Raymond Carver

“Fat” by Raymond Carver is the first short story in a collection called Will You Please Be Quiet, Please. Carver intrigued me because of his unique style of writing and captivated me from the first short story I read. This short story is a conversation between the narrator and her friend Rita, as she serves a fat man in the diner where they both work. The story, whilst seemingly is a ‘slice of life’ everyday mundane observation, slowly becomes more uncomfortable and unsettles dark secrets that…

taken English 111, so I was a little apprehensive about whether I would be able to remember everything from that long ago and be successful in this class. The first paper that I was tasked to write was a literary analysis of “Little Things” by Raymond Carver. I was excited about this assignment in the beginning because, as an avid reader, I really enjoy critically looking at what I think the author is trying to say to me through their story. I love analyzing my favorite books and do it…

ongoing dispute faced by people for many different reasons; these reasons include religion, race, ethnicity, physical and mental disabilities, and almost any kind of diversity in general. In the short story titled “Cathedral”, written by author Raymond Carver, Carver illustrates character growth of a protagonist through the our unnamed narrator – referred to as “Bub” by Robert – when he undergoes a transformative experience realizing he should not discriminate or judge Robert or other…

One's ability to see is often taken for granted as it is in "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver. The title suggests that the story deals with a cathedral, but it is really about two blind men; one physically, the other mentally. One of the men is Robert, the blind friend of the narrator's wife, and the other is the narrator himself. The narrator is the man who is mentally blind, and unknowingly describes his own prejudice. Carver writes the husband as a man with a very narrow mind. Two instances in…

the short story, we experience how the two characters interact and open up to each other. While smoking the joint together, the narrator is amazed by the fact that even blind men can smoke, “like he’d been doing it since he was nine years of age” (Carver 45). The narrator eventually comes to the conclusion that visual impairment does not prevent a man to be the same as him but rather everything is somehow similar. However, he raises that his better half’s robe has disappeared and this introduces…

Raymond Carver was a well-known American short story writer and poet. Neighbors, which was published in 1971 and Cathedral, which was published 10 years later, was two of out of many short stories that he wrote. The short story Neighbors is about a couple, Bill and Arlene Miller, who were left to take care of their neighbors’ apartment while they were away on a trip. While house sitting, the couple spends time at their neighbors’ apartment and becomes interesting in their possessions. As time…

Humans are surrounded by poverty everywhere they go, but never realized the long lasting effects of it in our society and individuals. In the essay "Black Hair" by Gary Soto, he explains the life of a young seventeen year old Mexican who struggles on the streets to make a decent living . Soto is able to portray the emotions and experiences of his life by writing the essay in first person. The audience has the opportunity to relate towards what life is when not having a place to sleep at night,…

In the short story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver we are introduce to three characters of the Narrator, Robert the blind elder fellow and the Narrator’s Wife. We learn of these three character’s genders by Carver’s use of pronouns when he is describing them. Other than that the other descriptions are subtle and not outright. The Narrator’s wife social class before she is married to the Narrator is described by author’s description of a need for a job. “That summer in Seattle she had needed a job…

Raymond Carver is best known for his work as a short story writer, he started the minimalist movement, releasing popular collections of short stories like "Cathedral", the Pulitzer Prize nominated "Where I 'm Calling From" that came out shortly before Carver 's death, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love", & "Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?". Carver helped bring life back to short stories at a time when they were thought to be going away. He was born on May 25, 1938 in the state of…

In the short story, “Cathedral”¸ written by Raymond Carver, the narrator is a middle-aged man who is very judgmental towards a blind man, however, as the story develops, the reader comes to the realization that “[The blind man] sees how to get along with others... by contrast, the narrator, although sighted, does not see how his isolation damages himself, his wife, and their relationship (Bloom, 47).” This story has a biased view towards the blind man because it is told in the first person view…