The Secret Life of Walter Mitty - Essay Example

For instance, in the first incident presented in the story, the man was thinking he was the commander of a plane being revved up to get through a hurricane. As a result of this, he actually accelerated his car which caused his wife to break his daydream by shouting at him. From her words, the wife further expressed her desire for Mitty to let his doctor look him over (Thurber). From this, it could be perceived that the wife observed that there was really something wrong about Mitty however, the man might just simply be stubborn to comply with her suggestion.

This characteristic of the husband is further shown by his wife’s insistence for his need for a pair of overshoes saying they talked about it already and that he is not a young man anymore. On the other hand, it must also be considered that the dominant figure of the wife could really have an effect on the husband as it is later shown with his reaction about his gloves. When the wife asked about the man’s gloves, he put them on but when she was out of sight, Mitty removed his gloves again.

This could be a sign of the husband’s dislike about his wife’s treatment towards him which he could not bring to her attention (Cummings). Therefore, it is possible that the man uses his imaginations to escape his grief over his life. One important factor to be considered in the aforementioned theory is how Mitty can snap off from his daydreaming. When his wife called his attention, the man was able to get back to reality. The same is true when the attendant at the parking lot warned him about a Buick he nearly bumped wherein he was quick to realize that he went through the exit lane.

On his third daydream, he was able to snap off from it without another person getting in the scene. Rather, he was actually able to remember what he was supposed to buy next as requested by his wife. Lastly, when he was found by Mrs. Mitty in the lobby, daydreaming that he was a World War I pilot, he was resilient enough to remember that he bought the orders of his wife. These suggest that the man seems to use his imagination as a way of escape or even perhaps to make him feel good about his self.

Nevertheless, the way the story ended could bring back the argument that Mitty might really have been showing signs of mental illness which turned worse by the end of the story. It is not made clear if the man accidentally died in front of the drugstore where he stopped to wait for his wife, when perhaps coincidentally there was a firing spree or a similar scene in the area. Nevertheless, he seems to be symbolically presented to be drawing further to psychosis. The theme of the story then is the journey from illusion to delusion of people who are not able to psychologically and emotionally cope with the crisis of life.

Speaking of how the story ended, it could be realized that there are certain symbolic meanings seen in the scene. For example, the author seems to have deliberately chosen the front of the drugstore as the setting. This is a symbolism suggestive of how the story really ended. He is pictured to have leaned back on the wall of the drugstore which suggests that he went to no other place but to where he would be treated with drugs. The drugstore may be different from a mental hospital but it symbolizes medicines that need to be administered to patients.

The man leaning on the