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The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber: Summary | Short Story
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
ABOUT STORY
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber
This short humorous story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" was written by James Thurber, an American writer. It is a quite popular story. It initially appeared in "The New Yorker" on March 18, 1939, and was first collected in his book "My World and Welcome to It". This story is about a man who is prone to daydreaming. He fantasises about himself in various extraordinary situations. The main theme of this story is the concept of escapism.
MAIN PLOT
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber
As "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" begins, a military officer orders the crew of an aeroplane to take off in the middle of a dangerous storm. The crew members are frightened but encouraged by their commander's confidence, and they express their confidence in him. Suddenly, the setting changes to an ordinary highway, where Walter Mitty and his wife are driving into a town for work. The aeroplane scene is one of Mitty's many fantasies.
Mitty's wife notices that he looks stressed, and when he drops her off in front of the hair-styling salon, she reminds him to go buy overshoes and advises him to wear his gloves. He drives to a parking lot and again loses himself in another fantasy. In this daydream fantasy, he is a brilliant doctor called to operate on a prominent banker. His thoughts are interrupted by the parking lot attendant, where Mitty is trying to enter the parking lot from the exit lane. He has trouble backing his car out to get into the proper lane, and the attendant has to take over the wheel. Mitty walks away, angered by the attendant's skill and self-assurance.
Next, Mitty moves to a shoe store and buys overshoes. He's trying to remember what else his wife wanted him to buy. At the very moment, he hears a newsboy yelling about the trail, which takes Mitty into another daydream. Mitty is standing as a witness in the courtroom. He identifies one of the guns as his gun and reveals that he is a skilled marksman. His testimony causes a kind of disturbance in the courtroom. Later, an attractive young woman falls into his arms. The district attorney strikes her, and Mitty punches him, being angry. This time, Mitty brings himself out of his worry by remembering what he had to buy. "Puppy biscuit," he says out loud, causing a woman on the street to laugh and tell her friend, "That man said 'Puppy biscuit' by himself".
Next, Mitty goes to a grocery store to buy dog biscuits. After buying, he goes to the hotel lobby, where he has arranged to meet his wife. He sits on a chair and picks up a magazine that contains a news story about airborne combat. He again begins to daydream. This time, he sees himself as a heroic bomber pilot going on a dangerous mission. He is so brave and happy-go-lucky because he is willing to risk his life.
He comes back to the real world when his wife claps him on the shoulder. His wife is full of questions, and he explains to her what he was thinking. He says, “Does it ever occur to you that I am sometimes thinking?” She replies that she plans to take his temperature when she gets home. They depart from the hotel and head towards the parking lot. She goes to the drugstore for one last purchase, and Mitty remains on the street when it begins to rain. He lights a cigarette and imagines that he is smoking in front of a firing squad. He throws away the cigarette and boldly faces the guns: "Walter Mitty, undefeated, enigmatic to the last".
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