Carver's "Cathedral"

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how Raymond Carver's short story "Cathedral" from 1983 features an unnamed central character who narrates the entire story in the first person. It discusses how the husband is the 1st-person narrator and how he sets the tone and form of the story. It also describes the three-character organization and priority of the narrator's viewpoint and how background information establishes the nature and importance of the central character.

From the Paper:

"There are only three characters in the story: the narrator, his wife, and Robert (the blind visitor) and we only know what we know of the last two through the eyes or mind of the narrator, so we have no independent way to make sure his narrative is totally reliable. We take his narrative for what it is, however, as the story is primarily about him rather than the other two people. The story is about his own experience of and reaction to the newcomer, and through that experience and reaction how he comes to a newfound piece of self knowledge."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Carver, Raymond. Where I'm Calling From: Collected Stories. New York: Vantage Contemporaries 1989.

More papers on Carver's "Cathedral":

• Book Review # 97420 : "Raymond Carver "Cathedral"
• Analytical Essay # 130050 : "Three Moments in Raymond Carver's "Cathedral"
• Essay # 71190 : "Blindness in "Cathedral"
• Analytical Essay # 135587 : "Narrative in "Cathedral" and "Stones"

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