ipl-logo

Cathedral Short Story And Film: The Cathedral

696 Words3 Pages

The Cathedral short story and the film went two different routes when telling the story. In the reading, I felt as if the husband was being a jerk, jealous, and ignorant about the blind man and the relationship between his wife and the blind man. I could tell that the husband was not too fond of the blind man by reading the first three paragraphs. The way the husband started off the first sentence with “this blind man” as if the blind man did not have a name and. On the other hand, in the beginning of the film the husband seems a little bothered that the blind man was coming over and spending the night. I could see that it bothered him that this man that his wife knew was coming over just by sucking his teeth forcefully while drinking a glass …show more content…

For example, in the story the plot was linear because the husband told the story about how his wife was married to another man before him and how she needed a job and began working for the blind man. The husband also told the audience about the tapes that his wife and the blind man used to send back to each other. In the story, I could follow along with the plot because I knew what was coming up next and with the details that the husband gave I had a better understanding about the history. However, in the film the plot was elliptical because the film started off with the husband on the sofa watching TV and his wife in the kitchen preparing dinner. The dialogue between husband’s wife and the blind man when he told the story about his wife Beulah was more touching then hearing it from the husband. Then the dialogue between the husband and blind man was more awkward then the short story because I could see how the husband was uncomfortable being around the blind man without his wife. Also, the husband didn’t go into details on how the two met, or how she was married to another man, and only told the part of the story when the blind man asked to touched her face.
In conclusion, the Cathedral story and the film went two different routes when telling the story about the blind man but also had some similarities that correspond with the story. However, if I had to choose which one it would be the short story because I felt the story gave me more details and I could picture how the husband felt about the blind man coming

Show More
Related
1375 Words | 6 Pages

In both short stories, “Cathedral” written by Raymond Carver and “A Good Man is Hard to Find” written by Flannery O’Connor, we encounter characters that have a limited perspective on life. We find that the unnamed narrator in “Cathedral” has a bias mindset towards the blind man, Robert before he even meets and gets to know him. While in “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” the grandmother is ignorant of her surroundings while being oblivious to her own flaws. Both stories demonstrate the overcoming of blindness through prejudice and vanity to end up seeing something greater than themselves through the use of characterization, symbolism, and epiphanies. In “Cathedral,” the narrator’s wife invites her blind friend, Robert, to stay in their home

Read More
1024 Words | 5 Pages

Narrative is generally accepted as possessing two components: the story presented and the process of its telling. A story can be presented in two basic ways, as a linear narrative and as a non-linear narrative. Linear narratives follow a straight line and non-linear narratives usually start at in the middle or in the height of conflict. Casablanca and Memento are two films which contrast in narrative approaches.

Read More
780 Words | 4 Pages

The narrator had never meet a blind person before and believed in the stereotypes. The narrator said “A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to” (Carver 331), in the last sentence of the first paragraph. For the narrator, there should be no problem letting a blind man into the house. Throughout this short story the husband continues to make short remarks to the old blind man, as well as keeping a routine for making comments to the blind man. For the reader it is really easy not to pay attention to the story and instantly get annoyed.

Read More
838 Words | 4 Pages

In Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral,” we are introduced to a narrator who tries to make it very clear to the reader that because he can physically see, he is better than the blind man, Robert. However, as we continue through the narrator’s interactions with Robert, it is shown that the narrator is actually quite blind to the world until Robert shows him otherwise. That is to say, the narrator can physically look at things around him, but lacks the kind of seeing that entails looking at things on a deeper level of engagement. This is the kind of seeing that allows Robert to truly see and understand things at a deeper level that the narrator would be oblivious to, such as his wife’s feelings, or even his own emotions. We get a clear vision about

Read More
1488 Words | 6 Pages

Characterized as a social place where people meet, the cathedral becomes a symbol of the husband's ability to overcome his loneliness and his inability to communicate. The last few sentences of the story paint a picture of someone coming to the realization that being blind can be more than just a physical limitation. A person can be blinded to the feelings of others and the problems that can affect our everyday life, yet through interaction and tolerance an individual can find both themselves and an awareness for people around

