“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” by James Thurber

January 27th, 2012

by Meredith Nudo

And now for something completely different. Not a man with a tape recorder up his nose (or a man with a tape recorder up his brother's nose), but rather the fact that this go-round, I'm reviewing a short story instead of a book. Specifically…uhhhh…read the title. I probably shouldn't admit this lest I get my lit crit privileges permanently revoked, but I've never read "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty." Familiar with the basic gist and its pop culture impact. But never actually read.

Yeah. I know. I'm the worst.

Since it's available online now, though, any and all excuses up and bolted out the door.

Originally published in a 1939 issue of The New Yorker, the story simultaneously admonishes and celebrates the human imagination. Protagonist Walter Mitty phases in and out of fantasies of wartime, miraculous surgery, courtroom success and more. All this despite the fact that, in reality, he's actually kind of an ineffectual, useless man. James Thurber's now-legendary protagonist strikes an interesting enough balance between charming and frustrating – a dichotomy which pretty much anyone will find both personal and universal. After all, most of us know all too well what growing too absorbed in our own fantasies feels like, and Mitty's concluding reverie cleverly summarizes the emotional drawbacks of straying a little far from reality.

I feel as if this overarching universality renders it a nifty little read, particularly when coupled with the sharp humor and lasting impression on literature and other creative pursuits (including, most notably, film and animation). After all, the story did give us "Mittyesque," although as of late the word seems to have fallen out of fashion. English majors, however, will probably score some pretty sweet brownie points if they drop it into papers and discussions. Provided they actually use it correctly, of course, because otherwise you'll just seem like a buzzword-dropping crazypants pulling from the Critic Collective Subconscious. Screenwriters and other cinematically inclined students might benefit from knowing and understanding this character type, too.

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