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Comparing Araby By James Joyce And Cathedral By Raymond Carver

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The narrators in both “Araby” by James Joyce and “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver tell two different life stories about two unique journeys; however, they both experience epiphanies at the very end of their stories. “Araby” takes place in North Richmond Street—a run-down neighborhood in Dublin, Ireland where the main character—a teenage boy is living. He has a secret crush on a girl and tries to keep a precious promise to her about bringing her something from the bazaar. However, he arrives at the bazaar when almost every store is closed, and he leaves, feeling utterly disappointed and angry. On the other hand, in “Cathedral,” a blind man named Robert, with whom the narrator’s wife has a strong connection over ten years, comes to visit the narrator’s …show more content…

The epiphany happens when the boy arrives late at the bazaar, when almost every stall was closed. It dawns on him that the bazaar is no mystical, exciting or exotic land. The contrast of his expectation, “the streets with buyers and glaring with gas” (?) and the reality, “a big hall girdled at half its height by the gallery. Nearly all the stalls were closed and the greater part of the hall was in darkness” (?) helps him realize Araby is basically a place to buy things. When he overhears the conversation of a young lady with two young gentlemen and the way the lady “glance[s] at [him] over her shoulder” (Joyce 579), he suddenly feels like a strange creature at that bazaar. Furthermore, it dawns on him that his life in Dublin is humdrum and that Mangan’s sister probably has no romantic interest in him. Her conversation with him was meaningless, and he was innocent to believe the girl cares about whether he can bring back something from the bazaar. He leaves Araby feeling utterly ashamed and angry: “Gazing up into the darkness I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger” (Joyce 579). The epiphany is a sharp turning point for the narrator, from an innocent boy with materialistic expectations to an adult with a heart full of hatred and

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Authors of short fiction always strive to communicate a message in their stories for the reader to discover. Their message makes their story memorable and it gives the reader something to take away. Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” and Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” have very comparable messages concealed behind their stories. Although these two authors share their messages with vastly different stories, the protagonists in their stories convey similar messages for the reader to uncover. The authors of both “Cathedral” and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” use the protagonist to communicate that maintaining a stubborn mindset is human nature and it takes a significant experience to change one’s way of thinking.

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Coming of age signifies a change from childhood to adulthood. Two stories that are centered around “coming of age” are A&P and Araby. A&P is about a boy named Sammy who stands up for three girls who were being affronted about what they were wearing inside the grocery store. The conflict of the story and the coming of age moment revolves around what Sammy focused on when he saw them; until, he resolves to stand up for them. Araby on the other hand focuses on an unnamed narrator who is enamored with Magellan's sister and decides to go to Araby, a Dublin Bazaar, in order to get something for her.

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Can a person learn something from communicating with someone else? For some people is difficult to make new friends of just talking to a random person. One might find it unnecessary to make new friends. Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” is a story about the narrator, narrator’s wife, and the blind man Robert. The narrator is not happy with Robert coming to stay at his house.

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The main character had to manage his father’s neglect while growing up. All Amir really wants is to be “looked at, not seen, listened to, not heard” (Hosseini 65), and while this conflict shapes the way that Amir grew up, readers are exposed to the

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The scene then changes to the narrator’s childhood, a lonely one at it. “I lay on the bed and lost myself in stories,” he says, “I liked that. Books were safer than other people anyway.” The main narrative starts as he recalls a

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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

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In October 1905, James Joyce wrote “Araby” on an unnamed narrator and like his other stories, they are all centered in an epiphany, concerned with forms of failures that result in realizations and disappointments. The importance of the time of this publication is due to the rise of modernist movement, emanating from skepticism and discontent of capitalism, urging writers like Joyce to portray their understanding of the world and human nature. With that being said, Joyce reflects Marxist ideals through the Catholic Church’s supremacy, as well as the characters’ symbolic characterization of the social structure; by the same token, psychoanalysis of the boy’s psychological and physical transition from one place, or state of being, to another is

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Sacrifice, one the most prominent themes in Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, clearly determines a person’s unconditional love and complete fidelity for another individual. Hosseini’s best-selling novel recounts the events of Amir’s life from childhood to adulthood. Deprived of his father’s approval and unsure of his relationship with Hassan, Amir commits treacherous acts which he later regrets and attempts to search for redemption. These distressing occurrences throughout his youth serve as an aid during his transition from a selfish child to an altruistic adult.

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In the works of Literature an epiphany is “a moment of profound insight or revelation by which a character’s life is greatly altered” (24). In the short story “Cathedral” Raymond Carver uses epiphany to draw on the theme, blinded views can alter someone’s behavior. On the realistic level, epiphany advances the plot and character development because they are the basis for the story’s central action. They also help define the narrator and play a vital part in revealing the story’s theme. The following changes in the character’s views have shown an evident development.

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Raymond Carver is said to be one the most influential American writers and poets in the 20th century, especially in his works of short stories. One of his most famous pieces is “Cathedral.” This well-known short story is the final piece in Carver’s collection Cathedral published in 1983. Carver includes much symbolism through the story’s plot, structure, point of view, tone, and character build. The depictions of each character’s experiences, the irony in the story, and hearing the narrator’s point of view in “Cathedral” work in harmony to support its themes that prejudice and ignorance as well as the nature of reality are present and change throughout the course of the story, and all lead to a strong character development by the close.

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“Araby” is a coming of age story written by James Joyce, set in Dublin, Ireland, at the beginning of the 20th century. Joyce uses a person vs. society formula as the central conflict of the story in which a naïve boy learns the difference between the fantastical nature of boyish love and the actuality of the real world. It is these two opposing perceptions that lead to the story’s central idea that adolescents acquire maturity through the forfeiture of innocence. Through the use of richly crafted settings, Joyce accentuates the narrator’s fumbling, first foray into adulthood.

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The narrator then proceeds to show Robert what a cathedral looks like by taking his hand and drawing a cathedral on “a shopping bag with onion skins in the the bottom of the bag.” (Carver 110) . Through this bricolage, the narrator closes his eyes and has an epiphany, for in this moment where his eyes are closed, hands intertwined, he truly sees, and “ ‘It’s really something,” (Carver 135). It’s the minimalistic approach that prefaces this big event that really showcases the theme. Carver’s use of colloquial language, in creation of an increasingly relatable scene allows for the reader to empathize with the narrator, allowing for a much stronger impact when the epiphany occurs and the story’s theme has been

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However much he may think he loves her, she never seems to feel the same; nevertheless, he will not cease in his attempts to make her notice him. It is at the point he realizes that the pair can never be together that he finally has his “coming of age” moment. Short story Araby, by author James Joyce, uses literary elements such as symbolism, personification, and themes to teach valuable life lessons in a way that all types of people are able to relate to the message held within. Primarily, symbolism is a crucial element utilized to bring Araby to life. Darkness is used often to symbolize the real world and the bitter truths that come with it.

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