Cathedral by Raymond Carver

Cathedral features three primary characters: the narrator, his wife, and the blind man Robert. For each character we can graph their traits, and motivations why they do and say the things they do and say. The wife she clearly has had a rocky past, a broken marriage, a suicide attempt, and what apparently is a less than ideal marriage to her current husband. She is a sensitive person, however, and has developed a close friendship with Robert, whom she has kept in touch with for a decade. She is generous, courteous and genuinely happy to get a visitor. Robert, although he is not the protagonist, is the hero of the story, I think -- a man who has not let his blindness impair his quality of life. He has forged close relationships, had a loving marriage, and is clearly an open-minded, easy going, trustworthy individual.