Raymond Carver Cathedral Analysis
Kahn 1
Nick Kahn
Professor Martin
English 102
7 June 2014
A Call for an Unexpected Change
An initiation story, or better yet a “coming-of-age story,” is a narrative in which the main character witnesses a rite of passage that prepares him or her for adulthood. In “A&P” by John Updike and “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver, the protagonist faces an initiation moment that awakens him to a new reality. Sammy, the narrator in “A&P”, is distracted by three barefooted girls in bikinis who walk into the grocery store. The settings for “A&P” and “Cathedral” both take place in one location, but in their paces are different. “A&P” has a very quick pace in which the girls come in, he observes them, and he quits. However, in “Cathedral” the blind …show more content…
Although Sammy does not say a word to the girls, this shows a side of him that is envious about the power and appearance that these three girls make on him. When describing Queenie, Sammy states that he "slid right down her voice into her living room" (p. 20). Being envious and in awe with Queenie, he felt as if he had to do something to earn a place among those people in her social class, proving to himself and others he is better than the regular everyay customers at the A&P. On the other hand, in “Cathedral”, the narrator seems to show a sense of jealousy towards the blind man, Robert, and the relationship he has with his wife. Robert shows resentment when he says, “On the last day in the office, the blind man asked if he could touch her face. She agreed on this. She told me he touched his fingers to every part of her face, her nose- even her neck! She agreed to this”(106). The style that he uses to describe the encounter between these two sets a tone of jealousy in which he uses choppy sentences and goes on about there past. He is also very envious of his wife’s ex husband when he says, “Her officer- why should he have a name? He was the childhood sweetheart, and what more does he want”(107)? While reading this, one might get the impression that the narrator is very angry and could possibly treat Robert with no respect when he arrives. All and all, both of these characters have a feeling of resentment toward the antagonists and need to change the way they view the different swings of
Nick Kahn
Professor Martin
English 102
7 June 2014
A Call for an Unexpected Change
An initiation story, or better yet a “coming-of-age story,” is a narrative in which the main character witnesses a rite of passage that prepares him or her for adulthood. In “A&P” by John Updike and “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver, the protagonist faces an initiation moment that awakens him to a new reality. Sammy, the narrator in “A&P”, is distracted by three barefooted girls in bikinis who walk into the grocery store. The settings for “A&P” and “Cathedral” both take place in one location, but in their paces are different. “A&P” has a very quick pace in which the girls come in, he observes them, and he quits. However, in “Cathedral” the blind …show more content…
Although Sammy does not say a word to the girls, this shows a side of him that is envious about the power and appearance that these three girls make on him. When describing Queenie, Sammy states that he "slid right down her voice into her living room" (p. 20). Being envious and in awe with Queenie, he felt as if he had to do something to earn a place among those people in her social class, proving to himself and others he is better than the regular everyay customers at the A&P. On the other hand, in “Cathedral”, the narrator seems to show a sense of jealousy towards the blind man, Robert, and the relationship he has with his wife. Robert shows resentment when he says, “On the last day in the office, the blind man asked if he could touch her face. She agreed on this. She told me he touched his fingers to every part of her face, her nose- even her neck! She agreed to this”(106). The style that he uses to describe the encounter between these two sets a tone of jealousy in which he uses choppy sentences and goes on about there past. He is also very envious of his wife’s ex husband when he says, “Her officer- why should he have a name? He was the childhood sweetheart, and what more does he want”(107)? While reading this, one might get the impression that the narrator is very angry and could possibly treat Robert with no respect when he arrives. All and all, both of these characters have a feeling of resentment toward the antagonists and need to change the way they view the different swings of