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Cathedral

In: English and Literature

Submitted By rpinkston
Words 440
Pages 2
Cathedral In this world, it’s quite common to meet someone with a disability. In fact there are 650 million people in the world who are disabled, according to the World Health Organization. One of the main characters in “Cathedral” written by Raymond Carver, Richard, is blind. I can relate to him on a certain level because I have asthma. People with disabilities are often discriminated against, though sometimes, I believe, unintentionally. The general population of non-disabled people usually have misconceptions about disabilities because of the media and hearing about things from friends. This I what the blind man, Richard, encounters when he comes to visit the woman who used to read to him many years ago. The husband of the woman had limited knowledge about blindness that only came from what he sees in the movies. I used to get picked on because people didn’t know a lot about asthma. It is quite sad honestly, that people usually don’t take the time to learn about disabilities. The woman continually fusses at her husband about how he speaks and acts around the blind man. I, honestly, find this annoying. How is the husband supposed to learn the boundaries if she holds him back from doing anything? There is a part where the wife gives the husband a look and the husband thinks to himself “I don’t think she likes what she sees...” Personally, I think the husband is doing okay even if his knowledge of blindness is faulty. Richard is of the same opinion, I believe. He is always polite to the husband and is willing to spend time with him. I believe he can sense the husband’s discomfort. I can usually feel when people are uncomfortable around me when I have to take my medication for my asthma. I can feel the awkward glances and the way they try not to look at me are quite noticeable. Though I dislike it when people just stare. I feel like a freak sometimes. I don’t believe Richard feels this way. He seems to be completely at ease. His age could be playing a key role in his comfort with his blindness. He is mostly, if not fully, used to being blind while I am still young and asthma still can bring me down. I think this story was written because it shows two different types of people, disabled and not, coming together and showing equality. It also shows the breaking of barriers and letting people share similarities despite having major differences. If everyone took a real hard look at how they treat everyone, the world may be a better place.

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