Blindness In Raymond Carver's Cathedral

648 Words2 Pages

On the surface, blindness gets treated just like any other major disability in our culture. However, the absence of the common ability to see can be exceptionally polarizing for both the blind and the sighted person involved. Eyesight is an exceedingly fundamental and uniting gift that has drastically shaped the way humans perceive the world and continually shape their every thought. Regrettably, this can sometimes characterize blind people as being somewhat alien to some people. They lack one of the most basic forms of common ground on which to relate. For some people, this can be an uncomfortable barrier, while others will immediately accept and cherish their company without a second thought. These are precisely the two contrasted reactions depicted in Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral”. …show more content…

Most people find the concept of being blind to nearly impossible to comprehensively fathom. Nowhere in the story does the narrator explain if Robert was either born blind or if he lost his sight somewhere during his lifetime, but either case would be an eerie and unthinkable scenario. It can be chilling to imagine living a life without ever seeing a color, light, or even your own mother’s smile. Remarkably basic privileges like being able to walk into a room instantly knowing where everything is could be something a blind person never experiences. These profound discrepancies in lifestyle and general perception can make certain people, such as the narrator, severely uncomfortable around blind people. Throughout most the story, there is a noticeable stiff and poignant atmosphere as the narrator struggles to find any commonality with this peculiar blind man in his

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