Team Reinterpretation: Raymond Carvers Cathedral
Raymond Carver, born in Clatskanie, Oregon, in 1938 was a short story writer that played an influential role in the revival of the short story form in the 1980s (Peninsula College). Throughout Carver's career as a writer, he suffered from alcohol addiction and was even hospitalized on several occasions due to his addictions; eventually, Carver was able to recover from this addiction. Carver has many exceptional works including, “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love”, “A Small Good Thing”, and “Cathedral”, these works are often written in a minimalistic style, which Carver often disliked as he believed it “misrepresented the nature of his work” (Peninsula College). The purpose of this paper
…show more content…
He merely looks at the world around him, skimming the surface without delving into its deeper meanings. This point is depicted when the narrator describes the cathedral stating, “‘They’re really big, ’I said. They’re massive. They’re built of stone. Marble, too, sometimes. In those olden days, when they built cathedrals, men wanted to be close to God. In those olden days, God was an important part of everyone’s life. You could tell this from their cathedral building. I’m sorry,’ I said, ‘but it looks like that’s the best I can do for you. I’m just no good at it” (Carver 11). In contrast, Robert, who is blind, exemplifies the concept of seeing in a profound manner. Despite his lack of sight, Robert's interactions with the world are characterized by a deeper understanding and insight. He grasps the essence of people and situations by truly engaging with them, metaphorically looking at the world in its entirety. As the story progresses the narrator seems to have breakthroughs with Robert when it comes to his views of the world. This can be seen in the final lines of the story when the narrator states, “My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like I was inside anything. ‘It’s really something,’ I said” (Carver 13). This quote allows readers to see the transformation of the narrator over the duration of the story from someone who is unable to …show more content…
The wife's fondness for writing poems becomes a means to commemorate significant moments in her life, offering her a creative outlet to convey emotions and experiences. The act of crafting poetry allows her to distill complex feelings into concise and evocative verses. Along with the poetry the wife creates, she has also been making tapes for Robert in order to communicate with him for the past ten years. Arguably, the tapes can be seen merely as a form of communication between two friends, however, the expression that comes from them is a piece of art in itself. Similarly, the act of drawing the cathedral becomes a transformative experience for both the Narrator and Robert. Through their shared endeavor, they unearth insights about themselves and each other that extend beyond the realm of words. As they engage in this collaborative artistic process, the boundaries that once separated them begin to dissolve, giving way to a more profound understanding of their own emotions and perspectives. The act of drawing the cathedral allows the Narrator to further understand what it means to see, to look for the detail and beauty in things, rather than just looking at something without grasping what he is looking at. As “Cathedral” has a rather open ending it is not clear what the Narrator is truly feeling, but one can assume that he is feeling a profound sense of meaning for what he
The story follows the narrator encountering his wife’s friend Robert, who is blind, and assimilating his prejudices throughout the encounter. When the story begins the narrator is more than closed off to the idea of the blind man visiting his home. He is uncomfortable with Robert’s knowledge of him because he does not wish to associate himself with a blind man, a condition which he looks down upon. When Robert arrives, he attempts to be friendly to the narrator, a sentiment that is little reciprocated. While never encountering a blind man, he has many preconceived notions prior to his arrival.
His journey along with Father Joseph Vaillant, his companion and friend, takes them to a place where Latours’s literal journey is full of spiritual obstacles. Making it a goal to have a lasting impression and change in the land of the people, his commitment is embodied with the construction of the Cathedral. The Cathedral is a symbol of harmony and beauty resulting from an organized religion. He exhibits God’s handy-work and love of nature attempting to represent it and make it a symbol of his faith. His ambition is to leave the town with something lasting to the people and the land.
Later in the story, Robert and the narrator are both watching a documentary on Cathedrals. Robert then asks the narrator to describe the physical features of the Cathedral, but the narrator has a tough time describing it. Eventually, the narrator tries to draw a cathedral with his eyes closed. While drawing, the narrator has an epiphany and learns how to see someone or something beyond their physical attributes. According to enotes.com, the cathedral in the story symbolizes how life is more than a day to day event that takes up one’s time and how one could find something rare and beautiful inside their
His style of writing was so unique that even students today, like me, are still studying his great work. One of Carvers most glorious work is “Cathedral” which is the art piece I will be analyzing. “Cathedral” at first portrays a very unpleasant vibe; it included a very racist, close-minded, and unloving husband. However, the reason this story fascinated me was mostly because of the meaningful twist at the very end. “Cathedral” had many elements to it that were distinctive much like Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “The handsomest Droned Man in the World.”
