Comparative Essay Sample: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Short Story and Movie

Do you ever wonder off in your own thoughts? A lot of people daydream and space out. Walter Mitty is one of them. Walter Mitty is a middle aged man who lives in the city. He daydreams many times a day and about many different things. Certain things happen in his life that trigger him to start these daydreams. There is a movie that was made about Walter and a short story written by James Thurber. There are similarities and differences between the two. The short story’s wording is different and it sounds way more old fashioned. The movie is more modern and has a different plot. The short story is set in Connecticut, and the movie is set in New York City. There are similarities and differences with the plot, characters, and setting between the two. 

Walter Mitty is an unhappy man in the short story. He has a nagging wife and is not happy with the things he has accomplished and pursued in his lifetime. He is a round character because he changes throughout both stories. In both of the stories he daydreams about himself doing thrilling adventures in his life. In the short story different issues trigger his daydreaming. Like his wife, passing certain places, and thinking of certain things. To be more specific when Walter would pass a hospital it would trigger horrific daydreams. In the movie Walter still has day dreams but they are not triggered by anything they just sort of happen. Walter’s first daydream in the short story is him flying a Navy plane through a terrible storm. In the movie his first daydream he was saving a girl and her dog from a bad explosion in a building. The biggest change is the ending of the two works. The end of the short story he goes from being unhappy to continuing to be unhappy at the end. The movie ends more positively. He starts out in the beginning being unhappy and daydreaming a ton, to realizing his worth and becoming the person he wanted to be and his daydreaming decreased. Each piece of work has characters. In both stories Walter Mitty is the main character. The short story has two main characters, Walter and his wife. The short story revolves around the couple and how she affects his daydreams. The movie is quite different from the short story when talking about characters. In the movie the main characters are Walter and Cheryl. Cheryl was Walter’s coworker who he had a crush on. In the movie Walter does not have a wife. He has a mom, sister, and a deceased father. He has a boss, in the movie, who is similar to the role of Walter's wife in the story. They are both always nagging at Walter about something in his life. 

Another story element that can be tossed around is the setting. Setting is the time and location a story takes place. In the short story it takes place in a suburban Connecticut town. It is set in the 1930s. On the other hand the movie takes place in New York City. In some other parts of the movie it takes place in Nuuk, Greenland. The movie is also supposed to be set in the 1930s. I do not think the creators of the movie did a very good job at illustrating the time period of the 1930s. The short story did a finer job at presenting the time period with the wording and vocabulary the author used. 

Overall, it might be said that the movie was a more entertaining story. The movie had excellent characters and plot. The plot was more favorable than the short story because it gradually showed him getting out of his comfort zone and experiencing life. In the beginning of the movie he was shy to talk to his crush at work and to stand up to his new cruel boss at work. He makes friends throughout the movie that help show him that he needs to start living. At the end of the movie he overcomes all of the obstacles he went through to keep his job and he was happy. The short story on the other hand, Mitty did not ever have a huge breakthrough and become happy. Walter stayed with his nagging wife and learned a way to accept his miserable life. There are similarities and differences with the plot, characters, and setting between the two.