Cathedral by Raymond Carver Analysis Essay

“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  (Carver 13)”.  In the short story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver (1981), the narrator, who is the husband of a close friend of Robert's wife, is always preoccupied with the concept of outward appearance and is only concerned with what can be seen from the outside, afraid to acknowledge what is felt on the inside. The narrator feels uncomfortable being in the same room as someone who “lacks” the ability to see the external world but instead feels it. Throughout the evening, the narrator makes little effort to really connect with Robert until they are eventually able to set aside their differences and find a common ground by indulging in alcohol and drugs. The relationship between Robert and the narrator illustrates how by helping others in realizing their preconceptions and ignorance, you may change someone's entire world since true vulnerability leads to deeper understandings that go beyond just the external feelings. 

When Robert initially enters the narrator's home, the narrator makes insensitive remarks on how effectively Robert is able to mobilize on his own due to his ignorance, “My idea of blindness came from the movies. In the movies, the blind moved slowly and never laughed. Sometimes they were led by seeing- eye dogs. A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to”(Caver 1). The narrator hasn’t even met Robert and yet he is already forcing such stereotypes upon him, which all consist of ideas that you would only notice externally. The narrator is already pushing an agenda onto Robert about how he is “supposed” which is the main reason he feels so uninterested in his arrival. People have preconceived views about blind people, but Robert is able to ignore stereotypes such as how blind people are unable to travel freely or conduct home duties on their own. Robert was full of surprises, he didn't dress the way the narrator expected him to, he recognized where his food was on his plate, he smoked, and the list continues.

Robert sees the beauty in almost not seeing and just feeling, Robert sees that sometimes getting people to level with you emotionally and physically really helps them see from a different point of view. Robert needed to give the narrator a chance to live in his shoes and try to describe something that he doesn’t know very well, “I wasn’t getting through to him, I could see that. But he waited for me to go on just the same. He nodded, like he was trying to encourage me. I tried to think what else to say” (Carver 11)., Robert knew what he was doing by asking the narrator to explain something to him because that is something the narrator clearly doesn't do often. Robert wants to help him understand, Robert is the test that the narrator needs to help him understand what it may be like to explain something to someone who is blind.

The blindness of the narrator and the blindness of Robert were very clashing and different. The narrator was blinded by the stereotypes of blind people that the media imposed on him and those around him. Robert was blind and fully functional other than not being able to see he managed himself . The story showed that life is all about teaching others things that they might not ever learn because of the way they live their life, “ “Bub, it’s all right,” the blind man said. “It’s fine with me. Whatever you want to watch is okay. I’m always learning something. Learning never ends. It won’t hurt me to learn something tonight. I got ears,” he said'' (Carver 9). The narrator didn’t live a life that was outside of his comfort zone, he was very close minded and traditional. The narrator never gave much thought that blind people could be anything other than what he watched on his TV, he was someone who was blinded by the media constantly because all he did was watch TV and get brainwashed by false commentary. Robert was a blind man but was not blind to the beauties of life or the quality of life, he sat and felt the world. He never judged or jumped to any kind of conclusion when it came to other people because he didn't have the sight to judge others. Robert was never blinded by the appearance of others, he only knew what we heard and felt from others; in many ways Robert had more experience living a life without judgement which made him so friendly. The narrator struggles to see that and for the longest time just doesn't see past his own nose which is why he is so blindsided by the sudden “talent” that Robert had when it came to being normal just like him.