《英语短篇小说教程》练习参考答案unit11

《英语短篇小说教程》练习参考答案

Keys to Unit Eleven

James Thurber: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

1)Opinions of Understanding:

(1) Which of the following adjectives best describes Walter Mitty’s real life?

A. Colorful.

B. Uneventful.

C. Noble.

D. Exciting.

(2) Which of the following is an unsuitable adjective to describe Walter Mitty’s wife?

A. Fussy.

B. Bossy.

C. Considerate.

D. Unsympathetic.

(3) What sort of “secret life” of Walter Mitty does the “hospital operation room” episode reveal to us?

A. He desires for a life of romance and excitement.

B. He wishes to make glorious contributions to the nation.

C. He yearns to be an important and respected person.

D. He would rather be a heroic victim than a nobody.

(4) What sort of “the secret life” of Walter Mitty do the “courtroom trial” and the “execution by a firing squad” episodes reveal to us?

A. He desires for a life of romance and excitement.

B. He wishes to make glorious contributions to the nation.

C. He yearns to be an important and respected man.

D. He would rather be a heroic victim than nobody.

(5) What is the author’s attitude to the character he portrays?

A. Critical.

B. Mocking.

C. Sympathetic.

D. Scornful.

2) Questions for discussion:

(Suggested answers for reference)

(1) How are reality and fantasy associated in this story? Give examples.

(Usually it is in this way: something in the real life, for example, doing, seeing or hearing something, would triggers off some fantasy. Driving a car leading to the fantasy of piloting a hydroplane; putting on gloves and hearing the name of Dr. Renshaw leading to the operation episode; hearing a newspaper boy shouting something about the trial leading to the courtroom

episode; sitting in the lobby and reading news about Second World War leading to the bomber-pilot episode and standing against the wall of a drug-store leading to the episode of facing a firing squad.)

(2) Does Mitty appear to be a comic, grotesque, and ridiculous person?

(It is not the author’s intention to show the ridiculous side of Mitty’s life. Through creation of such a character, the writer intends to reveal the unfortunate life of some city dwellers. Their lives, like that of Mitty’s, are suffocated by the monotony and triviality of the modern middle-class life. The daydreams seem to be the only escape from the meaning less repetition of the day-to-day existence.)

(3) Find out what is in common in the five pieces of Mitty’s daydream: the hydroplane, the medical operation, the trial, the bomber and the execution. What do these fantasies reveal to you about Walter Mitty?

(These pieces of daydreams have one thing in common in which life is more adventurous, more heroic or more exciting than the actual existence, and in which he is a brave, respected or even a tragic central figure, rather than a nobody dominated by an bossy wife.)

(4) How do you like the ending of the story? What is your interpretation?

(There is a tragic sense in the last episode – the man being executed. This may reveal the inner wish of the protagonist that he would rather be a heroic victim than a person of no significance. And also, there is a hint of tragedy in his life.)

(5) Compare Walter Mitty with Cervantes’Don Quixode (唐·吉诃德). What similarities and differences do you find in the two characters?

(Mitty’s daydreams embody the clichés of adventure or war fiction and movies. While Cervantes’ Don Quixode is also influenced by the popular romance of his time and ridiculously acts out his fantasies, Mitty does not even have courage to do that and seems satisfied with dreaming about a sort of heroism as an escape from the imprisonment in triviality. In this sense, he is a modern Don Quixode)

3) Explanation and interpretation:

(Explain the implied meaning of the following sentences, and point out their significance in the context of the story.)

(1) He looked at his wife, in the seat beside him, with shocked astonishment. She seemed grossly unfamiliar, like a strange woman who had yelled at him in a crowd.

(Mitty was lost in his daydream, and was suddenly awakened from it and the world around him seemed rather unfamiliar.)

(2) "You're tensed up again," said Mrs. Mitty. "It's one of your days. I wish you'd let Dr. Renshaw look you over."

(“Tensed up” refers to Mitty’s state of fantasizing. His wife’s words indicate that Mitty had a habit of falling into daydreams and had once consulted a doctor for this problem.)

(3) He put them (gloves) on, but after she had turned and gone into the building and he had driven on to a red light, he took them off again.

(He obeyed to his wife humbly, but when she did not see him, he book them off as and act of rebellion.)

(4) "Back it up, Mac! Look out for that Buick!" Walter Mitty jammed on the brakes. "Wrong lane, Mac," said the parking-lot attendant.

(He didn’t seem to be able to do anything well and even a parking lot attendant could order and criticize him. This adds to his sense of depression, of being nobody.)

(5) Then, with that faint, fleeting smile playing about his lips, he faced the firing squad; erect and

motionless, proud and disdainful…

(The last episode of the fantasy reveals the mixed feelings of being a victim and being a hero. The end seems inevitably tragic but to Mitty’s imagination, maintaining a sort of heroism is possible. Mitty felt that he was beaten down by life, but in his heart he still kept high aspirations.)

Suggested Homework

Allow Walter Mitty to continue his fantasy once he arrived home from the shopping trip with his wife. Using your imagination and write a paragraph that may begin like this:

He parked his car. In a few quick steps, he rushed to the door and pushed it open with determined suddenness. “Hands up, gentlemen!” he said.

For reference only:

He parked his car. In a few quick steps, he rushed to the door and pushed it open with determined suddenness. “Hands up, gentlemen! ” he said, pointing his gun at the three men sitting there. “FBI. We have been following you for quite some time.” The men in the room were totally unprepared. Two raised their hands over their heads, one hesitated and quietly moved his right hand to a pistol on the coffee table. He aims his gun at that man, “push that pistol to me, slowly. That’s right. It’s no use trying to do anything funny, let me warn you.”

“Why do walk so quickly and push open the door like this? Go back to get the things in the car!” his wife said angrily.