The Heroic Journey In Raymond Carver's Cathedral

In literature, authors often times look for ways in which they can allow their dynamic and well-developed protagonists to embark on a hero’s journey. This journey is essentially a growing period for the hero and/or heroin. The character that is chosen to go through a hero’s quest comes across different obstacles in which he/she overcomes and learns from, and is then admired in the eyes of the reader and the other characters. However, it is not always the good protagonist that goes through a hero’s journey in literature, but rather sometimes it is the weak, the hated, the blind, and the misfortunate. In “Cathedral,” Raymond Carver describes the husband undergoing the hero’s journey that ends in an epiphany. It is the job of the author to not only compose a stellar work of art through the use countless literary devices and narrative styles, but also to bring their characters to life through words. The husband is introduced as the flawed antihero. He is left without a name and identified as a regular, imperfect man. He seems uncaring, unfeeling, and pathetic to the reader after he makes jokes and rude comments regarding blind people. Carver is able to play with this flawed character that lacks all empathy and care to lead him …show more content…
As the blind man comes into the house the narrator says, “The blind man let go of his suitcase and up came his hand. I took it. He squeezed hard, and then let it go...Welcome. I’ve heard alot about you” (263). The husband comes into close contact and greets someone who is out of the ordinary in his world and realm of understanding. After examining Robert and realizing he looked no different than a normal person, the husband offers him a drink. He says, “Let me get you a drink...What’s your pleasure?” (264). Again, the narrator makes use of his supernatural aid to go about his journey as he crosses the threshold of the