The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber

• Synopsis

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" tells the story of the aging Walter Mitty on a trip into town with his overbearing wife, Mrs. Mitty. Walter is inept at many things; he is an absent-minded driver, he can't handle simple mechanical tasks, and he forgets things easily. What makes Walter exceptional is his imagination. While Walter goes through a day of ordinary tasks and errands, he escapes into a series of romantic fantasies, each spurred on by some mundane reality. As he drives his car, he imagines he is commanding "a Navy hydroplane" through a terrible storm (1). When he rides past a hospital, he imagines he is a world-famous surgeon saving a VIP's life. When he hears a newsboy shouting about a trial, he imagines he is a crack shot being interrogated in the courtroom. As he waits for his wife to finish at the hairdresser's, Walter sees pictures of German plane and imagines he is a British pilot willing to sacrifice his life for his country. Lastly, as Mitty waits outside against a wall for his wife to buy something in a drugstore, he fantasizes that he is a bold and brave man about to be shot by a firing squad. The story ends with the inscrutable Walter Mitty awaiting this romantic death.

•     Questions

1.           What are the moral values that you have learnt from the short story

I believe this movie has a chance to be a long-term classic. It will become a classic if people figure out what the movie is really about. I feel that the purpose of ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ is not to thrill people; the purpose is much more internal. So, I’ve listed some themes that I found to be powerful messages within the film. These are ideas that resonate throughout eHarmony and our mission to help people choose better relationship partners.

Don’t judge a book

      When we first meet Walter Mitty, he seems to be a very insignificant figure. This guy is about as unimposing a person as you’d ever want to see. He doesn’t have any apparent virtue that would make you think that he would be gracing the cover of an important magazine. There is already a simple lesson in this: don’t judge a book by its cover. We all have the potential for greatness.

2.   Who is your favourite character in the short story.  Provide reasons for your answer.

I like Walter Mitty Character because his analysis in real life, Walter Mitty isn't anything special. He gets bossed around by his wife a lot. He can't do simple mechanical things. He's forgetful. He's not a great driver, and people always seem to be either yelling or laughing at him for one blunder or another. To compensate for his failings in the real world, Mitty creates an entire "secret life" for himself, a series of fantasies in which he is a powerful, decisive man admired by those around him and everything he is not in reality.

3.  Provide an alternate ending to the short story.

 As Mrs. Mitty steps into the drugstore to grab some last minute item, Mitty stands against the wall outside and imagines that he is standing before a firing squad. This is the last of his five fantasies. 

    It's important to note that "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" both begins and ends inside Walter's fantasies; in this way, you might argue that the plot of the fantasies themselves and not the plot of the real world dominate the text's action. Another way to interpret this is as a sort of victory on Mitty's part, as far as the story is concerned. He uses his fantasy world to combat what he dislikes about reality, and it would seem that his fantasies are winning out – at least as far as this story is concerned. They dominate reality.

    On the other hand, Walter is facing a firing squad – hardly victorious; he's about to be shot. You could view the firing squad symbolically, as representative of the people in the real world who hassle Mitty about being a dreamer. In this sense, the ending seems like a defeat for Mitty. He can dream all he wants, but there are always going to be people who "shoot" him for it.

The Open Window by H. H. Munro (Saki)

• Synopsis

The Open Window is about a young boy named Franton who visits a certain Mrs, Sappleton through her niece named Vera. Vera acted as the hostess of her aunt and narrated to Franton a family tragedy, when her uncle and 3 male went on a hunting trip and never came back. Mrs. Sappleton is always waiting through that open window until one day the men came back that scared the hell out of Franton.  Franton Nuttel visited Mrs.Sappleton's village to take rest for a few days to cure his nerve disease. He had brought a letter of introduction from his sister who four years earlier.

•     Questions

1.    What are the moral values that you have learnt from the short story?

Among the lessons that might be taken from "The Open Window" one important one has to do with the repression of women in a patriarchal society. Vera is not merely a mischievous girl but a cruel girl. Being a female, she is confined to the house and cannot go shooting with the three macho males. No doubt she would like more freedom and adventure, as her story about the feral dogs in India suggests. Her story about the three men being sucked into a bog may be a sort of wish-fulfillment. In other words, she might have thought about this misadventure long before Framton Nuttel ever appeared on the scene. Vera might be compared with Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, a woman who becomes cruel because of being forced into a passive domestic role for which she is temperamentally unsuited. Vera takes her anger and frustration out on poor, neurotic Framton Nuttel, another male. Likewise, Vera's Aunt Sappleton represents domestic women of Edwarian England and serves as a foil to Vera, who probably detests her too and sees her future in this brainless woman who is so exclusively devoted to her three men that she can only talk about the one subject that interests them: killing birds.
Vera is described as calm, cool, poised, and self-possessed, but underneath that young and innocent facade there is a very different person brooding, one who is preoccupied with cold and morbid fancies and developing a sadistic, passive-aggressive character.

2.         Who is your favourite character in the short story? Provide reasons for your answer.

The character that be my favourite is Vera, of course, is the storyteller without equal, who is quickly able to seize on details and weave convincing tales to horrific effect.  Note how she dominates the story - it begins with her words and ends with them. We are told in the first sentence that she is "a very self-possessed young lady of fifteen". It is clear that she sees in Framton Nuttel an object for one of her stories, as she is quick to establish that he knows nobody from the area and thus she is free to use her excellent wit and intelligence to create a fable that will shock Framton Nuttel for her own amusement. She shows herself to be an excellent actor as well as a storyteller. She is not only creative, but quick, intelligent and able to fool others into believing her words. This is demonstrated yet again at the end of the tale when, nonchalantly, she creates another tale to explain Framton Nuttel's swift escape from the house to trick her family, telling the tale "calmly" with complete equanimity. Clearly this tale celebrates the power that a good storyteller can have over a susceptible audience, with Vera presented as the master storyteller, and everyone else her ignorant and naive victims.