Read More
431 Words | 2 Pages

From that moment, the narrator show his true side to me. It shows that he doesn’t not care about his wife feeling toward the blind man. After carefully reading “cathedral”, the narrator is jealous of the blind man relationship with his

Read More
1288 Words | 6 Pages

When relating both stories, it is evident that the changes occur in a way that makes the main characters be a step closer to God, or even to make their faith more effervescent. In the case of “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, the grandmother dies like Jesus died, in the same position, and even though the change occurred a bit too late for her, according to the text, she was purified, and this becomes evident due to the pool of blood that she laid upon. This is because blood, which is red, stands for bad things. In the case of “Cathedral”, the author chooses to purify the main character by making him see further into his soul, and further into the meaning of aspects in life, instead of having superficial eyes. This said, both authors, even though creating different contexts, emphasize the same element in their

Read More
1522 Words | 7 Pages

Throughout the story the reader can affirm that the wife has a deep, strong relationship with the blind man. The wife and the blind man share an intimate and vulnerable moments together; one includes when she lets him touch her face so he can remember her. Similarly, the narrator gets to share an intimate moment with Robert that leads to an epiphany. The epiphany that the narrator experiences when drawing a cathedral refers to seeing life from Robert, the blind man’s, point of view and seeing the struggles as well as life experiences a blind man must encounter on a daily basis.

Read More
917 Words | 4 Pages

“Cathedral” is a short and warm story written by Raymond Carver. The author portrays the story in the first person narrative. Carver presents the interaction between an unnamed couple and a blind man by the name of Robert, who is visiting them. The story is told by the husband, the narrator, who is a prejudiced, jealous, and insecure man with very limited awareness of blindness. This theme is exposed through Carver’s description of the actions of the narrator whose lack of knowledge by stereotyping a blind man.

Read More
1554 Words | 7 Pages

In “Cathedral” a lack of communication between the narrator and his wife

Read More
602 Words | 3 Pages

In Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” he writes a story about a husband's journey to his epiphany. Robert, a blind man, teaches the husband how to see without his eyes. Often a person with the ability to see takes this for granted, leaving them only to see what is on the outside rather than seeing people, and things for what they really are. In this short story, Carver conveys the narrators epiphany through the symbol of the cathedral. Carver develops a story with symbolism throughout his story, beginning with the first line, “This blind man, an old friend of my wife’s

Read More
1358 Words | 6 Pages

Narrated in the first person, Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” is bound to unfold due to the thoughts and feelings of one of the main characters, the husband. Expectedly, the conflict revolves around him and the way he responds to the conflict leads

Read More
860 Words | 4 Pages

With this, readers could sense that the narrator is jealous, grouchy, and angry that Robert’s presence affects the narrator’s wife because of the connection between both the wife and Robert. The author prepares readers for the enlightenment when Robert came for a visit and that is how cathedral came about. The narrator explains, “The TV showed this one cathedral” (110). In this scene, the narrator and Robert bonded about the appearance of the cathedral. Instantly, the narrator says to Robert, “Do you have any idea what a cathedral is?

Read More
865 Words | 4 Pages

As the story develops, the narrator grows to like Robert, and as the story ends we see the two draw a cathedral together which allows the narrator see a new side of everything and allow for him to be more connected to the blind man and his wife. This plot is commonly seen in many different media’s, but it’s used more cleverly here, as it allows for characters to flow with the story while not sacrificing the story being mediocre. In saying this, the plot of this story is very character-centric and is vital to helping to advance the story. Within this story the character

Read More
528 Words | 3 Pages

In his contemporary short story, “Cathedral,” Raymond Carver tells the story of an unnamed narrator, his wife, and an old friend, a blind man named Robert. Robert has come to visit the narrator’s wife, who is quite excited to see this man whom she hasn’t seen in ten years, yet the same can’t be said of the narrator who is noticeably and vocally uncomfortable about his visit. The story is told through the narrator’s first person point of view, showcasing his thoughts and the events that take place when Robert comes to visit. Carver highlights the theme of having the ability to see, but not truly seeing, through his use of colloquial language, and creation of relatable characters. “Cathedral” begins with the narrator informing the audience

Read More

More about Cathedral Short Story And Film: The Cathedral

Related Topics

Open Document