Prejudices in Cathedral by Raymond Carver

1259 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay on the effect of marital conflict

Is intimacy with one person sufficient? The answer is no. In life, we must have several relationships on all levels. It is not to say that we should go out and have affairs behind our loved ones, but we should make personal connections with others to help us grow intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally. Otherwise, we remain static showing little development in ourselves. In Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral”, the narrator fails to see this point and thus becomes jealous of his wife who has a strong emotional connection with a blind man. “Cathedral” presents life in a subtle yet harsh manner and teaches us to open our eyes to better ourselves; as a result, reflection of reality lends to the literary strength of the short story. Carver demonstrates the inevitable controversy when society is confronted with abnormality but also what happens if we learn to reject our prejudices through the use of conflict, irony, and symbolism.
Carver sets “Cathedral” in an early 1980s middle class suburban house. In this time period, authors including Carver wrote about the heartbreaks, frustrations, and the harsh realities of middle class life. This type of writing was known as “dirty realism”. Carver’s minimalist style of writing is very similar to Ernest Hemmingway’s in the sense that it contains mostly actions and sometimes comedic dialogue. The reader is left to analyze and infer what are the characters’ emotions and thoughts. The couple speaks in everyday language, making it easy for the reader to follow along. Much like Hemmingway’s “Hills like White Elephants”, readers are able to discern that there are troubles beneath the surface of their relationship. Both couples in these stories have trouble communicating and fixing their core issues ...

... middle of paper ...

...y through certain kinds of art” (“Catharsis”), which perfectly describes what has happened with the narrator.
The narrator’s growth and change is a testament to the literary strength of Carver’s “Cathedral”. It truly demonstrates what Carver wanted by “believing in miracles and the possibility of resurrection” (Messer 58). The blind man left a gift that is priceless; the gift of sight. The narrator can know distinguish between looking versus seeing and hearing versus listening. “Cathedral” is not just a narrative but rather something to inspire us to improve on ourselves. We are left with a certain measure of beauty and truth because these problems of ignorance and prejudices within the narrator have been resolved. It suggests to readers that we hold back our own prejudices and seek to connect with others on various levels in order to enrich and develop ourselves.

Show More
Related

  • Threatening Relationships in Carver’s Cathedral

    1231 Words  | 3 Pages

    Although many critics have written numerous accounts of Richard Carver’s "Cathedral" as being about revelation and overcoming prejudice, they have overlooked a very significant aspect: the unfolding of marital drama. The story tells of how a close outside friendship can threaten marriage by provoking insecurities, creating feelings of invasion of privacy, and aggravating communication barriers.

    Read More

  • Literary Devices in Carver's Cathedral

    1505 Words  | 4 Pages

    Upon reading Raymond Carver's short story of the Cathedral one will notice the literary devices used in the short story. When analyzing the story completely, one then understands the themes, motifs, metaphors, and the overall point of the piece. This leaves the reader with an appreciation of the story and a feeling of complete satisfaction.

    Read More

  • Blind Faith in Raymond Carver's Cathedral

    914 Words  | 2 Pages

    Carver, Raymond. "Cathedral." The Harper Anthology of Fiction. Ed. Sylvan Barnet. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. 1052-1062.

    Read More

  • Lack of Vision in Carver's Cathedral

    1250 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Symbolism In Raymond Carver's 'Cathedral'

    634 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...l of open-mindedness. “Cathedral” concerns the change in one man’s understanding of himself and the world. From the start of the story the narrator is restricted in his understanding to accept the blind man just as his wife has. He cannot fully wrap around the idea of what makes Robert so special. Until, that is, that the narrator starts drawing the cathedral which starts off as a house almost, and expands into something grander. This short story allows us to realize that the world is greater and further detailed than what we consider it in our confined minds. And that in fact we should never assume that there is nothing more to what the eye can see. It simply states that we shouldn’t form an opinion on someone or something based only on what you see on the exterior, because usually after taking the time to explore, the person or thing will not be what you expected.

    Read More

  • Raymond Carver's Cathedral

    1088 Words  | 3 Pages

    Raymond Carver utilizes his character of the husband, who is also the narrator, in his short story "Cathedral." From the beginning of the story the narrator has a negative personality. He lacks compassion, has a narrow mind, is detached emotionally from others, and is jealous of his wife's friendship with a blind man named Robert. He never connects with anyone emotionally until the end of this story.

