Living a Lie in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Lady With The Dog

Within the first story written by James Thurber titled, “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” the take home message at the end of this excerpt is that any individual can create their own illusion and become their own protagonist in their own story or life. This excerpt begins with Walter Mitty, the text’s main protagonist in a daydream state in which he is leading a Navy hydroplane, this daydream is brought up into his mind after his wife right beside him in their car had told him to slow down whilst driving. Mitty’s first shown daydream may make readers believe that he has an extreme imagination due to yielding the ability to create such illusions out of simple everyday mundane tasks or routines in his life. We can infer that his erratic driving, or “driving too fast” for Mrs. Mitty can be seen as Mr. Mitty being lost and caught up in his own imaginary world where he is accomplishing heroic feats such as taking over a hydroplane and leading a crew to safety instead of simply driving his wife to the hairdresser. Mr. Mitty goes on throughout the excerpt to have many daydreams that share the same concept, that concept being that he is a hero in his own world and is his own individual regardless of what his wife thinks about his behavior. One particular daydream that Mr. Mitty had that truly struck out was the one in which he had created an illusion from a small stimulant being a newsboy passing by shouting about a trial that was taking place within the town. Hearing about the trial had triggered a daydream where he was testifying in a courtroom after being accused of shooting a man although in the daydream his right arm was in a sling (something he could relate to in real life because he thought of an idea of wearing a sling to avoid awkwardness when going to a garageman), this particular daydream at the end is what aids Mitty into remembering an item his wife had told him to get at the store. We can infer that Mitty has used these tactics in order to justify many things or help him in real life, for example remembering tasks.

Walter Mitty is a fictional character in both the book and film. He can be relatable to hopeless and shy people in the book. But, Mitty can also be relatable to others that want to be heard, and have hopes and dreams. In James Thurber’s story “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” Walter Mitty is forgetful and easily controlled, while Mitty in the film is outgoing and optimistic. Walter is a forgetful person in the short story.

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

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.

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

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.

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.

In his article, “The Allusions in ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” James Ellis suggests that the story has remained popular for a long time because “its comedy treats a serious theme, the estrangement of a twentieth-century man from real world and his consequent withdrawal into a world of fantasy” (Ellis 310).

To begin this essay, I’ll start with some critical thinking about “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, before I transition to my comparison of “On the Surface”. One admirable component of this story written by James Thurber in the year 1939, is his sharply observed, usually ironic, small details of human action that reveals distinct perspectives of the character’s personality. The back and forth construction of the story was used to illustrate the protagonist’s realm of thought, however it ends up creating an almost imperceptible observation. An example of such observations could be Mitty racing their vehicle, after being instructed from his wife that he has to have overshoes simply because “he is no longer a young man.” A response that illuminates Mitty’s furtive character. Another observation would be Mitty’s actions after being ordered by an officer to “Pick it up, brother” at a stop light that has changed. Mitty initially is ordered to put his gloves on in their car, by his wife, but then removed them after he had gained enough distance, and thus now Mitty has felt the need to equip himself with his gloves. Which gives us the slight frame of reference that he ranks his spouse equivalent to the officer in terms of authoritarian individuals, who he had been defiant towards in regards to his gage. Though simply instructed to proceed considering the stop light had changed. Mitty’s instinct prompts him to correct all of his unwarranted misbehaviors. Mitty’s obstructed

Imagine being able to travel anywhere in the world, at any time. This is such an exhilarating thought, as it may excite the mind of any individual. This was something that Walter Mitty was able to do, in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, directed by Ben Stiller. Although Walter’s travels may not have always been physical travels, his mind possessed the ability to take his mental consciousness into a state of euphoria at any time. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is based on the short story “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” by James Thurber. The main character is a man, Walter Mitty, that frequently daydreams about desirable experiences of all kinds; the character of Walter Mitty evolves throughout the movie and ends up actually doing some amazing things instead of just daydreaming about them.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is an unusual short story about a man who's dreams take him away from reality. His constant dream-like state fills him with joy which the real world could never supply him with. Ultimately, the reader is stuck in the life of Walter and sees the world as he does. As the story goes on, the reader learns of how tragic this story really is. Walter is so unhappy with his current life that he has to go into trances of action-filled daydreams, he cannot do simple tasks properly, and displays characteristics of a mental disability. Because of these reasons, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a tragic story.

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.

Shmoop Editorial Team. "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Themes." Shmoop. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 21 Feb. 2016.

Relationships are hard, especially when the couple does not see eye to eye. Walter Mitty and his wife know exactly what that is like. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” is a short story written by James Thurber. The setting takes place at Waterberg, Connecticut. The two main characters in this short story are Walter Mitty and his wife, who play significant roles in making this short story come alive despite being very different in many ways. Walter is the protagonist because he is the leading character, while his wife is the antagonist since she causes friction with Walter and his imaginations. Knowing this helps develop the theme of dysfunctional marriages as seen in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” as it is portrayed through the

to World War II as a pilot who saves his crew from a severe storm to