I like it when there is some feeling of threat or sense of menace in short stories. I think a little menace is fine to have in a story. For one thing, it’s good for the circulation. There has to be tension, a sense that something is imminent, that certain things are in relentless motion, or else, most often, there simply won’t be a story. What creates tension in a piece of fiction is partly the way the concrete words are linked together to make up the visible action of the story. But it’s also the things that are left out, that are implied, the landscape just under the smooth (but sometimes broken and unsettled) surface of things.
Wow! Raymond Carver sure follows his own advice, and this can be seen in his short story, “Cathedral.” While reading the short story, I felt that there was a sense of urgency–a sense of doom, almost. As if something bad was lying underneath Richard’s blindness. While reading the short story, I kept asking myself, “Is Richard really blind?” Carver drops a couple of fascinating points in this short story such as the narrator’s wife’s thigh being exposed and the narrator’s shift from calling Robert “the blind man” to calling him by his actual name after admitting he felt pity towards the old man. Likewise, the narrator’s attitude towards Robert is fascinating, as in the beginning, he already has some sort of resentment towards the blind man due to the stereotypes we associate with blind people. But, he was left flabbergasted when Robert appears to be quite confident, gregarious and even at times not blind (like when he was eating with a great amount of skill and etiquette).
Now, back to Carver’s quote, I do agree that the way words are grouped and the details that are left out usually make up the action and build up the suspense of a story. For example, what did the narrator actually draw? Why did he keep his eyes closed? Why does the narrator (and we, the readers) only know so little about the blind man’s wife? Did she even exist, or was she a figment of Robert’s imagination, meant to fill up the empty void that the narrator’s wife left..and if so, did he use the tapes in order to live out his fantasy? These are all questions I kept asking myself, and I wish I knew the answer to..but these unmentioned, seemingly unimportant details is what makes the story seem suspenseful.
Unfortunately, we’re also crippled by the narrator’s inability to be fluid and hold onto small details. Because of this, the narrator is successful in keeping the story seemingly ominous..but at the same time, we’re left with not knowing what he doesn’t know. This also contributes to the feeling of tension between the couple and the blind man because we are only seeing this short story through the narrator’s eyes.
But, at the end of the short story, that tension is cracked. By keeping his eyes closed, the narrator wants to step into Robert’s shoes. I felt that the strongest statement that the narrator shares in the short story is:
My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like I was inside anything.
Although we’re used to the narrator’s short and vague sentences, I felt that this was the moment in which he really did try to understand Robert..and he shares it with us in a fascinating way. To say he didn’t feel as if he were “inside anything” can relate to how being blind can make you unaware of your surroundings..so much so that you know where you are, but you don’t feel as if you’re there because you’re not able to experience it in the same way everyone else may. You’re not aware of the colors of the wall, how the sunlight floods in through the windows..how the drapes block out the outdoors. You’re just there. Floating, almost. A disconnected person..you might even feel like an outcast. But, at the same time..I feel that the narrator was able to understand Robert: Just because he is blind, doesn’t mean he can’t see. He can’t look, but he has the deep ability of seeing. This can be seen even through the interactions of the wife and Robert: Robert understands the narrator’s wife in a way that may be stronger than the narrator’s ability, because the narrator is only aware of his wife. He only looks at her..he doesn’t see her.
I know I’m all over the place, but the fact of the matter is that the more I think about this story..the more that I’m starting to realize that I’m starting to actually understand it better. I guess this is the problem with a lot of texts we’re given..for example, “The Story of an Hour”..if you just read it, you’ll believe that the wife may have died from being so happy to see her husband. But, from actually taking a closer read at the text..things start to come to the surface: The wife was unhappy with her marriage…she was happy her husband “died”..etc.
So, I’m starting to reflect back on this quote:
And then I found myself thinking what a pitiful life this woman must have led. Imagine a woman who could never see herself as she was seen in the eyes of her loved one. A woman who could go on day after day and never receive the smallest compliment from her beloved.
At first, I found myself agreeing with the narrator, because again, we’re only seeing what’s unfolding through the narrator’s eyes. We’re only feeling what he’s feeling. He’s the one who shapes the story..the tone..the sense of urgency and almost impending danger with this blind man. But, after reading it again, it so obvious that the narrator doesn’t understand that you don’t need to look at someone for their physical worth to love them; no, you need to adore someone unconditionally and understand them in order for it to be called love. What Robert and his wife had was something special..something that went beyond the physical. He didn’t need to be aware of what she may have looked like. It’s a classic example of personality vs. the physical in a relationship. We live in a society where looks DO matter as selfish and as harsh as it may sound. But, Robert is here to remind us that it doesn’t have to be that way..it shouldn’t be that way. The narrator sees his wife but he doesn’t share such a deep connection with her because he only touches the surface of the relationship they’ve built. He doesn’t delve deep. And as a result, the wife has a better relationship with Robert..someone who does have the ability to focus on her inner being. All of this also reminds me of the difference between listening and hearing.
- Hearing: Sound waves hit the tympanic membrane, the vibration is amplified through the auditory ossicles and the vibrations cause compressions in the fluid within the cochlea, causing the hair cells to respond and send information to the vestibulocochlear nerve.
- Listening: The brain processes the knowledge received through the act of hearing and assigns meaning to it.
- Looking: Light passes through the lens..hits the retina, which stimulates our rods and sends images to the brain using the optic nerve.
- Seeing: The brain processes the knowledge received through the optic nerve and assigns meaning to it.
See what I did there? haha.
Overall, this story is short, yes. Vague due to the narrator..yes, somewhat. But, it goes so much more beyond that. If we just read it for its surface value, we would become ignorant like the narrator himself. But, if we try to understand it..try to delve deeper into its meaning, we can truly appreciate it.
