Every so often, I need a cultural reality check. Most of the SDMB threads I’ve seen here seem to indicate that “Walter Mitty” is a fairly well-known character in American culture. Apparently, it even appears in some dictionaries to refer to a quixotic type of character. (Yes, the “quixotic” cultural reference I know.)
I’ve never heard of this character before this movie, and I didn’t find out until I Wikipedia’d it early this morning. Is this just one of the big, gaping black hole of cultural knowledge I have, or is it more of a regional term, or possibly age-related (I’m 38).
I’m going with age related. Everyone fifty and older seems to know the character, no one forty or younger is familiar with him. Even us old farts seem more likely to be fuzzy about the specifics of his story and just think of him as a basic milquetoast who has grandiose daydreams.
I first encountered the term in an article on Peanuts; it was used to describe Snoopy.
How many people born after ca. 1970 actually remember James Thurber, or (radically enough) have read his works? When I was in junior high, he was part of the English curriculum.
I had a similar question. I think I have a pretty good grasp on US culture (excluding current pop culture, as I’m getting old). Walter Mitty was news to me.
ETA: I’m 52 and took AP English in High School and lots of college level literature classes. Never heard of the author either.
yes, age related. Back in the day, people read far more short stories in many different venues than today. Thurber was one of the best authors for the generation immediately before mine, and I’m now 71. So, 38? 50 years too late to really enjoy him.
I think the previous version of this story set to film was excellent, with Danny Kaye. Reviews on this version are a bit puzzling.
to go a bit more extreme, Don Marquis was a fine, original and innovative comedic author whose best work was like 15 years before Thurber. To come ahead for a comparison, if you like Dave Barry, you’d love Thurber and Marquis.
I’m 48. I never read the Thurber story, nor saw the Danny Kaye movie, but I’d heard of the character, and had a fuzzy knowledge of the gist of the story (i.e., an average guy who daydreams about doing something much bigger).
I’m 28 and a huge Thurber fan (I have his collected works), although I stumbled across him by accident. I found a copy of “The White Deer” in a thrift store when I was a kid, loved it, and read everything I could of his. Still, he’s never seemed completely unheard of, just lesser known.
I’m 33 and “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” was one of those things that was always in school anthologies when I was a wee lass. I know I had to read it more than once. Thurber in general was a popular choice, both in anthologies and among students, when I was in, say, middle school.
I’m 34 and had to read the story in 9th grade English. I had checked out of the AP track for 9th grade…if I had been in the class I should’ve been in, I never would have read it.
I’m 62, and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was among my reading assignments in high school. I’m sure I had heard of the character before that, however. The Danny Kaye film was pretty well known too.
I’m 32 and came across “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” and a few other Thurber stories like “The Unicorn in the Garden” in various anthologies when I was a kid.
My kids have had to read the story in middle school over the past couple of years…I helped my 8th grade daughter with her homework on it a couple of months ago.
I’ve heard of him, but I’m old, and I’ve quite a collection of books and essays by American humorists, Twain, Benchley, Thurber, H. Allan Smith, O Henry, Parker, et al.
I read a lot of Thurber eons ago, so I was familiar with the character. I used to wonder if it was the inspiration for a song on one of The Cowsills’ albums: The Fantasy World of Harry Faversham. How’s that for something weird and obscure??
The concept of “Walter Mitty” has been in the collective imagination since Thurber wrote the story. Anyone who daydreams of glory is called a Walter Mitty or is described as having Walter Mitty daydreams.
The story is not as well known as the concept (and, indeed, there’s not much to the story other than the concept).
