Only after the story is over will the woman understand what has happened. For Robert this might be the difference between a night that increases his loneliness and sadness and a night that gives a genuine connection with another person. He rises above himself, and is rewarded in a big way. The narrator even wants to make sure Robert understands what's on television. In spite of his discomfort and jealousy, he focuses on Robert, and does everything he can for him. Surely, he's in as much need of comfort as the woman thinks he is. He's just lost his wife, and is in the area visiting her family. Robert's problem is the same as the woman's, in a way. Robert's comfort, she knows, depends on the narrator being nice to him, and she doesn't trust him to do it. In the reality of the story, the woman's main problem is making sure Robert is "comfortable" (1.52, 54). As we discuss in "Characters," Robert and the woman are also going through rough patches in their lives – the woman's marriage is in a bad place, and Robert has just lost his wife.
( source) We agree with all of that, though we think Carver leaves out what we see as an important aspect of the ending – what it means for Robert and the narrator's wife.
But no, I thought about the physical contact of the blind man's hand on his hand. People say it's a metaphor for some other thing, for art, for making. It's a positive story and I like it a lot for that reason. He puts himself in the blind man's place. I felt a real impetus in writing it, and that doesn't happen with every story. Then, when I wrote that story, I felt it was truly different. Here's what Carver says about the ending in an interview with Claude Grimal: CG: Could you talk about the endings of your stories? The ending of "Cathedral," for instance? RC: Well, the character there is full of prejudices against blind people. For now, the important thing is the moment, and the complexity and the simplicity of his experience. We don't know if the feeling will last, if the narrator will continue his relationship with Robert, or if his relationship with his wife will improve. Robert tells the narrator to open his eyes. If you like simple endings that give you something to think about long after the story is over, you'll appreciate the ending of "Cathedral." It's this simple: Robert and the narrator finish drawing the cathedral.
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