Short Story Walter Mitty

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 4

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

by James Thurber

Today's Lesson

Today's Lesson Objectives, you will:

- understand what Modernism is

- understand what a stream of consciousness is.

- understand the difference between a reliable or unreliable
  narrator.

- know more about the story itself

- work on Tasks 3,4,5,6 online about the story

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

• The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a short story written in 1939 by James Thurber.
• Appeared in The New Yorker magazine and was later added to his book n 'My World and Welcome to It'.
  
• It is one of the most included stories when anthologies are compiled of similar works.
• It has been filmed in 1947 and 2013, as well as performed in theatres.
• These adaptations do not always stick to the original story but expand on its ideas!
  

Now for the plot

Here is a trailer for the most recent adaptation of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

We'll read the original story in a moment!

Modernism

The short story was part of a 'cultural movement' called Modernism... here is a brief introduction.  You may take notes!

Modernism

• Modernism was set in motion by the Great War, which

divided Europe from 1914 to 1918, known now as World
War I. The stories about this “War to End All Wars” were so
horrific that afterwards people wanted to break with many
traditions. The horrors of World War II, from 1939 to 1945,

helped strengthen this idea.

• Modernist writers wanted to “make it new!” They also wanted to change the way people think about truth and

reality. Rather than concentrating on the outside world, they started to focus on the ‘inner self’ and the workings of consciousness.

• Various forms of new writing were tried out. In The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, James Thurber used the

stream-of-consciousness technique, in which the reader follows the private thoughts of Walter Mitty

Stream of Conciousness

• James Thurber uses the stream of consciousness as a
  literary technique. He writes down, in detail, the thought
  processes and fantasies of Walter Mitty. Each fantasy in
  Mitty’s head is triggered by objects or actions in real life.
  It is humorous to see how heroic he becomes in his
  daydreams.

• a literary style in which a character's thoughts, feelings,
   and reactions are depicted in a continuous flow
  uninterrupted by objective description or conventional
  dialogue.
  

Reliable or unreliable narrator?

Turn to page 224 in your book

While reading the story focus on a few things:

- the plot of the story

- reliable or unreliable narrator

- stream of consciousness

- modernism

What are the four imaginary situations Walter finds himself in?

1. Skater, Banker, Witness, Firing Squad
2. Pilot, Banker, Witness,Firing Squad
3. Driver, Surgeon, Witness, Pilot
4. Pilot, Surgeon, Witness,Firing Squad

How does this story fit into the style of the Modernism movement?

1. It looks at the 'inner self'
2. It was published in 1979
3. It has a beginning, middle and an end
4. A,B, and C

Walter Mitty is an unreliable narrator? How does the reader know this?

1. The story is told from the 1st person perspective
2. The reader has to interpret the story for themselves.
3. Only A is correct
4. Both A and B are correct

What is a 'stream of consciousness'?

Next lesson

In the next lesson you will need your laptop to read through the story again and complete tasks 2,3,4,5,6 online!

Task 2

a - Describe Mitty's heroic role in the second daydream.

- heroic surgeon who fixes a anesthetic machine

b - What triggers the second daydream?

Name two important story details.

1 - He puts on his gloves (like a surgeon)

2 - He drives past a hospital.

3 - Dr Renshaw is mentioned by his wife.

Task 3

a - Walter Mitty’s dominant character trait is that he is a lonely dreamer. What do you think he is
escaping from during his mental

escapades?

- his wife who 'nags' him a lot.

Task 3

b - What is Mitty’s real character like, in contrast to the characters in his fantasies? Name at least three things.

1 - forgetful           (vergeetachtig)

2- Indecisive        (besluiteloos)

3 - Submissive    (onderdanig)

4 - weak                  (zwak)

Task 3

c - Explain the title: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

He is often day-dreaming so he has a real life and a secret life

Task 3

d - Did this title work well for a modernist writer in the year 1939? Explain your answer.

Yes.  Modernist writers focused on 'the inner self'; people's thoughts feelings and reactions.  The Modernist period was around 1910 to 1960, and WWII was starting around the time the book came out.

Task 4

In Walter Mitty, James Thurber created a stereotype.

a - Read the following descriptions. Which stereotype do you think represents Walter Mitty best?

1 - An ignorant American who says silly things about the world.

2 - A middle-class American whose daily work is unfulfilling and meaningless

3 - A materialistic American who cares about nothing but money.

Task 4

b - The story contains more stereotypes of male and female roles and behaviours that were common in 1939, when the story was written. Name two of them.

1 - male surgeons / female nurses

2 - male parking attendants

3 - wife gets hair done

while man 'works'.

4 - 'newsboy' on the streets

Task 5

a - In Walter Mitty’s story, is the narrator a reliable or an unreliable narrator? Explain your answer.

 

- Unreliable, as Walter's day-dreaming means the
reader has to work out what is happening.  Everything

that happens is seen from Walter's 1st person

perspective.  His day-dreaming also distorts the truth,

making it hard for the reader to know what is real!

Task 5

b - Reading this short story, do the first lines show you that you are dealing with a reliable or an unreliable narrator? Explain your answer.

Yes - he is day-dreaming.

No - the first few lines don't let the reader

know that Walter is day-dreaming

Task 5

c - The narrator does not show us the thoughts of Mrs Mitty. How do we know what she is thinking? Give an example.

Yes - the story switches to a 3rd person

'reliable narrator' to let us know what she is
thinking and doing.

Task 6

                                                                                      Role Walter Mitty                     Role Frank Abagnale Jr.                         Same/Different?

an airplane                                                               Mitty is a pilot                               Frank is  a pilot                                                   Same

a hospital                                                                  Mitty is a doctor                          Frank is a doctor                                               Same               

a courtroom                                                            Mitty is  defendant                    Frank is a District Attorney                          Different