Language, Dialogue, And Imagery In The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty

In James Thurber's “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” the movie and short story have much different external conflicts. During the short story, Walter's wife is always nagging at him and making his life difficult, while in the movie and it Walter's boss and co-workers who are giving him a hard time.Walter experiences his wife complaining while on their way into town, ¨Not so fast! You're driving too fast...What are you driving so fast for¨ (Thurber 1). He is not paying attention because he is daydreaming about more exciting things than what is going on in his life. In the movie Walter is very busy and nervous so he messes up an assignment and he goes into a daydream. Walter was sitting in the elevator

     As Walter's dreams become bigger and bigger, he seems to neglect the 'smaller' things such as his family. "Here I am a giant surrounded by ants! Ants who can't even understand what the giant is talking about,? (Hansberry 85). Walter has big ideals, but his methods of achieving his goals and ideals are somewhat irrational. Walter can be regarded as more concerned with becoming self-employed without really thinking about the consequences, which may be imposed on his family. Later in play, Walter learns that he needs to set his dreams aside for the sake of the

Yessir- whatever you want to be- you name it son! And I?ll hand you the world.? (108-09). Walter?s false confidence allows him to make such a strong promise to Travis. Walter is unable to see that these things he is promising Travis quite easily may not become reality because he is solely focused on his dreams. Therefore, he believes everything he promises as a result of his dream will become a reality. Furthermore, as a result of his sole focus on dreams, Walter is unable to associate himself with decent people. The prime example of this poor association is Willy Harris. At this present time in the novel, Walter is seeing the true extent of his impaired judgment due to focus on his dreams. As he discusses his ?business transaction? with Bobo, one of his colleagues, Walter is unable to see Willy Harris for the true epitomic evil doer he is. As his evident mental block continues, Bobo gives him insight on the growing problem, ??what?s a matter with you, Walter! When a cat takes with your money he don?t leave you no road maps.?? (128). Walter is beginning to learn the consequences of trusting a malevolent man like Willy Harris. Walter is solely focused on his dreams and quite palpably, it was a mistake. His judgment is so impaired, he trusts this man with the money Mama selflessly gives to him and his sister and it instantly vanishes. Finally, Walter is unable to see he is affecting those around him because he is singularly focused on

As Walter's dreams become bigger and bigger, he seems to neglect the 'smaller' things such as his family. "Here I am a giant surrounded by ants! Ants who can't even understand what the giant is

Walter's frustration festers and his anger turns inward towards his family who, in Walters eyes, do not understand him. Walter's family members do understand him and they also want to amass material dreams, but Walter's family members know that it is going to take work to get there.

In James Thurber’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” Walter Mitty faces the every day challenges of the real world. Thurber uses surreal dreams to allow Walter Mitty to escape these challenges. The main two characters are Mr. and Mrs. Mitty. Mr.Mitty finds himself in the middle of action packed dreams until someone or something brings him back to reality. Walter Mitty escapes through his fantasies because he lacks the strength to face reality and the courage to express his real feelings and opinions.

Sometimes when you are in a relationship, you start to wonder what your life would be like if you hadn't been with the person you are with if you aren't happy. In the short story by the author James Thurber called "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", a man named Walter Mitty daydreams about having different lifestyles away from his controlling wife. The theme of the short story is that you can be whoever you want to be as long as you are yourself. Throughout the short story, the literary terms found in "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" are characterization and conflict and they are explained in many forms. They both show how Walter's daydreams relate to his real life and how he wishes his real life was different.

Mann, A. (1982). TAKING CARE OF WALTER MITTY. Studies in Short Fiction, 19(4), 351. Retrieved from

Are you ever struck by a sudden daydream or suddenly start to zone out into your thoughts? In “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” written by James Thurber, Walter experiences many thoughts and daydreams that depict his feelings and problems in life. There are also many different discussion topics such as conflicts, daydreams, and character traits.

Showing his frustration to his mother, Walter does not feel like he will ever acquire his dream because he feels like he never got the chance or opportunity to. The inability of not able to provide a better life for his household is causing him to stress, act out of character and clouding his decision making. With nowhere else to turn he thought he could use his father’s life insurance money to invest into a liquor store which turned into a scam. Walter feeling trapped from making advancements in life, he makes a huge mistake and learns from this error. In the play Walter is talking to mother describing his anger,

    In the movie the movie of Walter Mitty they had more places for the setting, while in the short story the setting only takes place in a city named Waterbury where all they do is run errands. It had basically explained how they were in Waterbury but different places within the city. Due to this the short story didn't have many characters. However in the movie Walter was in the office and traveled many places. He was trying to track down Sean O’Connell to set negative 25 which was the cover photo. Some of the places Walter traveled included Greenland, Iceland, and Afghanistan, while he did these things it showed him that he is an important person. Every time Walter traveled he would always have some type of daydream, an example is when he was on the way to the volcano and he fell due to a daydream he had. Therefore the daydreams that Walter has affects what he gets done and i say that the movie adds much more detail than the short story.

In the story “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” by James Thurber, we get to experience what a normal day for the main character, Walter Mitty, is like. Walter Mitty is constantly jumping into a fantasy world where he is something that he is not in reality due to the feeling that he is a failure in life. Walter Mitty also thinks he is constantly being picked on by the people around him and also considers his wife to be a nag because she complains about everything that he does wrong. What I believe is myself is that Walter Mitty’s wife is not a nag, but just is a loving wife that has the best interests for him at heart and wants to protect him from himself. It was said in the story that Mrs. Mitty said, “Remember to get those overshoes while I’m having my hair done… Why don’t you wear your gloves? Have you lost your gloves” (Thurber 2)? Walter Mitty had viewed what his wife had said as nagging, but what he did not understand was that she was just looking out for Walter Mitty because it was cold and she did not want him to get sick. Mrs. Mitty

Walter struggles in understanding who he needs to be for his family. He wants to take his place as the patriarch of the family, but he feels incapable of providing them with the lifestyle they deserve. This concern is always at the forefront of his mind, and it affects his attitude and outlook. The anxiety that Walter is dealing with creates confrontation with his sister. He fears that her dream will interfere with his own agenda of making a better life for his family. The severity of the tension becomes more and more apparent with Walter’s unwise investment. Walter is dealing with the burden that he has let his family down, while Beneatha is flabbergasted by the reality that her future has been snatched away from her, and she had no control over it. While reflecting on the situation, Beneatha remarks, “ I sound like a human who just had her future taken right out of my hands! While I was sleeping….things were happening in this world that directly concerned me and nobody consulted me—they just went out and did things—and changed my life” (Hansberry 3.15). Walter and Beneatha’s individual issues with the outcome of the situation cause them to find fault with one another during a time when their family needs to pull together to get through such a financial hardship. Walter is in an emotional pit; his turning to alcohol and music instead of his family for support expands the

Life is about finding yourself, each other, and being true to one’s self. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is an extremely original and creative story written by James Thurber. The movie, The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty, starring Ben Stiller, conveys a daydreamer escaping his typical life by disappearing into a realm of fantasies filled with heroism, romance and action. In both the movie and the book, the title character retreats into fantasy as an escape from his mundane reality because in the real world, he is ordinary, insecure, and passive. In the short story, Walter

Because of this Walter has lost his self esteem and will to do anything to make his life better. This is important because it shows that Walter does not have a firm grasp on his own identity.