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Cathedral
Cathedral is a short story by Raymond Carver. The story develops an ironic situation in which a blind man teaches a sighted man to truly “see” for the first time. Near the end of the story, Carver...
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Cathedral
In Raymond Carver's "Cathedral," the church building symbolizes vision to the narrator. Vision is... ...an experience in which a [person], thing, or event appears vividly or credibly to the mind,...
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Cathedral
The short story "Cathedral" has several main ideas or themes. One theme in the story is the effects of loneliness and isolation on the individual. The characters in the story feel alone...
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Cathedral
A good thesis for Raymond Carver's "Cathedral" can be that a person can share meaningful experiences with those from whom he least expects anything. The narrator, the husband of a sensitive woman,...
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Cathedral
In Raymond Carver's "Cathedral," a reader might find many themes, but there is one that stands out for me. It's important to remember that a theme is a major idea or "life truth" that the author is...
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Cathedral
In the story "The Cathedral," the narrator's wife has a visitor coming to stay for a short time, a blind man named Robert who the narrator's wife used to read for. She has not seen Robert since her...
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Cathedral
A conflict arises with the confrontation of two opposing parties. Generally the conflict includes the protagonist pitted against an antagonist, whether it be represented as his conscience, nature,...
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Cathedral
Although Carver did not like the label of minimalist writer, critics are almost unanimous in considering his style the quintessential example of minimalism. Literary minimalism is defined as spare...
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Cathedral
This is a very open-ended and personal decision on your part; writing an interpretation essay on a short story will depend entirely on your interpretation of the piece. In order to determine that,...
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Cathedral
In "Cathedral" the narrator's relationship with his wife is one of isolation and distanced silence. Isolation is a frequent theme of Carver's short stories. Robert, the blind man who is...
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Cathedral
In the beginning, the tone is one of skepticism and a hint of jealousy. The narrator doesn't understand why she would want to spend so much time with a blind person. The narrator simply is not...
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Cathedral
Carver’s choice of first-person point of view for the narrator in “Cathedral” provides a clearer portal of view into the feelings, attitudes, and isolation of the narrator, who is never named...
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Cathedral
It takes place in the home of the narrator and his wife. They are a married couple who aren't happy with their lives until Rober arrives. Robert, the blind man, is coming to see the couple, and the...
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Cathedral
The narrator is a narrow man. He and his wife seem happy, but she clearly shows her frustration at their isolation from the rest of the world. She is excited at the idea of a visit from an old...
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Cathedral
In Raymond Carver's minimalistic story, "Cathedral," the irony, or contrast between what is expected and what really hapens, occurs in the latter part of the narrative. For, it is the sensitive...
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Cathedral
The narrator is a man who merely resides in his house: He watches his wife go to bed at night, he sees no friends, staying at home and watching television. Even when his wife's friend Robert...
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Cathedral
The first primary character is the narrator, who is unnamed. The second is Robert, the blind man. The narrator is a round character who is also dynamic. See the sources below for descriptions of...
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Cathedral
Yes. The narrator is close-minded, fearful, judgmental, prejudiced, possessive, and unfriendly, not to mention a substance abuser; these are not generally attributes viewed as heroic. That said,...
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Cathedral
The protagonist is the narrator. He is shy and self-conscious. He needs liquor to loosen up with people. He is afraid of strangers, and he feels jealous of the blind man named Robert who is coming...
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Cathedral
It is clear that the narrator initially feels very awkward to have a blind man in his house and also to be watching television with him. Of course, Robert is unable to see, and although the history...
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Cathedral
The whole story is about how two men establish a close relationship because of their experience with a television show about cathedrals built in the Middle Ages. Robert can hear what the announcer...
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Cathedral
The image of a cathedral is used after Robert asks the narrator to describe what he sees on a television program. It is significant because it becomes the means to the act of communion between the...
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Cathedral
The narrator of "The Cathedral" starts by describing the imminent arrival of an old acquaintance of his wife. The man, Robert, is blind, and the narrator's wife used to read for him. She knew...
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Cathedral
The most straightforward reason why she keeps asking is that she herself is tired and wants to go to bed, but can't until her guest goes to bed. If you have ever had guests over, and wanted to go...
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Cathedral
It isn't explicitly shown in the story, but the cathedral suggests a religious or spiritual experience. The cathedral symbolizes the themes of the story. Change and transformation can occur in a...
