Blind Faith in Raymond Carvers Cathedral Essay - 920 Words

Blind Faith in Raymond Carvers Cathedral 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 no choice. During Roberts visit, he proved to be a normal man, and showed the speaker that by closing his eyes, he could open his mind. The speakers prejudice was nearly overwhelming at the opening of the story. His being blind bothered†¦show more content†¦The color of Beulahs skin was not important to Robert, and therefore was not mentioned by the character. Until he met Robert, the speaker merely referred to Robert as the blind man, instead of someone with a name or someone with importance. He did not seem to understand why his wife had kept in touch with Robert, or how they became so close. He also seemed to feel that Robert was a nuisance to society, someone who could not take care of himself. The character spoke of the pity he felt for Beulah because Robert could never see what she looked like, read the expression on her face or receive the smallest compliment from her husband. When Robert arrived in his house, the speaker began his transformation. It began immediately upon seeing Robert with his wife, his eyes drawn to the smile Robert had placed on her face. The speaker witnessed the depth of conversation Robert had with his wife, as if he wasnt even in the room, and it seemed to spark some jealousy. Most of the changes that the speaker underwent in his understanding of Robert were because he realized that Robert was normal. The speaker was surprised to see a beard on a blind man. He had always thought dark glasses were a must for the blind, yet Robert wore none. He had read the blind didnt smoke, but Robert filled ashtray after ashtray in his home. The speaker watched as Robert ate, knowing where everything was on his plate, and beingShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Raymond Carver s The Cathedral 863 Words   |  4 Pages One of the Raymond Carver story where we can find a lot of religion symbols; it is â€Å"Cathedral.† The story develops an ironic situation in which a blind man teaches a sighted man to truly â€Å"see† for the first time. Near the end of the story, Carver has these two characters work together on a drawing of a cathedral, which serves as the symbolic heart of the story. The cathedral represents true sight, the ability to see beyond the surface to the true meaning that lies within. The narrator’s drawingRead More A Blind Man’s Gift in Carver’s Ca thedral Essay891 Words   |  4 PagesA Blind Man’s Gift in Cathedral  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   In Raymond Carver’s story, Cathedral, one man’s prejudice is overcome by another man’s gift. The husband in the story is given the gift of seeing a cathedral through a blind man’s eyes. The true gift comes from the cathedral, which represents the husband’s prejudice and the blind man’s open-mindedness. This gift is the revelation the husband experiences while he looks at the cathedral with his eyes still closed. According to Anatole Broyard CathedralRead More Raymond Carvers Cathedral Essay6977 Words   |  28 Pages In quot;The Compartment,quot; one of Raymond Carvers bleakest stories, a man passes through the French countryside in a train, en route to a rendevous with a son he has not seen for many years. quot;Now and then,quot; the narrator says of the man, quot;Meyers saw a farmhouse and its outbuildings, everything surrounded by a wall. He thought this might be a good way to live-in an old house surrounded by a wallquot; (Cathedral 48). Due to a last minute change of heart, however, Meyers choosesRead MoreAnalysis Of Raymond Carver s Cathedral 1832 Words   |  8 PagesIn Cathedral, by Raymond Carver, a blind man guides the narrator towards an epiphany: he needs to see situations and people in a deeper way, rather than just from a materialistic point of view. In the beginning of the story, the narrow-minded speaker is originally opposed to having the blind man, Robert, stay in his ho me. Because the narrator realizes that there is a nothingness in his life, he eventually grows to admire Robert’s ability to have faith in people, relationships, and the world evenRead MoreAnalysis Of Raymond Carver s Cathedral2364 Words   |  10 PagesPastor Bonhoeffer once said, â€Å"Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging other’s, we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.† The way we treat people reflects on ourselves. The way the world judges and condemns each other is very true and an everyday reality for most. The same could be said about people who are limited by one or more of their six senses and are judged by the majority of the population who are not