Comparing Symbolism in "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver and "Shiloh" by Bobbie Ann Mason

The story The Cathedral by Raymond Carver is a story of transformation of a human character's life from depression and carelessness to belief and diversity. A cathedral is a symbol of faith, conversion, creativity and strength and is therefore a substantial component of Carver's story.

A cathedral symbolizes religion, and the TV show that the two men watch leads to an important question. The blind man asks the husband to describe to him the image of a cathedral. The husband is unable to successfully compose an accurate description because he doesn't understand the meaning and the symbolism of the building. He is not a man of religion, and he is watching the show only because he has nothing else to do. "Don't ask me why this is,"(245) he says. Compelled to think about the purpose of cathedrals, the narrator begins to realize that they symbolize the struggle that people endeavored to build those structures. What would make people do such a thing? Belief and religion sometimes give direction and meaning to peoples' lives. The effort required to build a cathedral becomes an outburst of creativity. The inability of the husband to understand the purpose of cathedrals shows that he lacks creativity, and his life is meaningless and not fulfilling.

The author uses suddenly uses intense imagery in the story that he hasn't used before, this is to emphasize the importance of the moment. "His fingers rode my fingers as my hand flowed over the paper. It was like nothing that I have ever felt before."(247) This marks the climax of the story as well as the turning point in the thoughts and beliefs of the husband. Nevertheless, the husband doesn't change his life by himself. It seems that the blind man is showing the husband how to draw and not the opposite. Robert is in control, but the narrator does not oppose that experience. He has been waiting for something like this to happen, and he is happy that it happened. The process of drawing a cathedral together with the blind man creates the symbolism of a cathedral and becomes a religious experience, which symbolizes the husbands conversion - his spiritual epiphany from good to bad. He is taught the meaning of value and virtue; he is happy that he encountered Robert.

The symbolism of the cathedral is also directly connected to ...