Cathedral

A detailed Summary of Cathedral


The narrator in Raymond Carver's "Cathedral" has two fully functional eyes, in which he chooses never to use to their full potential. The eyes of the narrator are biased, insecure, jealous, and very limited in what they choose to see. This inability to see is made apparent when he is forced to meet and converse with a blind man. The narrator's perception of the world around him, and blurred vision, is resolved by a great irony in the story when Roger helps the narrator see past his prejudice outlook on life. The blind man teaches the narrator how to see.

The first few pages of the story reveal the narrator's blurred view of his own life, his wife's life, and the entire world around him. The narrator, "Bub", seems to have an unhappy and insecure approach to everyday life. The narrator's blurred view of everything that happened in his wife's past life, shows the insecurity that plagues him. When referring to his wife's ex-husband he says, "Her officer- why should he have a name? He was the childhood sweetheart, and what more does he

Want? -"(P721). By treating everyone generically and denying their importance, the narrator is trying to make himself seem more important in the lives of others. He simpl


The limitations that were holding the narrator back were abolished through a process from which a blind man, in some sense, cured a physically healthy man. The blind man cured the narrator of these limitations, and opened him up to a whole world of new possibilities. Robert enabled the narrator to view the world in a whole new way, a way without the heavy weights of prejudice, jealousy, and insecurity holding him down. The blind man shows the narrator how to see.

The story contains a great irony that brings about a revelation for the narrator. Robert helps the narrator find the ability to let go of his prejudices, jealousies and expand his limitations. The blind man helps the narrator to see. The narrator's revelation is brought about by the experience of drawing the cathedral with Robert. In drawing the cathedral together, the narrator opens up to new possibilities: "Never thought anything like this could happen in your lifetime, did you bub? Well, it's a strange life, we all know that"(P729). This quote shows the narrators limited view on life. By drawing the cathedral with Robert, the narrator's views are expanded and he experiences a revelation. The narrator realizes that he must let go of his insecurity and mental acts of

Some common words found in the essay are:
Beulah BeulahP721, Carver's Cathedral, helps narrator, drawing cathedral, , narrator's blurred, drawing cathedral robert, narrator's blurred view, revelation narrator, blurred vision, blurred view, cathedral robert, blind narrator,

Approximate Word count = 834
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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