The narrator he is a portrait of a middle class man living paycheck to paycheck who must face the darkness in his life unlike the blind man .The Two characters both feel some sort of loneliness throughout the story, that’s why the narrator's wife invited the blind man over for dinner .The narrator isn't self aware enough to admit his longing for himself or being alone, but Robert tells him to realize that he is lacking for company. Both men start to warm up to each other and talk about their problems after
But he didn’t use a cane and he didn’t wear dark glasses”(“Cathedral” 206). Carver creates an image of what the blind man looks like, which gives readers a better understanding of the character. In the way he describes Robert, Carver is able to go against the reader's assumptions, that he will have a cane and glasses. Blind people have a stereotype of always having a cane and sunglasses, but not in this case. Carver is able to keep the readers guessing on what he is going to do next with his stories, keeping them interesting.
The narrator pictures the blind as slow-moving and never laughing (34). As he finally meets Robert, the narrator is shocked that the man makes no use of a cane or dark glasses, as he “always thought dark glasses were a must for the blind” (38). Finally, the narrator’s ignorance toward Robert peaks as he asks which side of the train he sat on, because, according to the narrator, “going to New York, you should sit on the right-hand side of the train, and coming from New York, to the left-hand side” (38) to best enjoy the scenery of the Hudson. The jealous mindset of the narrator, however, drives most of his sarcasm and ignorance. One of his initial instances of jealousy occurs as he depicts a moment shared between his wife and Robert.
The cathedral is depicted as a place of beauty and wonder, but also as a place of mystery and uncertainty. The narrator is drawn to the cathedral because of its grandeur, but he is also intimidated by it, and he is left feeling unsure of its meaning. This reflects the narrator's own struggles to understand his place in the world and to find personal
The narrator finally understands how Robert can love a woman or even just eat dinner being blind, since looking is not as important as he once thought. The townspeople were also just as wrong about Miss. Emily. When Emily dies, the townspeople are let into
After experiencing this moment with Robert, the narrator has the option of opening his eyes once he is done with the drawing, “But I had my eyes closed. I thought I’d keep them that way for a little longer. I thought it was something I ought to do” (7). Although the narrator has the option to open his eyes, his transformation begins to occur when he decides to keep his eyes closed in order to experience this intellectual awakening that is occurring. He finally begins to see the importance of these emotional connections, that have been limiting him and have made him emotionally blind to what he can truly experience by opening himself up.
The narrator’s eyes are closed and he is being led by a blind man, yet he is able to see. Carver never explains what it is the narrator sees, but there is the sense that he has found a connection and is no longer detached or isolated. The narrator is faced with a stark realization and glimmer of hope. Hope for new views, new life and probably even new identity. Even the narrator’s wife is surprised by the fact that her husband and Robert really get along together.
He could imagine his deception of this town “nestled in a paper landscape,” (Collins 534). This image of the speaker shows the first sign of his delusional ideas of the people in his town. Collins create a connection between the speaker’s teacher teaching life and retired life in lines five and six of the poem. These connections are “ chalk dust flurrying down in winter, nights dark as a blackboard,” which compares images that the readers can picture.
The narrator begins to change as Robert taught him to see beyond the surface of looking. The narrator feels enlightened and opens up to a new world of vision and imagination. This brief experience has a long lasting effect on the narrator. Being able to shut out everything around us allows an individual the ability to become focused on their relationships, intrapersonal well-being, and
Narrated in the first person, Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” is bound to unfold due to the thoughts and feelings of one of the main characters, the husband. Expectedly, the conflict revolves around him and the way he responds to the conflict leads
In his contemporary short story, “Cathedral,” Raymond Carver tells the story of an unnamed narrator, his wife, and an old friend, a blind man named Robert. Robert has come to visit the narrator’s wife, who is quite excited to see this man whom she hasn’t seen in ten years, yet the same can’t be said of the narrator who is noticeably and vocally uncomfortable about his visit. The story is told through the narrator’s first person point of view, showcasing his thoughts and the events that take place when Robert comes to visit. Carver highlights the theme of having the ability to see, but not truly seeing, through his use of colloquial language, and creation of relatable characters. “Cathedral” begins with the narrator informing the audience