What does the Cathedral symbolize to the blind man?
The cathedral that the narrator draws with Robert represents true sight, the ability to see beyond the surface to the true meaning that lies within. Before the narrator draws the cathedral, his world is simple: he can see, and Robert cannot.
Who is the blind man in Cathedral?
Robert The blind man
Robert. The blind man. Robert visits the narrator and his wife after his own wife, Beulah, dies. He is a caring, easygoing man who sets even the narrator at ease.
How does the narrator treat the blind man in the story Cathedral?
From the beginning of the story, he can see Robert as a mere blind man. He resents him and dismisses him as useless and weak. In fact, the narrator’s stereotypical associations of the blind man are not different with that of a common person. However, a turning point comes in his life when he spends time with Robert.
What is the importance of the idea of being blind in the story the Cathedral?
The husband’s insecurities makes him emotionally blind. His inability to see past Robert’s disability ultimately prevents him from seeing the reality of any relationship or person in the story. The husband becomes more sensitive and accepts the moment of being blind has allowed him to become a better man.
Why does Robert the blind man in the story visit the narrator’s home?
Why does Robert, the blind man in the story, visit the narrator’s home? He is visiting his deceased wife’s in-laws who live in the region. How did the narrator’s wife meet Robert? She was hired by Robert to read to him after responding to a help wanted advertisement.
What is it about Robert that unsettles the narrator?
The man’s name is Robert and he happens to be blind this unsettles the narrator because of his preconceived notions and expectations of what a blind person should be like.
Why is the narrator so hostile to the blind man?
The narrator is so hostile to the idea of a visit from Robert because he is blinded by jealousy, anger, and confusion. The narrator does not address Robert by his full name, he address him “this” blind man instead of a blind man.
How did the narrator’s wife meet the blind man Cathedral?
He explains that his wife met the blind man ten years ago when she worked for him as a reader to the blind in Seattle. He says that on the last day of her job there, the blind man touched her face and she wrote a poem about the experience. The narrator then describes his wife’s past.
How did the narrator’s wife know Robert?
How did the narrator’s wife meet Robert? She was hired by Robert to read to him after responding to a help wanted advertisement.