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Cathedral
I would want to argue that the narrator of this story does not actually change his ideas and preconceptions and ideas about blindness until the very end of the story, when Robert asks him to close...
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Cathedral
The narrator of the short story admits right away that he is uncomfortable with the idea of having a blind man, Robert, in his house and admits that he gets all his information about blind people...
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Cathedral
I think that the reader can identify with the narrator in "Cathedral," making him a sympathetic character. The narrator is a sympathetic character from the story's opening. The narrator talks...
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Cathedral
Much of the early part of the story is told relatively flatly, with little figurative language. Therefore, when Carver begins to employ it more heavily, when discussing Beulah working for the blind...
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Cathedral
Initially, the narrator is unsympathetic to Robert's blindness. He appears to subscribe to the dominant prejudice of the time that looks upon blind people as somehow helpless and weak; nothing more...
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Cathedral
The ending of "Cathedral" is a kind of epiphany and catharsis for the narrator. From the opening lines, we see him as an aloof, jealous, self-involved, and ego-centric. The drawing of the cathedral...
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Cathedral
For most of the story the narrator is unable either to connect or communicate with Robert in any meaningful sense. Robert is blind, and this creates what seems to be an insuperable barrier between...
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Cathedral
The central similarity that can be identified in terms of theme between these two excellent short stories would be that of relationships. Both stories present us with couples who are struggling or...
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Cathedral
After the narrator's wife falls asleep, her blind friend and he stay up with the television tuned to a random late night show which happens to have cathedrals featured. When Robert asks the...
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Cathedral
As is characteristic of many of Raymond Carver's stories, the main characters in "Cathedral" undergo anguish, but the ending of the story has a much more promising note thanks to the visit of...
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Cathedral
The narrator in the short story "Cathedral" is a very cynical, judgmental, bitter man who can't find happiness or satisfaction in anyone or anything around him. He is not happy about the blind...
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Cathedral
Since the topic sentence should tell what the rest of the paragraph is about, you may wish to state something about the importance of one of the symbols to the characterization or theme of the...
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Cathedral
The central irony of "Cathedral" is that the narrator is the one who is truly blind, in a spiritual sense. The narrator is contrasted with Robert, a man who cannot physically see. The narrator...
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Cathedral
In this story, the blind man is the one who can truly "see", or who really understands how life can be beautiful, meaningful, and happy, whereas the narrator is the one who is "blind" to those...
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Cathedral
In Raymond Carver's short story "Cathedral," the narrator, who is extremely close-minded about his visitor's handicap, learns to see him with a new perspective as they draw a cathedral together....
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Cathedral
I would argue that the narrator is jealous of Robert and the importance that his wife takes in her relationship with him, but that he is actually blind to his jealousy and covers it up with a show...
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Cathedral
The symbolism in this story is pretty thinly veiled. The narrator is unable to see the world around him - he is lost in himself, his own thoughts, fears, and prejudices. The result of this is...
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Cathedral
The transformation of the narrator in this wonderful short story from Carver shows his move from being a rather selfish and insensitive individual who feels slightly threatened by Robert's presence...
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Cathedral
Two of the most obvious themes that can be identified in these tales are the isolation of the main male protagonist and also the epiphany that each protagonist experiences at the end of the tale....
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Cathedral
The point of view comes from a pretty sarcastic and rude man, who seems to be bitter and sardonic about pretty much everything in his life. Why he is so bitter, why he seems so unhappy, isn't...
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Cathedral
The wife's displeasure is caused by her husband's deliberate or unthinking insensitivity towards Robert, her friend who visits them during the course of this short story. The narrator himself...
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Cathedral
The entire story takes place inside of the apartment of the narrator and his wife. Although the story is called "Cathedral," that is the subject of the story and not the setting. At the beginning...
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Cathedral
In the short story “Cathedral,” the character Robert—who is literally blind—leads the emotionally and spiritually blind narrator by encouraging him to draw a picture of a cathedral. When the...
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Cathedral
In Raymond Carver's "Cathedral," the narrator and his wife welcome Robert, who is blind. The narrator is not happy that Robert is coming, but his wife conveys the importance of his visit so soon...
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Cathedral
Tone is defined as the author’s attitude toward the subject of the text. If the subject is the narrator’s attitude toward Robert, his wife’s blind friend, then one needs to describe it in two...