Interpretive Response #1
To Look or To See Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” centers upon a narrator who is psychologically blind to the world around him. Although the narrator is not physically blind and he is capable of looking at the world from his own naïve perspective, he’s incapable of actually seeing anything beyond the surface. He is detached from the world around him, isolating himself in a sheltered world that he has created for himself. His ignorance of the unknown seems to scare him, enough for him to put up a physiological barrier, shielding him from his insecurities.
Robert, the “blind man” coming to stay the night signifies the unknown to the narrator and a personal invasion to his self-centered world. “A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to” (Carver 84). The narrator does not even …show more content…
Robert asks the narrator if he could describe one to him. The narrator, despite his ability to see the cathedrals on the TV, has obvious difficulties in trying to explain them to Robert. Clumsily trying to describe what he sees on TV and appearing to be stuck for words, the narrator realizes he is unable to describe a cathedral. “I’m sorry, but it looks like that’s the best I can do for you, I’m just not that good at it” (Carver 96). Even though the narrator can see the cathedrals, he cannot truly “see” its deeper significance. Perhaps the narrator is also blind, symbolically. Perhaps embarrassed or just reverting back to his comfort zone, the narrator attempts to retreat back into his isolated shell. He says, “The truth is, cathedrals don’t mean anything special to me. Nothing. Cathedrals. They’re something to look at on late-night TV. That’s all they are” (Carver 97). The irony is that the narrator has been affected by this and now he knows he can’t retreat back to his detached
To Look or To See Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” centers upon a narrator who is psychologically blind to the world around him. Although the narrator is not physically blind and he is capable of looking at the world from his own naïve perspective, he’s incapable of actually seeing anything beyond the surface. He is detached from the world around him, isolating himself in a sheltered world that he has created for himself. His ignorance of the unknown seems to scare him, enough for him to put up a physiological barrier, shielding him from his insecurities.
Robert, the “blind man” coming to stay the night signifies the unknown to the narrator and a personal invasion to his self-centered world. “A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to” (Carver 84). The narrator does not even …show more content…
Robert asks the narrator if he could describe one to him. The narrator, despite his ability to see the cathedrals on the TV, has obvious difficulties in trying to explain them to Robert. Clumsily trying to describe what he sees on TV and appearing to be stuck for words, the narrator realizes he is unable to describe a cathedral. “I’m sorry, but it looks like that’s the best I can do for you, I’m just not that good at it” (Carver 96). Even though the narrator can see the cathedrals, he cannot truly “see” its deeper significance. Perhaps the narrator is also blind, symbolically. Perhaps embarrassed or just reverting back to his comfort zone, the narrator attempts to retreat back into his isolated shell. He says, “The truth is, cathedrals don’t mean anything special to me. Nothing. Cathedrals. They’re something to look at on late-night TV. That’s all they are” (Carver 97). The irony is that the narrator has been affected by this and now he knows he can’t retreat back to his detached