November 21 is Home Reading.
The story to read is The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber.
Questions to do in writing.
(Sorry, I cannot give you their numbers, but you are to eliminate all the questions which we cover in interpretations: title, summary, theme, idea, character sketchers, impression).
Interpretation in writing and be ready to present it in class.
HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS STORY?
Share the impressions in the commentaries.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty tells the story of Walter Mitty, a man who uses his fantasy to escape from the routines and humiliations he suffers in everyday life. In the real world, he is ordinary, passive, and an absent-minded person. In his fantasies, Mitty is strong and decisive, and possesses every good quality he lacks in reality. I think imagination is the leading theme of the story. It is something we all use – possibly something we all need – to make our lives more interesting. However, by slipping into a world of dreams all the time we isolate ourselves from the people around us in the real world (as W. Mitty did). So, we see that a dreamer cannot survive in this world and dreams are insufficient to compensate our problems in reality. All in all, I like the story; it is interesting, unusual and rather humorous. Nevertheless, I feel sorry for Walter Mitty, because he will never achieve those things of which he dreams, for if you want to make a success in life you should overcome yourself and do all your best and not just plunge into your dreams like W. Mitty.
ReplyDeleteExcellent!
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he is ordinary, passive, and absent-minded (no need for 'person').
The story deeply impressed me; it shows how a man can be a victim of a non-homing situation. At first it seemed to me (especially after the first paragraph), that Mitty just dreamed about changing his life, which didn't justified his expectations; he wanted to change the certain periods in his life, therefore, representing himself as a man who could influence on the history. Partly it was so only with one exception – Mitty wanted to influence on the war's history, its end; as during that war his personal tragedy happened, or its end was so tragic that left such a mark on him. And only through the dreams he came back to that time and could change something (but all of the ended with an ellipsis. Unfortunately this isn't a solution, as dreams only complicate the situation, because you realize that the moment has passed and there's nothing you can change. So only you can do is to accept your past, that's extremely difficult...
ReplyDeleteI see your arguments but I am afraid there is some sort of misunderstanding.
DeleteSlips:
... didn't COME UP TO his expectations ...
... who could CHANGE history ...
I like his story because of the numerous themes aroused there, and the major one is imagination. I often dream, like Walter Mitty, because it helps me to relax and summon up fresh energy. However, imagination, as everything in our world has the reverse of the medal. We find out the negative feature of fantasy on the vary example - Walter Mitty gradually loses any connection with the reality, preferring to solve all his problems in the imaginary world, doing nothing as a whole in his real life. The title of the story also emphasizes the baneful exaggerated influence of imagination on the person’s life, Walter's fantasies are not just foolish daydreams, they are the life (secret, but life!) for him. James Thurber tries to show us how it is important and necessary not to lose contact with the real life and always distinguish the reality and the imaginary world. There is no doubt, all of us have some problems whether in family, with school or institute, with friends, health or appearance, but we should do all our best to find the solution of it by the real means, but not only imagining what we want.
ReplyDeleteExcellent!
DeleteSlips:
... vary exemple- what is it? ...
... ON THE whole ...
.. solution TO it ...
Speaking about this story I can say that it was not easy for me to understand that those Walter Mitty’s thoughts were real events but with alternative endings. Firstly, I thought that they were only his imagination and desires, but having answered the questions I recognized that Walter had those events in his life and just cannot to stop thinking about them. He imagined himself as different heroes, I mean people who can save everyone or make something great alone. I like this story, it makes me think about people like Walter, people who were at war and could stay alive. Their normal psychic conditions broke up by war and it’s easier to live in fictional world than in the reality. Sometimes I think it may lead to schizophrenia if a person begins to think that both these lives, real and fictional, are the reality.
ReplyDeleteI would be excellent but for the misunderstaning.
DeleteThe questions to this particular story are misleading!
Slips:
... cannot (no need for 'to') stop ...
It's actually the story of an ordinary man in conflict with the ordinary world around him. This story mainly focuses on the idea that fantasy is used to escape reality."The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" was first published in 1939, the year World War II began. United States entered the war in 1941 when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. I think this situation strongly impress the author so he reflects this event in his short story. I think the composition of the story is unusual, because the author skillfully mixed the world of ordinary people and the Mitty’s world full of illusions.
ReplyDeleteGood!
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THE United States
(no 'the') Mitty's world of illusions
Who hasn't gotten through a boring day by imagining they were somewhere else, someone else, doing something different? Everybody dreams from time to time, some people more, other people less, but I think we all dream because we have problems, and want to get away from them. The story 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty' is fantastic. I liked the way it was written, especially those little transitions between the flashbacks and reality. It seems to me that it was hard for Walter Mitty to deal with the world, and he escaped from it in his dreams. I guess the story's message is that a dreamer can't survive in this world, one should discern dream from reality so that not to lose one's mind.
ReplyDeleteExcellent!
DeleteNo slips!
Wow...wow...WOW...
ReplyDeleteIt shocked me. Fantastic! Unusual! We can't predict events in the story! I don't know what to say and how I should express emotions, in which ways.
So, the author - James Thurber chooses an unusual way of writing with enormous numbers of flashbacks and actions which were with the character in the past. And at the same time these deeds of our hero link with things he has to do in the story, for example to buy some eat for animals and others.
As we see, our hero is the former officer of air forces. His military career has changed him greatly. He can't disabuse his mind. That's why it influences Walter Mitty greatly.
In conclusion I'd like to say that there are not former officers or soldiers. If one day you are in the army during military actions and you have to fight with enemies of our country killing them it will affect you in any case. And our life may be such Walter Mitty has. It will be our secret.
It's a bit incorrect, but nevertheless I don't abandon form my words behind this comment. But I have to say, I want to make an addition - Mr. Mitty is a great dreamer, but that's why his life isn't full of that what he wants to have. This is his bad dream to my mind. He wants to be the hero for his wife and she can proud of him.
DeleteSorry, you are a bit misled ...
DeleteSlips:
... are linked with ...
.. to buy some FOOD (or SOMETHING TO EAT) ...
'As we see, our hero is the former officer of air forces.' You must be kidding, Oleg. Is he?
I should say, that this story is closely related with my favorite literary genre of science fiction ( in this case the edge can be seen rather vaguely, but nevertheless ) with its different branches and faces . According to some of my previous words in posts - it's really difficult to use so tiny small story area to create a whole world , paved with an enormous cultural trace bricks and reflections of human nature and soul. Our hero , who avoids his everyday life , falling down into some sweet moments of drowse and his own illusions, connected with the development of his biography in the script of this story - maybe he is just an ordinary fibber or maybe just genius of his own inner-world.
ReplyDeleteAnd in conclusion , I want to remember Ozzy Osborne's song lyrics -
"I'm just a dreamer
I dream my life away
I'm just a dreamer
Who dreams of better days"
The man, who really wants to escape his gloom daily life - can build a whole Universe - you should have only a burning desire to give yourself to something immaterial.
Right you are) the lines of this well known song make a lot of sense and they're somewhat connected with our story;)
DeleteWow!
DeleteVery impressive, Andrew!
No more comments, thank you!
ReplyDelete