Evolving Interaction Between A Disparaging Narrator In Raymond Carver's Cathedral

Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” explores the evolving interaction between a disparaging narrator and his wife’s blind friend, Robert. The relationship Robert upholds over the years with the narrator’s wife, as well as Robert’s inability to see, breeds discomfort within the narrator’s already prejudiced mind. Judgement towards disability and race appear at the forefront of the interactions and internal monologue of the narrator. When confronted with Robert’s disability, the narrator expresses discomfort and scoffs at the ordinary nature of his manner. The misguided assumptions he makes before meeting Robert partially stem from the narrator’s values and the resentment he has built up. However, the lack of a true emotional relationship between the