What is the short story Cathedral about?
“Cathedral” is a short story by Raymond Carver that describes the narrator’s initial jealousy of and eventual bonding with a blind man named Robert. When Robert comes to dinner, the narrator grows jealous of their friendship. After dinner, the three talk, and Robert shares his marijuana with the narrator.
What is the main idea of the story Cathedral?
The main theme of “Cathedral” is that human connection occurs in various forms and degrees. The characters illustrate that people have different ways and abilities to connect and relate to others; some are more successful than others.
What is the thesis of 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, is a man who has a purposeless existence.
Why is the narrator jealous of the relationship that his wife and the blind man have?
Because of his narcissistic personality, the narrator views his wife as an object, while the blind man, Robert, treats her as a friend and a confidant. The narrator’s inability to feel emotion causes him to value his wife’s body more than her emotions, therefore, he becomes jealous when the blind…show more content…
Who is the narrator in the story cathedral?
The protagonist and narrator of Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” is a middle-aged unnamed man. Through interior monologue, the narrator shows himself to be cynical and insensitive, especially to the poetry written by his wife.
Where does the story cathedral take place?
First published in 1981, “Cathedral” is set in the days when the switch from black and white to color television was in its early stages, and when cassette tapes were a cutting edge technology. The basic setting of the story is a middle-class home somewhere in New York, over a single evening.
What is the conflict in the story Cathedral?
The primary conflict in “Cathedral” is the narrator’s interior conflict over his feelings of loneliness, prejudice, and inferiority.
What is important about the references to the narrator’s wife’s poems and tapes?
According to the narrator, his wife writes a couple of poems every year to mark events that were important in her life, including the time Robert touched her face. The narrator’s mere act of retelling the story of his epiphany helps him make sense of his newfound understanding.
How does Carver describe characterize the blind man in the cathedral?
The blind man. He is a caring, easygoing man who sets even the narrator at ease. He encourages the narrator to draw a cathedral when the narrator is unable to describe one in words.
How does the narrator change at the end of the story cathedral?
When the narrator draws a cathedral with Robert and closes his eyes, he has an epiphany during which he can see more than he ever could with his eyes open. As a result, his description of the cathedral takes on a more human element, which liberates the narrator and allows him to truly see for the first time.
What is the function of the narrator in the short story cathedral?
Carver uses a first-person narrator to tell the story of “Cathedral” to emphasize the bewildering aspects of the transcendent moment that he relates in the story.
What is the man’s name in Cathedral?
The most important character in the short story “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver is the first-person narrator. However, we will also focus on the character of Robert (the blind man), as he is an important part of the plot.