Without experiencing life firsthand, we as humans cannot know our boundaries and consequently, we cannot learn about ourselves and grow into unique individuals. Self-actualization is an individual’s personal growth and discovery through experiences which occur in one’s life. This process of an individual’s self-actualization is portrayed through the protagonist, Walter Mitty’s evolution in Ben Stiller’s 2013 adventure comedy-drama The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. In search of Sean O’Connell and the “quintessence of life,” Walter grows from a timid dreamer to an adventurous person grounded in reality through his countless experience. Consequently, Ben Stiller utilizes The Secret Life of Walter Mitty to reflect and develop how people learn about …show more content…
Through utilizing Sean’s explanation of the snow leopard demonstrating that “beautiful things don’t ask for attention,” Stiller conveys that everyone has the potential to experience their own distinctive adventures and consequently, learn about themselves but in order to do so, they must use this potential to the fullest. Ben Stiller effectively states that in order to learn about ourselves, grow to our fullest potential, and be happy with ourselves, we must strive for new experiences.
By the end of the film, Walter has fully grown from an unadventurous, stock character to an experienced, dynamic character having a unique identity. In the conclusion, Walter is shown updating his dating profile with his recent adventures and experiences. While these may attract women, Walter still remains homeless, unemployed, and poor; regardless his dire situation, Walter is finally happy with his own life and no longer feels the urge to daydream to escape reality. Through this, Stiller conveys that one’s position is irrelevant; through experiencing reality first-hand, an individual gains new insights into the world as well as into themselves just as Walter Mitty did. Through real-life experiences, one can learn a tremendous amount about themselves and in-turn, this leads them to a life in which they are happier with themselves or
” The 18-year-old girl dreams of attending college, and in her family, “no one in her family goes to college (“Where Dreams Come From”, stanza 2, line 7).” She wants to have a proper education and become a figure in the real world. Her family is sitting on the sidelines of civilization and she is sick of that fact. That household is aware of this; nonetheless, she still is not allowed to leave. Walter Mitty is no different. His wife is domineering and infuriating, as she constantly admonishes him and tells him he is doing everything incorrect. For instance, when Mitty accidentally speed up his Buick, his wife screeched at him that, “he was driving too fast (“Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, page 1, paragraph 2),” when he “was up to fifty-five km/hr. while knowing her comfort-level was forty-five km/hr.” She prohibits this poor soul from living his life by controlling his every-being than he does of his own body. He cannot accomplish his dream. His desire is not similar to the girl’s. He yearns of being heroic and the center of attention. However, he is the exact opposite and his wife frequently pushes him off the cliff of confidence, where his spirit is shattered. Not only that, he often questions her, “ If it ever occurs to her that he is sometimes thinking.” And she rubs it
Throughout my life, I never considered the possibility that everything may not revolve around me. We are so wired to the notion that we are the center of the universe and that our personal needs exceed the importance of others. Although today’s students may continue to believe in this idea of self-importance, David Foster Wallace argues that true value lies in our ability to sacrifice for others. In his 2005 commencement speech held at Kenyon College, Wallace strays away from the typical speech one may hear, about how you “made it” and how excited you should be to conquer the future. Instead, Wallace goes on to explain what is not talked about, such that the average American life sometimes involves “boredom, routine, and petty frustration.” Wallace’s speech discusses what it takes to overcome the annoyances in everyday life, but to also be conscious of our surroundings.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a fun adventure movie about a man who wants to be brave
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
In the movie and short story ¨The Secret LIfe of Walter Mitty¨ there was very different external conflicts, themes, and ways Walter acted.For example on the short story, walter's wife is always nagging at him for different things, but in the movie it is walter's boss and co-workers that are making his life difficult. In the short story, Walter is dull and not a very entertaining character 9 and has a very boring life, but in the movie he starts out that way but he gradually becomes a more adventurous, entertaining character with confidence. The theme of the short story was escaping reality, while one of the themes of the movie was beautiful things do not ask for attention. The differences in external conflict, ways Walter acts, and the themes between the movie and short story.
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.
Walter’s believes in the beginning, of the book to be a man you have to be career oriented and making enough money to provide for your family. In the beginning of the book, Ruth is making eggs for Walter as they discuss what to do with the money from the life insurance. Ruth is focused on making breakfast while Walter is focused on how a man would respond as, “I got to change my life, I’m choking to death, baby!.” (37) The fact that it’s choking walter to death that he can not provide for his family and be successful without the life insurance money shows that his mainfocus is achieving for his family . Walter believes his family should not only have enough money to get by, but thinks they should have a surplus of material objects. Walter tells Mama, “sometimes when I’m downtown and I pass them cool, quiet-looking restaurants where them white boys are sitting back and talking ’bout things … sitting there turning deals worth millions of dollars …”sometimes I see guys don’t look much older than me.” (76) As Walter sees his opportunity start to pass he starts to see he need to start focusing on his career.
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.
Even when people do not realize it, everyone is always learning from other people. Characters in stories all have a variety of different personalities. One character from the stories desires to be daring and fearless, while the other character is both both of those qualities. Since one character desires to be something that he is not, he puts his imagination to the test and makes his own perfect scenarios.
When Walter loses the money, his views change. He convinces himself that a man doesn’t need morals, and that the only thing that matters is how
The moral of ‘The Lost Thing’, Shaun Tan, is a message of embracing individuality within a sea of conformism faced in this modern world. Promoting the concept that the abolishment of conformism and acceptance of individualism creates happiness, the short film aims to assist people in realizing the conformist values enforced in day-to-day life are a burden to many. Every person is on a journey of self-acceptance, self-love and embracing what makes them unique. Some people may stumble on the way or veer off the path, but, they know that no matter how difficult the journey, in the end it will be worth it.
Mann, A. (1982). TAKING CARE OF WALTER MITTY. Studies in Short Fiction, 19(4), 351. Retrieved from
Walter Mitty’s fantasies give him self confidence. Critics show how Walters heroic lifestyles and how he handles situations give him something to be proud of (Leidy 1259). Walter is awed by the dreams that he falls into. Whenever he needs a confidence boost he finds himself in one if these action packed fantasies. Walters dreams give him a feeling of accomplishment and a sense of pride. Prinsky explains how these dreams give Walter a feeling of triumph, the feeling that he is on top of the world in these fantasies(3585). Walter feels like no one can bring him down; he feels like he is an undefeated champion of the world. In “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, Walter finds himself commanding a hydroplane that he is in control of (Thurber 44). Controlling the Hydroplane gives Walter a sense of accomplishment. Ferguson tells us that Walter is very dependent on his dreams to bring him a since a satisfaction while blaming all problems on others such as his wife (434). Walter is so dependent on his dreams that he does not even realize that he is drifting into