Analysis of Raymond Carver's "Cathedral"

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The Blindness of the Non-Blind The short story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver displays one man's new found understanding and acceptance of a blind man over a relatively short period of time. The narrator represents the story's dominant theme of overcoming fear and prejudice of the blind through personal experience as well as mutual respect. The narrator who remains nameless throughout the play holds deeply unfounded beliefs and stereotypes of what a blind person should be, yet through various stages of transformation he develops a bond with Robert, the blind man whom at first he privately mocked and feared. The narrator is ill at ease with the idea of having a blind man in his home; however, through various ...

... an almost out of body experience through his newborn acceptance of Robert's handicap when he thinks "I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn't feel like I was inside anything" (115). The stages of transformation for the narrator are very rapid. Each stage leads to the next in a neat sequence. The reader sees the narrator go from a prejudicial man to an enlightened man within a dozen pages. Along with its various stages, the transformation works with the story's dominant themes of conquering trepidation and intolerance of the blind through personal understanding as well as reciprocated respect. The narrator goes through three initial stages before reaching his

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