a passing thought to his wife’s literary art, he believes the blind man’s wife, Beulah, is the unlucky one. The husband said of Beulah, â€Å"I found myself thinking what a pitiful life this woman must have led† all because her husband could never look at her (page 37). He becomes fixated on how unhappy Beulah must have been, because he does not consider that there are any satisfying qualities in someone who can not see. His narrow-minded attitude is clear in his discussion of his wife compared to the blind man’s wife. Since the point of view comes from the husband, his transition from merely looking at Robert to seeing him as human is highlighted. When Robert first arrives, the speaker is only focused on the ph ysical aspect of the man, instead of his personality. One of the first remarks he makes about his guest upon his arrival is that, â€Å"He didnt use a cane and he didnt wear dark glasses. I had always thought dark glasses were a must for the blind† (page 38). He was shocked that Robert did not resemble the blind personShow MoreRelatedThe Lives and Works of Raymond Carver1692 Words   |  7 Pagesstyle of writing, Raymond Carver has left a lasting and outstanding impact on the history of short stories. Even though Raymond Carver left a long impact, his life was of the opposite. Like Raymond Carver’s famous award winning stories, his life was short. Raymond Carver was born on May 25th, 1938 in Clatskanie, Oregon, a mill town on the Columbia River. Carver grew up in Yakima, Washington. Carver had three members to his small family, his mother, his father, and brother. Carver’s only had one siblingRead More`` Cathedral `` By Raymond Carver992 Words   |  4 Page s â€Å"Cathedral† is a short story that was written by Raymond Carver in 1981. 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But within these similarities there are alsoRead More Raymond Carvers A Small Good Thing Essay example842 Words   |  4 PagesRaymond Carvers A Small Good Thing Raymond Carvers A Small Good Thing, a short story that has to do with the lack of interaction and empathy between the baker, Ann and Howard, the finale where the baker is startled to find out about the childs death, asks for mercy and presents them warm cinnamon rolls telling them that Eating is a small, good thing in a time like this and they are comforted, reveals particular significance of the title in terms of the storys theme. Also, Raymond CarversRead MoreAnalysis Of Raymond Carver s Cathedral 1340 Words   |  6 PagesRaymond Carver’s characters were considered to be very much like him: â€Å"’on the edge: of poverty, alcoholic self-destruction, loneliness† (Mays 32). His short story â€Å"Cathedral† is about a young couple, who have a visitor coming to stay with them. This visitor, Robert, is the wife’s friend, and he is blind. The narrator, the husband, has never met someone who is blind, was bothered by that. To him, being blind meant co nstantly needing help from others. His depiction of blindness was what he has seenRead MoreAlcohol and Marijuana in Catherdral by Raymond Carver Essay963 Words   |  4 Pagesefforts from imposed laws: people feel the need to consume these substances and encage in behaviors out of the ordinary. Drugs and alcohol are used in the story â€Å"Cathedral† but also they are used in Raymond Carver’s personal life. Carver began drinking heavily in 1967 and was repeatedly hospitalized for alcoholism in the 1970’s. Carver’s minimum wage jobs, the demand of parenting and the need to bring money home led to his addiction to alcohol. Alcohol became a problem because carver was saddledRead More Blind Faith in Raymond Carvers Cathedral Essay920 Words   |  4 PagesBlind Faith in Raymond Carvers Cathedral      Ã‚   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 wifes blind friend Robert, his attitude and outlook on life changes.   Although at first he seemed afraid to associate with a blind man, Roberts outgoing personality left him with virtually noRead MoreAnalysis Of Raymond Carver Cathedral1260 Words   |  6 PagesRaymond Carver is often known for his writing style known as minimalism, a style that often uses short phrases or sentences that convey a great amount of meaning. Carver’s â€Å"Cathedral† is full of minimalism, whether it be short and repetitive dialogue or brief thoughts that go through the narrators mind. These intentionally precise sentences are full of meaning, whether it be the importance of communication, or the lack of, the underlying tone s of death and jealously, or even the psychological connectionRead MoreCharacter Analysis Of Raymond Carver s Cathedral 1426 Words   |  6 PagesCharacter Analysis in Raymond Carver’s â€Å"Cathedral†: The Narrator Literature has the potential to act as a mirror by presenting people’s lived experiences, expectations, and perceptions through characters. Such is what can be deciphered through the analysis of different characters in Raymond Carver’s story â€Å"Cathedral.† This paper focuses on the narrator of the story portrayed by the author as blind, which is used metaphorically not to imply physical blindness, but the inability to have reasoned