Throughout Walter Mitty's life, he leads a second, more exciting life, where he is a renowned doctor, a war pilot and much more Again. James Thurber's short story, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a book about how a quiet man is bossed around and bullied throughout his life, forcing him to dream to find happiness. Walter Mitty feels the need to escape into his daydreams because his wife won't allow him to do so. making decisions, his wife directs him and bullies him, forcing him to dream to assert his manhood, and he is bored with his life, and wants to be recognized for something in life, and you can see him insert himself in these positions throughout everything. of his daydreams. One of the main reasons why Walter Mitty daydreams is because his wife does not allow him to make any decisions. In his daydreams, he shows his leadership and makes big decisions, like when he imagines he was a doctor and he has to think quickly, when the machine that was keeping this man alive collapsed while repairing the machine with a ballpoint pen. This just proves that Walter Mitty wanted to form his own ideas, do something to help others and be known throughout the country. Another big reason why he likes to make his own choices in his daydreams is because his wife and other people continually tell him what to do. Just like when Walter Mitty had to drive his wife to where she was getting her hair done, only to be thanked with a list of things he needs to buy. Then shortly after, she yells at him, like he's five years old, for not wearing his gloves! This shows that he is rarely respected, or even able to make his own decisions. Another big reason Walter Mitty always dreamed was because he wanted to be more manly, especially since almost always... middle of paper... we're together. All this shows that he knows exactly what he dreams of and that he aspires to a better, more exciting and more influential life. Walter Mitty feels the need to escape into his daydreams because of his wife and other people he meets on a daily basis. today he is always being told what to do, his wife makes him look like a child by shouting at him in public, depriving him of his manhood, and he is bored with his life and wants to become a bigger and more important character. influential. he can have a positive impact on the lives of others since no one has a positive impact on him. So when you go through the story, you can see in his daydreams all the reasons why he feels the need to escape into his daydreams rather than real life. Works Cited Thurber, James. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Np, and Web. November 13. 2013.