James Thurber & Charles Addams: Mitty vs. Morticia

Posted by Luke Arnott Jul 22, 2009

Here's an interesting piece comparing James Thurber and Charles Addams by John R. MacArthur, an editor at Harper's magazine. In addition to writing such high-school-English-class-required-reading as "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," Thurber, like Addams, was one of the iconic cartoonists for The New Yorker.

MacArthur's focus is on how each depicts the "beleaguered everyman" in his cartoons. He ultimately finds Addams, despite his macabre sensibilities, to be the warmer and more humane of the two (seems that way to me, too). If you haven't already, be sure to read up on the New Yorker cartoons of Charles Addams.