Who is the main character or protagonist of the story?
The protagonist in “The Cathedral” is the unnamed narrator. This narrator is by no means a hero in this story; rather he is an isolated man who seems bitter about the other men in his wife's past. His wife had a unique friendship with a blind man named Robert. Often, his wife would read to Robert in Seattle. The narrator seems to not understand this relationship; furthermore appears to be a bit jealous of this man whom his wife has grown so close to. His wife invited Robert, who she hadn't seen since her time in Seattle, to come stay at their home for an evening. Her husband was not thrilled about this at all; it was as though Robert's visit was an inconvenience in his life. He had certain stereotypes of blind people. These stereotypes made him quite reluctant to have Robert over his home.
Make a quick list of the character's physical, mental, moral, or behavioral traits. Which seem especially significant to the action of the story?
The husband is a very negative, immature, isolated, and shallow individual. He is extremely negative about Robert's marriage to Beulah. He makes this statement about Robert's wife, “And I found myself thinking what a pitiful life this woman must have led. Imagine a woman who could never see herself as see was seen in the eyes of her loved one. A women who could on day after day and never receive the smallest compliment from her beloved”.(84) The husband thought that just because Robert couldn't see his wife that life for her had to have been horrid and depressing. He shows a lack of interest in anything that is important to his wife such as her poems and her conversations with Robert. He believed that because Robert was blind he would be slow and unhappy. He got these ideas from movies that had characters that were blind. “Maybe I can take him bowling,”(83) he said to his wife. His joking about the situation showed his level of maturity. He made this statements to simply annoy her. All his wife was asking him to do was make her friend feel comfortable. All he seemed to do was drink a lot and spend most nights alone in front of the television smoking marijuana.
Does the main character have an antagonist in the story? How do they differ?
The antagonist in the story is the wife. She is a very caring, compassionate, and friendly person. She has made it a point to keep in touch with a blind man she barely knew. Robert, the blind man, became her very dear friend who she shared everything with. She was able to connect with people on a deeper level than her husband. Even though Robert was unable to technically see anything it had no impact on their friendship. They talked, laughed, and enjoyed each others company. She didn't pass judgement on him because he was blind. This was the complete opposite of her husband.
Does the way the protagonist speak reveal anything about his or her personality?
Yes, the way the protagonist spoke presented himself as being very self centered, bitter, and a jealous individual. When he first spoke about how his wife met Robert he showed a real lack of interest in what she had shared with him. He got extremely jealous when his wife told him about the only time Robert had ever touched her. Robert had asked to touch her face. I believe he did this to get a visual image of her before she left. Her husband was amazed that she had let this man rub his hands all over face and neck. I also believe he was bitter that his wife had someone in her life that she could share everything while he chose to share nothing with anyone. He didn't seem to be that interested in anything she wanted to share with him.
If the story is told in the first person, what is revealed about how the protagonist views his or her surroundings?
The husband seemed very oblivious to the one person in his life which was his wife. It's as though he didn't even see her. He didn't care about her friend Robert and what he had done for her sanity. He disliked the fact that she had shared with Robert what seemed to be every detail in her life. At night he chose to loose himself to drugs and the television while his wife was asleep upstairs. He had created his own existence and didn't let anyone in. That was okay with him. He was content with just being by himself.
What is the character's prime motivation? Does this motivation seem reasonable to you?
The husband's prime motivation was to just get through the arrival and departure of his wife's blind friend Robert. This motivation seemed ridicules to me because his motivation was built off stereotypes about blind people. He had never met Robert but had an opinion that they wouldn't be able to engage in any sort of activity together.
Does the protagonist fully understand his or her motivations?
I think that the husband knew exactly what his motivations were from the beginning. He blamed Robert for having nothing to do but wait for his arrival. He was being put into a situation that he rather not be in. His wife brought this stranger into their home and he wished she hadn't.
In what ways is the protagonist changed or tested by the events of the story?
The protagonist started to change his perception towards blind because of Robert. In my opinion, as soon as he started observing Robert's mannerisms things changed. He had this preconceived notion of how a blind person was supposed to act and look. When he had his first encounter with Robert he was surprised that he had a full beard, and that he wasn't wearing dark glasses to cover his eyes. I felt this started to make him question some of the stereotypes he had of the blind. He also had this notion that the blind did not smoke because they were unable to see the smoke that they exhaled, but to his surprise there was Robert lighting up a cigarette. Next, when he, Robert, and his wife were eating he closely observed Robert at the diner table, “I watched with admiration as he used his knife and fork on the meat”.(86) He started to realize that Robert was capable of doing things on his own. It wasn't until he was alone with Robert watching television that the major change in him took place. They had been watching a show with cathedrals and he felt obligated to say something about them. As he was explaining what was on the television screen, he asked Robert if he even knew what a cathedral was? Robert responded with a no, only what the man had been saying on the show. Robert challenged the husband by asking him to describe a cathedral for him. The husband had a very challenging time trying to use his words to illustrate this image for Robert. Robert then told him to get a pen and heavy paper which he did without question. They then sat on the ground and drew a cathedral together on the heavy paper bag he had taken from the kitchen. As they are finished the drawing Robert told him to close his eyes and to continue to draw. When they were finished, Robert asked him to open his eyes and look at the drawing. With his eyes still closed he told Robert, “It's really something”.(93) I believe he now had respect for the way Robert viewed life and the people in it.
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