    Read More

  • The Blind Husband in Carver’s Cathedral

    856 Words  | 2 Pages

    The short story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver is about a woman who has a blind friend who comes to visit her and her husband. Although the husband has, technically, normal vision he is in the beginning of this story the one who is "blind." Through the husband’s words and actions when he is dealing with Robert, the blind man, we can see that the husband does not "see" or understand what Robert’s blindness means or how it changes or does not change him as a human being. At first Robert makes the husband very uncomfortable, for the husband does not know what to say or do around the blind visitor. As the story progresses, we can see a change in the husband; he seems to be able to see Robert as a person and not just as a blind man.

    Read More

  • Raymond Carver's Cathedral

    1050 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Cathedral, by Raymond Carver

    1426 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...h it emotionally detached without the pleasure of living. In the end, when the narrator has his eyes closed drawing the cathedral, he is the most open he has even been to the world. The narrator’s limited point of view in the story was crucial in showing the reader that what will hold you back the most in life are your biases and judgments. If the story was told in Robert’s point of view, it would have been a joyful story about visiting a long time friend, even with the tragedy of his wife’s death. We would have never known of the prejudices that were held inside the husband, and no true theme would have come from the story. The limited point of view was used in a way that expanded upon the theme even more, and made for a stronger story structure.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Raymond Carver's Cathedral

    790 Words  | 2 Pages

    The unnamed narrator of Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” poses as an unreliable narrator for his unaccepting nature towards blind people along with his ignorant perception of many realities in his life that Carver presents for the reader to take into question. The narrator holds prejudice against Robert, a blind man whom the narrator’s wife worked with ten years earlier and eventually befriends. Unperceptive to many of the actualities in his own life, the narrator paints an inaccurate picture of Robert that he will soon find to be far from the truth.

    Read More

  • Redemption Theme in Cathedral by Raymond Carter

    1957 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Cathedral” consists of three individuals. The narrator is the main character, which the story revolves around. The wife of the narrator is the second character, who is the least relevant. The third character is the blind man, named Robert, who is a friend of the wife.

    Read More

  • Summary Of What We Talk About When We Talk About Love And Cathedral By Raymond Carver

    834 Words  | 2 Pages

    Raymond Carver uses strategic dialogue and point of view to articulate themes in his short stories. Another tactic Carver uses in his writing is analyzing basic human skills such as the ability to define love through intimate relations between characters that reveal deeper meaning. In the short stories “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” and “Cathedral,” he investigates relationships and how the characters develop the true meaning of love. While reading these two short stories the reader is able to comprehend the similarities that draw Carver’s works together. Through these stories the reader is also able to understand his outlook on love and human kinship. Carver uses certain strategies and techniques that allow him to bring a parallel between his different stories, but there are also definite things that set each story apart.

    Read More

  • Religious Revelation in Carver’s Cathedral

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    At first glance, one might assume Raymond Carver’s "Cathedral" illustrates the awakening of an insensitive and insulated husband to the world of a blind man. However, this literal awakening does not account for the fact that the husband awakens also to a world of religious insight, of which he has also been blind. The title and story structure are the first indicators of the importance of the religious thesis. It is also revealed when one examines the language and actions of the characters in the story. Finally, Carver’s previous and subsequent writings give an overall background for the argument that "Cathedral" has a significant religious import.

    Read More

  • The Character of the Husband in Raymond Carver's Story Cathedral

    1110 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Analysis of the Relationship of the Blind Man and the Husband

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    Raymond Carver's "Cathedral" depicted the interaction between a narrow minded husband, with a limited understanding of the world around him, and a blind visitor, named Robert, that proved to be the catalyst that dramatically changed the husband's view on the world, while they went from being strangers to becoming friends. In the beginning of the story, the husband disliked the concept of his wife bringing her blind friend over to stay since he never had met a blind person before and did not understand it. However, as the story progresses, the husband, through interaction and observation, begins to dispel his fears and misconceptions of Robert and his blindness. With the help of Robert, the husband gains a revelation that changed his view and opened his eyes to the world.

    Read More

More about Prejudices in Cathedral by Raymond Carver

Open Document