The story unfolds as Mitty drifts into a series of daydreams while stuck in traffic and running errands. Initially, these fantasies are quite ordinary and relatable. Mitty imagines himself as a renowned surgeon conducting a daring operation, a naval commander in charge of a naval battle, and a courageous pilot navigating through a storm. However, as the story progresses, Mitty's daydreams escalate into the realm of the surreal.
The climatic dream occurs when Mitty envisions himself as a brave fighter pilot caught in a daring mission to rescue a group of passengers stranded on a sinking ocean liner. Mitty's dream reaches a hilarious climax as he imagines flying a small seaplane straight into the submarine's hatch, rescuing the passengers, and emerging as the hero.
This grand and over-the-top finale stands in sharp contrast to the mundane reality of Mitty's actual life. It is precisely this humorous juxtaposition between Mitty's exaggerated imagination and the mundane nature of his routine existence that creates the humor in the story.