A Visit to Durham Cathedral
A World Heritage Site must be "An example of a type of building or
architectural ensemble." by the world heritage committee guidelines or
the international council on monuments and sites states it must be "A
building which is historically of the highest importance."
Durham fulfilled the criteria and was awarded the title world heritage
site in 1996. I believe Durham cathedral became a world heritage site
because it shows the earliest example of rib vaults and proto flying
buttresses outside of Italy. The cathedral is also of the highest
importance historically with both St.Cuthbert and the Venerable Bede
both buried there.
The cathedrals architecture is amongst the greatest in Europe if not
the world. It is essentially of the Romanesque an old Norman style
named due to its comparisons with the great building of the Roman
Empire. It has some gothic style, which was used by the 13th century.
It had wider more pointed arches and wider window.
The sheer size of the cathedral is amazing. When it was built the
builders didn't have any large machinery, cranes or metal scaffolding
and instead they were left with very basic rickety wooden scaffolding.
It took decades of hard work to build the cathedral.
The rib vaulting which is gothic in style was the first to be used
outside of Italy. It was used to create a great sense of height from
inside. The cathedral also has a great example of proto-flying
buttresses, which along with the transverse pointed arches are also
the earliest in England. Together they made the cathedral one of the
greatest in Europe.
I also believe the centre tower had a large part to play in the
cathedral becoming a world heritage site. It is a very tall building
to have been built with very basic tools and was used to point towards
God. It can be seen from almost everywhere in Durham.
The cathedral was built on top of a hill with a large meander of the
River Wear surrounding three sides of it and Durham castle protecting
Taller than the ancient pyramids in Egypt, large enough to hold the statue of liberty. 100 pounds of weightless stones, heavy enough to hold the Empire state building are the Great Cathedrals (PBS, 2011). Intrigued by the beauty in structure but puzzled by the very construction, without technology for building purposes has researchers mind wondering. In reference to the NOVA program, building of Gothic cathedral begin as a race of height, which over time this plan backfired because of the recent architectural discoveries in the foundation. The NOVA program pointed out that in this race of constructing the tallest building wasn’t the only concern between two rivalry cities in Europe; it purpose was recognized as a scared space for spiritual reasoning to bring ordinary someone closer to God (PBS, 2011).
For many the Cathedral is seen to indicate the grandeur and control of the Normans, who were able to build such monuments to their power despite having only recently conquered England. The precarious situation of being an recently instated alien power was even more pronounced in the north, where even the Anglo Saxon Kings had only had a superficial hold, arguably making the construction of Durham “one of the greatest Anglo-Norman achievements”. This so-called achievement is not restricted to architecture but also refers to the political developments which enabled the Normans to apparently gain enough control to do this within 30 years. However the study of Durham Cathedral alone cannot suffice to give a satisfactory outline of Norman politics and the achievements in Durham and must be put into the context of the region. Hence Durham Cathedral and all its powerful connotations can be argued to only be an anomaly to the reality of Norman England and its politics.
Carver provides an easy, visual outlook of the protagonist throughout the short story, which helps keep a better understanding during the simple yet intense experience. As the story continues, the protagonist enhances his mood as he aids Robert to visualizing a cathedral. This experience creates an impact on others because it is a great reason why one should never judge someone for something beyond their control. Also, helping someone, as Robert does for Bub, can be a life changing experience. Despite the blind man being physically blind, the husband is the one with the disability to see from someone else’s perspective.
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.
This cathedral was built during the Medieval Period for the worshipers of God. To this day pilgrims come to see the pure, Gothic cathedral. The massive cathedral seems to loom overhead as if a symbol of God watching over the worshippers that visit. The earlier church burned in 1194, it was rebuilt and has gained a much more appreciated and admirable character distinction, statuary, and stained glass. The distinct character of the thirteenth century was captured, through the “Age of Faith” period. The architecture is Gothic which was very popular in the 1200s. Gothic architects created a frame of support with columns and arches so that the walls no longer need to support the ceilings, but are freed up to hold windows. The Gothic structure allows for plenty of windows. Chartres has a significant collection of medieval stained glass, with over 150 early thirteenth century windows. The windows allowed sunlight to enter the dark, Gothic cathedral in order to highlight the story of Christ through the stained glass windows told throughout history to pilgrims alike. These windows create a spiritual and promising place for thought and prayer. Stained glass was used to help teach the stories of Christ to people that were illiterate during the medieval times. While most worshippers of that day were illiterate, comprehending the symbolism of the story of Christ in each of the windows was vital and gave meaning towards adversity during the medieval ages, as they struggled through their dark and dreary lives, which were filled with hopefulness, while viewing the story through the stained glass windows. The windows are also...
