Cathedral by Sara Jane Ginty 1
Sara Jane Ginty Howard Luxenberg Eng 102 26 January 2012
Cathedral
In the short story, Cathedral, the author portrays the husband to be a self centered man living in a sheltered world consisting of only him and his wife. When his wife's long time, blind friend Robert comes to visit after the death of his wife, the husband begins to make a transformation. In anticipation of his arrival, the husband seems to be on edge and very convinced that he knows what to expect of the blind man. Much to his surprise, when Robert arrives he is surprisingly human like. He partakes in activities such as smoking pot, drinking whiskey, and he even has a beard, all outlandish things considering he is a blind man.
As the story progresses, the author describes the husband as beginning to let his guard down. Slowly, Robert becomes not just a blind man in the husbands eyes, but a man. I feel that the transformation he makes is incredible considering how brief the interaction with one and other was. A lifetime of ignorance and bigotry is countered by one quick sit down? Personally I find this hard to believe. Yes the moral attitude is an uplifting one, but the lack of actual character development makes me feel that there are holes in the plot. I understand that short stories are just that, short, but can a mans entire outlook on life really change in one evening? Its debatable.
I am confused as to why the only person given a name in this story is Robert. The two other characters are simply the husband and the wife. Is the author trying to humanize the blind man, and dehumanize the other characters? I am not
Cathedral
In the short story, Cathedral, the author portrays the husband to be a self centered man living in a sheltered world consisting of only him and his wife. When his wife's long time, blind friend Robert comes to visit after the death of his wife, the husband begins to make a transformation. In anticipation of his arrival, the husband seems to be on edge and very convinced that he knows what to expect of the blind man. Much to his surprise, when Robert arrives he is surprisingly human like. He partakes in activities such as smoking pot, drinking whiskey, and he even has a beard, all outlandish things considering he is a blind man.
As the story progresses, the author describes the husband as beginning to let his guard down. Slowly, Robert becomes not just a blind man in the husbands eyes, but a man. I feel that the transformation he makes is incredible considering how brief the interaction with one and other was. A lifetime of ignorance and bigotry is countered by one quick sit down? Personally I find this hard to believe. Yes the moral attitude is an uplifting one, but the lack of actual character development makes me feel that there are holes in the plot. I understand that short stories are just that, short, but can a mans entire outlook on life really change in one evening? Its debatable.
I am confused as to why the only person given a name in this story is Robert. The two other characters are simply the husband and the wife. Is the author trying to humanize the blind man, and dehumanize the other characters? I am not