James Thurber, the author of "The Secret Life of Walter
Mitty," never openly tells us what inspires his hero's
daydreams.
The dreams are prompted by
little things that Mitty does in real life. For example, his dream of being a fighter
pilot is prompted by his reading about warfare in a magazine; his dream about facing a
firing squad is prompted by his standing momentarily in front of a brick
wall.
What really inspires Mitty's
dreams? It would seem that he is stuck in a boring, mundane life, tied down to a
nagging wife. His only escape is to dream.
The Mitty who
appears in the daydreams is daring, calm, and highly skilled. He is a surgeon who saves
lives, a fighter pilot who flies "forty kilometers through hell," and a condemned man
who fearlessly faces a firing squad. All of this is in sharp contrast to the real
Mitty, who can't remember a shopping list, who tangles chains around his tires, and who
mutters "puppy biscuits" as he walks around a shopping district.
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