3.    Provide an alternate ending to the short story.

A Solid Mistake
As the misty apparitions came into view, Mr. Nuttel filled with fear, ran for his life. at the very moment he turned and began to run, the door swung open and hit him square on his pointy nose. It was Vera's little brother. He was very excited, for he had just lean to tie his shoe. Meanwhile Mr. Nuttel had been knocked unconscious. Billy, Vera's little brother, began to cry as he realized what he had done. Quickly, Vera's aunt ran to the medicine cabinet to fetch some sniffing salts. When they relived Mr. Nuttel, he was offered a full weekend stay at the inn for free, but being so shaken from the frightful events, he decided to decline and just ride the bus home. He hoped maybe that would go a little bit smoother.

The Necklace by Guy de Meupassant

                            

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•     SYNOPSIS

The story tells about how a husband willing to do anything in order to make his wife pleased and happy. It begins when the husband got invitation letter from the place he works. He came home in a very good mood in hope that his wife will be delighted because his wife never goes out. But sadly, his wife didn’t happy at all. Instead his wife felt very humiliated because she hasn’t a dress and she can’t go to this party. Because of that he gives his wife four hundred francs to buy a really nice dress. So it is true because of love we could do anything right? But she never satisfied on what she got. She asked her husband to give more money to buy some jewels because she thought she looks absolutely no one when she not wearing any jewels.

     But her husband suggested borrowing from Madame Forestier because he didn’t have any money anymore to give. The day of the party arrived. She was the prettiest woman, elegant, graceful and smiling. All the men stared at her, inquired her name and asked to be introduced to her. To make the story, the necklace lost when they were getting home. She was careless and should be more careful because the necklace was borrowed. Her husband try to search everywhere for the necklace because they got no money to replace it. Besides, he just works as a little clerk in the Ministry of Education.

     They went to Palais-Royal and found a string of diamonds which seemed to them exactly like the one they were looking for. It was worth forty thousand francs but they were allowed to have it for thirty-six thousand. They have to borrow some money from a lot of people to buy the new one necklace. It is such a hard times for both of them especially her husband. After they got replaced for the necklace, they got another problem to lay all the debts back. After ten years, she meets her friend back and tells the truth about what actually happened to the necklace. She was surprised to know the real price and it cost lower than they think.

• QUESTIONS

1.      How do you feel after reading the story?

       I was full in enthusiasm to read the story, The Necklace because the title sounds so interesting and unique.  The Necklace is symbolic of envy, irony and the story describes what can happen when envy gets the best of us.  this story is about pretty Mathilde Loisel who was born into a family of clerks.  she is a simple women because she unable to afford any of other.  Although she has a comfortable home and warm, loving husband, she is unhappy that she didn't owned the wealth.  Her desire for wealth is a high.  She cannot visit her wealthy friend Madam Forestier without being overcome jealousy and the idea of going to a party without expensive clothes drive her to tears.  One day, Monsieur Loisel, his husband come home bearing the invitation to the party, he expects Mathilde to be excited and is shocked when she is devastated.  Her husband knows when it comes to wealth its fully with dissatisfaction.  However, he still doing his best to compliment her.  Mathilde is happy at only one point, on the night of the party, when her new dress and borrowed jewels from Madam Forestier give her at appearance of belonging to the wealthy world she aspires to.  Fully at case among the wealthy people at the party, Mathilde feels that this exactly where she was meant to be.  she forgets her old life completely.  Her moment of happiness, of course is fleeting and she must spend the next ten years paying for the pleasure of this night.  However, Mathilde was oblivious to the small pleasure that her life once afforded her, she is oblivious to the fact that her greed and deception finally arrives.   

  2.   Write the ending of the story?

      If I write this ending this story, I write "Oh, my poor Mathilde! But mine was imitation. It was worth at the very most five hundred francs! It is not enough that you paid. "Madam Forestier continue talk" how you can get rid of my favourite things? Do you know someone who does not care other people's things?" mad Madam Forestier. "You not only eliminate them but you also do not return and do not tell me these things earlier. I do not believe this kind of behaviour you". Mathilde cry and feel so sad. She don't know how to said. She really feel guilt and fear.  She fear that Madam Forestier don't want being friend with her.  She said "Oh, my friend Madam Forestier" tears flowed. "Please forgive me, give me something chance to replace your necklace, give me order or something that make you happy," she continue cry. Madam Forestier said" my dear Mathilde, don't worry about it I just take the money that same value with the necklace". Mathilde feel surprise and look at Madam Forestier.  "But I do not want to give any things borrowings to you again." Mathilde feel happy ad in deep of her heart she feel relieved.

3. Who is your favourite character and why do you like the character?

    My favourite character in this story is Mathilde's husband.  This is because he had good manner and good husband.  He do anything for his wife.  He is willing to buy luxury clothes for his wife to go to the party.  He also gives money to his wife to buy something that she want.  The first thing that I like Mathilde's husband is he work for the replace the necklace that Mathilde lost it.  He really take a good care about his wife even though he poor.

  

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