Narrator in the Cathedral
Cathedral: Why the Narrator Keeps His Eyes Closed In the End of the Story
Name
Institution
Date
Cathedral: Why the Narrator Keeps His Eyes Closed In the End of the Story
In the story “Cathedral,” the author shares his experience with a blind man, a friend of his wife, who comes to visit their home. The author is troubled by the blind man’s visit for unclear reasons, but he attributes it to Robert’s (the blind man) disability. The narrator dislikes the blind and often refers to Robert as “the blind man” and was bothered by Robert’s visit to their home. The narrators experience with the blind man is an eye opener to him and changes his perspective towards blind people and his relationship with his wife. This essay examines why the narrator kept his eyes closed at the end of the story, and the fate of his relationship with his wife after the experience with Robert.
The idea that the narrator dislikes the blind when he is limited to his own sight makes the story ironical. The narrator’s experience with the blind man (Robert) clearly shows his limitations in terms of his relationship with his wife and his perspective towards the blind and life. The narrator is insecure with Robert because Robert and his wife were once married (Carver, 1989). This reveals his negativity and crudeness. He talks in a wicked humor, showing how detached he was from his life. He is jealous of the past relationship between Robert and his wife, which he tends to hide despite his apparent honesty (Carver, 1989).
The narrator realizes a lot about himself through his experience with Robert. He is always alone according to his wife and he stays up watching television as she goes to bed (Carver, 1989). This shows a poor relationship between the narrator and his wife, as well as the society. The narrator lives in isolation, which shows his adamant close-mindedness, apparently in his feelings and pre-convinced concepts of blindness. Robert appreciated the narrator’s wife more than the
Name
Institution
Date
Cathedral: Why the Narrator Keeps His Eyes Closed In the End of the Story
In the story “Cathedral,” the author shares his experience with a blind man, a friend of his wife, who comes to visit their home. The author is troubled by the blind man’s visit for unclear reasons, but he attributes it to Robert’s (the blind man) disability. The narrator dislikes the blind and often refers to Robert as “the blind man” and was bothered by Robert’s visit to their home. The narrators experience with the blind man is an eye opener to him and changes his perspective towards blind people and his relationship with his wife. This essay examines why the narrator kept his eyes closed at the end of the story, and the fate of his relationship with his wife after the experience with Robert.
The idea that the narrator dislikes the blind when he is limited to his own sight makes the story ironical. The narrator’s experience with the blind man (Robert) clearly shows his limitations in terms of his relationship with his wife and his perspective towards the blind and life. The narrator is insecure with Robert because Robert and his wife were once married (Carver, 1989). This reveals his negativity and crudeness. He talks in a wicked humor, showing how detached he was from his life. He is jealous of the past relationship between Robert and his wife, which he tends to hide despite his apparent honesty (Carver, 1989).
The narrator realizes a lot about himself through his experience with Robert. He is always alone according to his wife and he stays up watching television as she goes to bed (Carver, 1989). This shows a poor relationship between the narrator and his wife, as well as the society. The narrator lives in isolation, which shows his adamant close-mindedness, apparently in his feelings and pre-convinced concepts of blindness. Robert appreciated the narrator’s wife more than the
References: Carver, R. (1989). Cathedral. Vintage Books. Shmoop. (2010). Cathedral: Shmoop Literature Guide. Shmoop University Inc.