A Blind Man's Gift in the Cathedral In Raymond Carver's story, "Cathedral", one man's prejudice is overcome by another man's gift. The husband in the story is given the gift of seeing a cathedral through the eyes of a blind man. The true gift comes from the cathedral, which represents the husband's prejudice and the blind man's open-mindedness. This gift is the revelation that the husband experiences as he "looks" at the cathedral with his eyes still closed. According to Anatole Broyard "Cathedral" is "a beautiful piece about a blind man who asks an acquaintance to guide his hand in drawing a cathedral he has never seen. In the end, the two hands moving together – one guided by the other – they seem like a gesture of brotherhood” (101). The cathedral represents a bond that is formed through the blind man's ability to break the husband's prejudices had a preconceived idea about Robert because he had no experience with blind people. He admits that his knowledge of blindness came from watching films. husband found it difficult to believe that Robert had a beard, that he could distinguish between a color television and a color television black and white and that he had eyes that looked (even if they didn't see) just like everyone else's. The husband underestimates Robert because he made a judgment about him based not on knowledge or experience but only on ignorance. He fires Robert not only because his wife pays him so much attention, but because Robert is different. As the story progresses, the husband's prejudices weaken and he becomes increasingly impressed by the extent of this blind man's abilities... middle of paper... d. The cathedral is the means through which the husband and Robert bond, and the husband is given his final revelation. In the end, the husband is truly exceptional when he sees through the blind eyes. Works Cited Allen, Bruce. “MacArthur Award winners produce two of the season's best.” Contemporary literary criticism vol. 36. Ed. Daniel G. Marowski. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1986. 103. Broyard, Anatole. "Widespread regrets". Contemporary literary criticism vol. 36. Ed. Daniel G. Marowski. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1986. 100.Carver, Raymond. "Cathedral." The anthology of fiction Harper Ed. Silvano Barnet. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1991. 1052-62. Johnson, Charles. “The writing that will be 'around for a while'.” Contemporary literary criticism. vol. 55. Ed. Roger Marowski. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1989. 281.82.