Sponsor
Dr. Alexander Steele
First Advisor
Dr. Alexander Steele
Date of Award
Winter 3-24-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in English and University Honors
Department
English
Language
English
Subjects
Virginia Woolf, Franz Kafka, Raymond Carver, disenchantment, literature and religion, modernism
Abstract
Though removed from the time of the modernists, Raymond Carver shares similar interests with Woolf and Kafka in his late century story “Cathedral,” as he investigates art’s capacity for creating meaning, or "re-enchanting." While Carver investigates the function of art in a chaotic world, his story does not feature a central artist figure or a hierarchical social structure surrounding the artistic process, but rather an organic artistic experience which creates community among the characters. In this way, “Cathedral” can be seen as a mediation between Woolf’s and Kafka’s distinct, if not opposing, reactions to Matthew Arnold’s prophecy that “most of what now passes with us for religion and philosophy will be replaced by poetry."
Recommended Citation
Davis, Zachary J., "Carver, Kafka, and Woolf on Re-enchanting Modernity" (2026). University Honors Theses. Paper 1766.