we are afraid of different thing in our lives, And one of them is is a fear of emptiness,so that makes people don’t feel the reality. And exactly like Bub ,Bub by being able to visualize he did not have the advantage to feel the true reality of anything in his life including himself.car is a good example,some people just see how a car look likes but other see what is beneath that massive piece of metal, and they are who enjoy the most out of a car because they truly understand how it works . so lets move on from cars and talk about Bub, from the begging Bub did not put hime self in Robert’s shoes to understand being blind is bad or good, he instantly thought about perspective of being blind in the movies ,as he said “his being blind bothered me. 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” (Carver 28) so thats a strong example of just visualizing rather than trying to understand the concept of being blind in grater depth . so when people are using this method to understand others around them they will start to fill the same thing about themselves too.which makes them to have a low self-esteem “My wife finally took her eyes off the blind man and looked at me. I had the feeling she didn't like what she saw. I shrugged” (Carver 31) someone say something like this about theme selves because they don’t know what they are capable of.when bub said “she did’t like what she saw.” (31) it was more like i did not like what i see in myself, because he thinks Robert is better than him and he cant be like Robert.this makes people weaker and weaker every day when they think this way about them selves.and then they want to forget about it beca...
The book Cathedral by Raymond Carver and The Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison have many similarities that make them unique because of the individuals living in similar homes with similar problems. Raymond and Dorothy both wrote about individuals either having a tough time or a good time, but soon turning to tragedy. These books speak a lot about the individual and how they overcome the problem that is set before them and how their house either helps them in their problem or not. It also shows which character the male or female is more determined to keep the relationship alive and burning.
“Cathedral” a short story by Raymond Carver shows how a visit from a blind man affects the lives of a married couple. The three main characters are the husband who is the narrator, the wife, and Robert. The husband is a close minded and cynical man who is upset because Robert is staying in his house because he does not know how to treat a blind man. The wife is a kind woman who has a closer relationship with Roberts than with her husband. Robert is a blind man who just lost her wife and is staying with his friend and her husband. In “Cathedral,” Raymond Carver uses symbolism to show the weakness and strengths of humans.
Carver’s the “Cathedral” to Hopper’s Ground Swell. The short story, “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver and the painting, Ground Swell by Edward Hopper, are similar in certain aspects, even though they take place in different settings. There is major conflict in each piece of art that creates confusion in the tone. The “Cathedral” is a first person story, but the narrator remains unnamed throughout the writing. This is a different point of view than the painting, which is first person, Ground Swell pictures individuals on a sailboat looking at a buoy floating in the ocean.
The short story of the “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver shows the narrator as the main character of the story whose name is never mentioned. The narrator’s wife’s name is never mentioned as well, and her friend who is a blind man is coming to visit after losing his wife whose name is Robert. In the beginning of the story, the narrator shows that he is an excessive drinker and feels emotionally disconnected from his wife and his wife is excited about her friends visit, Robert. This kind of emotion makes him uneasy but doesn’t know why and because he knows that Robert is blind, he feels like he is better than him. Imagine having to meet a long time old friend of your spouse of the opposite sex who they a special friendship with and whom you haven’t
The story is about a blind man who visits a married couple. He is an old friend of the wife, but the husband does not look forward to see the blind man (called Robert) because he does not know what to expect. He has never known any blind persons and his picture of these is based on a very little foundation. He has a lot of prejudices against Robert, but during his visit he changes his opinion about him. While watching TV together they get each other to know better and the husband finds out that he actually likes his company. They watch a program about cathedrals and while talking about cathedrals, Robert says that he does not even know how a cathedral looks like. The husband tries to explain what a cathedral is and how it is built, but Robert does not understand it. Therefore he suggests that they can draw one together. In that way Robert gets a picture of a cathedral in his mind and even though it is not as good as seeing it with his own eyes, it is good enough to give him an idea of what a cathedral is.
Parker Camp St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Savannah versus Chartres Cathedral Comparison Essay Thesis: Both St. John the Baptist Cathedral and Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Chartres are constructed in French Gothic style which means that architecturally they have many similarities. However, the 700 year gap between their construction offers St. John the Baptist more flexibility in design and style. Still, their likeness and variations extend far beyond the realm of their design. Fall 2014
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high what's more, late medieval period. It developed from Romanesque structural planning and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture. Originating in 12th-century in France and lasting into the 16th century. Gothic cathedrals resulted from additions to a Romanesque church. The desire to enrich an earlier church was a strong motivation behind Gothic cathedral building. Numerous Romanesque holy places were crushed to clear a path for a cathedral in the new style. As a result, the majority of cathedrals in Europe are Gothic
In the 1500’s an Italian named Giorgio Vasari coined the term as an insult to the French for their new way of building churches. The Germanic tribes in France had developed some new ideas on building churches so the Italians teased them for not using the traditional Greek architecture, which was ironic because part of the Goths “new” ideas was a return to realism and naturalism that the Romanesque style had abandoned.
The windows were of stained glass showing bible stories and saints lives in them, And the design structure enabled cathedrals to rise higher than ever. It even became a contest for architects – who could build a cathedral as tall as possible. A cross shape was used for windows allowing crossbowmen to shoot attackers from the inside, and a cross plan was also used for the shape of a cathedral as seen from a bird’s eye view.