In the stories, “the yellow wallpaper” and “the Secret Life of Walter Mitty” they have Protagonists that both use their imaginative power to escape reality. The difference between the two is that one of them could come back to reality while the other slowly lost her mind. Both protagonists have similar reasons for trying to escape reality and for both it mainly involves their domestic lives and spouse. Both characters are constantly being told what, and how to do things by those close to them, leaving them no where to go to for comfort except there own minds.
Walter Mitty (the protagonist of “the secret life of Walter Mitty”) is basically a normal guy, except for one huge problem. His mind can easily wander. His mind is most prone to wandering when he thinks of his wife. His wife regularly belittles him and does not treat him like a “man”. It is for this reason that whenever Walter Mitty’s mind wanders he goes into a world where he is the hero and the star. He goes into a world where he can be whoever he wants to be and be the best possible at being that person.
Much like Walter Mitty, Charlotte (the protagonist of “the yellow wallpaper”), has a husband who persistently tells her what to do and what is best for her. Just like Walter Mitty’s wife, her husband expects her to do what she is told and if she doesn’t then she is just a “silly girl”. This relationship with her husband also triggers her mind to wander. Yet, when charlotte’s mind wanders, it doesn’t really wander she just slowly looses her mind. Walter Mitty uses his imagination to relieve the stresses and constraints put on him by his wife.
Charlotte on the other hand begins to loose her mind and imagine things as a way to let out her emotions she keeps trapped inside. But, when she does it she doesn’t go back to reality like Walter Mitty. The more she holds in her emotions, the more severe her hallucinations become, until she looses her mind. Walter Mitty just zones out, but can always come back to reality as a normal person. In fact, I believe Walter Mitty has a fine mental state he just likes to daydream. It helps him deal with life and makes him happy. The stories themselves are also very different.
Other than the similarities between the main characters of each story the stories take almost completely different approaches. The one thing that both stories do though is introduced a unique, queer character and a plot that you really can’t anticipate what will happen next or how the story will end. Other than that the two stories are very different. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is more serious and sends a deep message, while “ the secret Life of Walter Mitty” is more humorous, fun, and sends a small message. In the end both stories have very different character, in very similar situations, and, with similar problems.
