Carver's "cathedral"

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Characterization in "Cathedral" May 11, 2010, 8:01 am Three dimensional characters have more depth than those rendered merely on a physical or social plane. Each of these dimensions has its purpose and place, but it is that third dimension, psychological depth, that ensures a strong emotional response in the reader. When compelling dramatic or comic appeal are at stake, the details of how a character looks and his or her place in society (cab driver, mother, teacher, cop, sales clerk) don't go very far. For maximum effect, readers need a deeper understanding of how a character thinks, how motivated he or she is to overcome obstacles. It's from the third dimension of psychology that writers find the rich clues about a character's strength of will, desires, phobias, weaknesses, insecurities, prejudices, repulsions-the grist of great and compelling characters. In Raymond Carver's "Cathedral," there are four characters (in order of appearance): 1. a first-person narrator, 2. the narrator's wife, 3. a sightless man, Robert, and 4. the blind man's deceased wife, Beulah. The first-person narrator is the central character, who overcomes insecurity toward his marriage and achieves profound enlightenment in an electrifying moment connected with sightlessness. At the beginning of the story, the narrator is anxious and insecure about his wife's relationship with Robert and shows prejudice toward sightless people. Gradually, a bond of trust emerges between the two men through sharing a meal, talking, having drinks and smoking marijuana, and, finally, engaging in an intimate exercise of drawing a cathedral together. Robert holds the narrator's hand while the narrator draws, first with eyes open and then closed, experiencing a realistic sensation of sightlessness. Narrator: "My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn't feel like I was inside
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