A Comparison of Walter Mittys

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a story of a daydreamer and his desire to break the mold. The short story version, written by James Thurber, and the film starring Ben Stiller show contrasting sides of Walter Mitty through his attitude, his love life, and his final actions throughout these works. This essay will demonstrate why the film version portrays Walter Mitty in a better light than the short story version.

The short story shows Walter Mitty as a pessimist that sees the real world as something to escape from. His daydreaming is the cause of not feeling understood, so he dreams up situations where he is far away, while also being a force of bravery. In the last scene, Thurber writes, “Then, with that faint, fleeting smile playing about his lips, he faced the firing squad; erect and motionless, proud and disdainful, Walter Mitty the Undefeated, inscrutable to the last.” (Thurber, 533). Mitty romanticizes death by imagining that he is face to face with his last moments, showing no cowardliness. Instead, he is brave in the face of danger. This shows that Mitty’s goal of daydreaming so much is to feel a sense of bravery and control in his life.

In contrast, the movie shows him as an imaginative soul that is stuck at a cubicle. Mitty dreams of having bravery like in the written version, but in a way that shows what he truly wants out of life. In the elevator, he daydreams about sticking up to the bully he works with by using his own wit. He also daydreams of showing the girl he cares about that he has feelings for her. He wants to be able to express these feelings in real life, but he is halted by his own self doubt. Mitty is driven to fantasize by his longing of the things he wants and not the physical need to be somewhere far away or run from his problems. It shows he expresses aspirations in real life and not just in his mind.

The written version shows Mitty as not longing for real life interactions with people in his day-to-day life. However, he is shown as the complete opposite. Mitty’s relationship with his wife is far from perfect. She is thought of shrill and controlling by her actions. When she says, “Not so fast! You’re driving too fast!” he takes it as she is limiting him. (Thurber, 531). How could Mitty have a spouse that isn’t controlling though? His daydreams often get him into trouble and without supervision, he could get himself hurt. He drove into the “Exit Only” lane and could get himself into danger. (Thurber, 532). Since Mrs. Mitty shows so much concern by monitoring him and offering to check his temperature, it proves that she cares about him. He does not seem to care whether she does or not, nor does he seem to even want her around. She questions him with, “Why do you have to hide in this old chair? How do you expect me to find you?” Mitty acts like being with her is a bother on him so he feels like he needs to be hide to be happy.

Walter Mitty on the big screen is in a different position entirely. A part of him wants to be in a relationship and does not view it as being a struggle. In fact, he attempts to actually pursue a girl named Cheryl Melhoff. Although she may not know it, she gives him the courage to continue moving forward on his quest to find the missing photography slide when he daydreams of her singing "Space Oddity" by David Bowie, as well as imagining her face to be formed by a flock of birds which makes him smile. He isn’t running away from the things in his life he doesn’t like. Instead, he’s running forward to the things he wants. In this case it is the girl of his dreams.

Despite how badly he wants to get away, the literary version of himself does not make it to an actual quest. He goes on an adventure in his mind, but lacks the courage to bring it into reality. He is stagnant, choosing to complain about his life without taking the steps to make himself the person he wants to be. Mitty could easily save up the necessary money and go out on his dream trip of action of adventure. He could even enroll in the Navy, to one of his daydreams of being on a Navy hydroplane. He has the ability to make his dreams come true and be brave, but he chooses to be content with lack of change and continue to daydream about what could be.

The Mitty shown on screen is also reluctant to go out on a real life adventure. The difference is that, with the help of a push, he forces himself to push out of his comfort zone in order to find the missing photography slide that he needs for the company. He goes on this adventure not just for himself. He makes real world connections with the people he meets, learns from other cultures, and learns to appreciate life itself. Once he realizes he never really needed to go on a trip for the slide to begin with, he looks back at how far he has already gone and it clicks in his head that he has already gone on the adventure he’s always dreamt about.

In conclusion, both the literary and film versions tell the same story of a daydreamer caught in a boring routine of daily life while using imagination as an outlet of escape. However, they differ in the content of the stories being told. The written version shows the struggle of breaking out of the mundane, but it does not compare to the film version with it’s amazing creativity, sense of adventure and relatable storyline.