We have all known someone we thought the worst of after first meeting them. Then, we change our minds about them after sharing some experiences with them. Raymond Carver used that paradigm in “Cathedral.” At first the Narrator embodies many of the negative traits associated with humanity, such as bigotry of what he does not understand, jealousy, and even perhaps a substance abuse problem. Yet, the more the reader travels through the story, the more the reader warms up to him. Despite his faults, the Narrator is not all bad.
From the first words of the story the Narrator shows his bigotry, “This blind man, an old friend of my wife’s, he was on his way to spend the night” (Gioia 106). In fact, he constantly refers to his wife’s friend as “The …show more content…
Perhaps the narrator was so callous at first because he had a substance abuse problem. The narrator was making drinks through pretty much most of the story. There were even two points in the story where heavy drinking was pointed out. The first was, “[What’s wrong with you?] she said. [Are you drunk?]” (Gioia 108). Then, it was brought up again with, “Let me get you a drink…We have a little of everything. It’s one of our pastimes” (Gioia 109). A reasonable person could conclude that remark meant they drink an obscene amount of alcohol. And according to the mental health section in time.com, “having dampened or flat reactions where others would have a strong response,” is one of the behaviors or mental responses of an alcoholic …show more content…
For instance, “Hearing this, I felt sorry for the blind man for a little bit” (Gioia 108). Here we first see that the narrator can feel empathy and is not just full of negative or dark emotions and thoughts. Yet, he is still calling him “the blind man.” Just like, “And then to slip off into death, the blind man’s hand on her hand, his blind eyes streaming tears…” (Gioia 108). It is not until a little later that the narrator actually uses his name, “Robert was left with a small insurance policy and a half of a twenty-peso Mexican coin” (Gioia 108). Therefore, the narrator was not just some hate filled bigot. He had a softer more empathetic side as
From the first words of the story the Narrator shows his bigotry, “This blind man, an old friend of my wife’s, he was on his way to spend the night” (Gioia 106). In fact, he constantly refers to his wife’s friend as “The …show more content…
Perhaps the narrator was so callous at first because he had a substance abuse problem. The narrator was making drinks through pretty much most of the story. There were even two points in the story where heavy drinking was pointed out. The first was, “[What’s wrong with you?] she said. [Are you drunk?]” (Gioia 108). Then, it was brought up again with, “Let me get you a drink…We have a little of everything. It’s one of our pastimes” (Gioia 109). A reasonable person could conclude that remark meant they drink an obscene amount of alcohol. And according to the mental health section in time.com, “having dampened or flat reactions where others would have a strong response,” is one of the behaviors or mental responses of an alcoholic …show more content…
For instance, “Hearing this, I felt sorry for the blind man for a little bit” (Gioia 108). Here we first see that the narrator can feel empathy and is not just full of negative or dark emotions and thoughts. Yet, he is still calling him “the blind man.” Just like, “And then to slip off into death, the blind man’s hand on her hand, his blind eyes streaming tears…” (Gioia 108). It is not until a little later that the narrator actually uses his name, “Robert was left with a small insurance policy and a half of a twenty-peso Mexican coin” (Gioia 108). Therefore, the narrator was not just some hate filled bigot. He had a softer more empathetic side as