The Third Level by Jack Finney for class 12 English, CBSE (Summary, literary devices, vocabulary and extract based question-answer)
THE THIRD LEVEL
By Jack Finney
SUMMARY, DETAILED EXPLANATION, EXTRACT-BASED QUESTIONS AND THEIR ANSWER, SHORT QUESTIONS AND THEIR ANSWER AND WORD-MEANING OF THE THIRD LEVEL
About the author
Jack Finney was an American author who wrote science fiction and thrillers. He gained popularity with the publication of his novel "The Body Snatchers," In his writings, Finney has explored themes like time travel, alternate realities, and mysterious happenings. His stories are full of suspense, making readers eager to turn the next page. Finney's imaginative storytelling continues to draw the attention of readers worldwide.
INTRODUCTION
The story "The Third Level" by Jack Finney is about time travel. Here we find the fantasy world which has been connected with the real world. The main character in the story is Charley who wants to escape from the real world because of tension, worry, fear of war, and the feeling of insecurity. Therefore, he imagines a new world where there is peace, where there is tranquillity, where there is no tension, and no worry.
WORD MEANING
Stack- a pile of objects
Waking dream- a dream while a person is awake
Wander- walk/roam
Gabardine- a kind of fabric
Suburban- related to an area at the edge of the city
Ducked- move quickly to a place
Arched- curved
Bumping- knock or run into something
Spittoons- a metal container for spitting
Vest- an undergarment worn on the upper part of the body
Snapped- break suddenly
Locomotive- an engine of a train
Fussing- showing unnecessary or excessive concern about something
EXPLANATION AND EXTRACT-BASED QUESTIONS
The presidents of the New York Central and the New York, New Haven, and Hartford railroads will swear………. wander down into any third level at Grand Central Station.
According to Charley, the narrator of the story, the presidents of different railroads and stations will take oath on the heap of timetables and say there are only two levels at the Grand Central station in New York. However, Charley firmly believes that there are three levels.
According to him, he experienced the third level. After that, he took an obvious step as he discussed the same with many of his friends, including the psychiatrist who called it a waking dream wish fulfillment and also that Charley was unhappy. Finally, when Charley's wife got angry, he explained that he wanted to escape from the modern world which is full of insecurity, fear of war tension, and worry. All except Charley agreed. He argued with his friends saying everybody wanted to escape but nobody reached the third level.
Q. Name the lesson and its author.
Ans. The lesson is "The Third Level'' and its author is Jack Finney.
Q. What would the presidents of different railroads swear on a stack of timetables?
Ans. Presidents of different railroads would take oath on the heap of timetables and say that there were only two levels at the Grand Central station in New York.
Q. Where did Charley reach?
Ans. Charley reached the third level of Grand Central Station.
Q. What was the obvious step taken by Charley after experiencing the third level?
Ans. Charley discussed the issue with his friends in general and his psychiatrist in particular.
Q. What made Charley's wife kind of mad?
Ans. When his psychiatrist friend told him that he had reached the third level because he was unhappy, his wife went kind of mad.
Q. How did the psychiatrist friend of Charley finally explain his reaching the third level?
Ans. According to the psychiatrist, it was a waking dream wish fulfilment, and also that he was unhappy. Finally, he said that Charley wanted to escape from the modern world where there is the fear of war, feelings of insecurity and tension, etc.
Q. Did Charley agree with the psychiatrist that his reaching the third level was an escape from the real world?
As. Charley did not accept whatever was told by the psychiatrist. Instead, he argued saying everybody wanted to escape from this world but no one reached the third level.
But that's the reason, he said, and my friends all agreed……… President Roosevelt collected stamps too, you know.
When Charley did not agree with the explanation, the psychiatrist said his hobby of collecting stamps was also a temporary refuge or escape. Listening to this once again Charley said his grandfather also had the hobby of collecting stamps although there was no tension and worry during his time. On the other hand, even President Roosevelt was interested in stamp collection.
Q. What was Charley's hobby?
Ans. Stamp collection
Q. Did Charley agree with his psychiatrist friend that his stamp collection was a temporary refuge?
Ans. Charley did not agree that his stamp collection was a temporary refuge. He said that his grandfather used to collect stamps, even though life was so easy and peaceful in his days. President Roosevelt had the hobby of collecting stamps.
Q. The central point that is being brought up in the extract is….
Ans. Human beings tend to escape.
Anyway, here is what happened at Grand Central station. One night last summer I worked late at the office……… it's faster than the bus.
Charley describes what happened to him. According to Charley one day, he worked in his office till late and, therefore, he was in a hurry to reach his apartment which was in uptown. He had two options: the bus and the subway. Finally, he chose the subway because it was faster than the bus.
Q. Which two options did Charley have?
Ans. The Subway and the bus.
Q. Why did he choose or opt for the subway and why?
Ans. He chose the subway because it was faster than the bus.
Q. Why was Charley in a hurry to reach his uptown?
Ans. He worked till late in his office and that's why he was in a hurry to reach his home in uptown and meet his wife Louisa.
Now, I don't know why this should have happened to me……….. I just wanted to get home to Louisa, my wife
According to Charley, he did not know why such a thing took place with him. He further expressed that he was not trying to escape, but just wanted to reach his wife in uptown.
Charley was an ordinary 31-year-old guy. On that particular day, he was wearing a tan or brown gabardine suit and a straw hat with a fancy band.
While he was walking along the subway he found a lot of people like himself. There was nothing odd or extraordinary.
Q. How old was Charley?
Ans. 31-year-old
Q. How had Charley dressed on a particular day?
Ans. He was wearing a tan gabardine suit and a straw hat with a fancy band.
Q. What kind of person was Charley?
Ans. Simple/ordinary
I turned into Grand Central from Vanderbilt Avenue,............. But I never told my psychiatrist friend about that Idea.
.
Charley turned into Grand Central from Vanderbilt Avenue and then he went down at the first level from where a person could take the trains in modern times, and then entered the second level from where the suburban trains departed. Henceforth, Charley entered an arched doorway heading for the subway and then got lost. This did not happen the first time. Earlier also the same thing had happened. On one occasion, he got lost and reached the lobby of the Roosevelt Hotel while on another occasion, he found himself in front of an office building on 46 Street. Sometimes he believed that Grand Central was growing like a tree because every day he bumped into or he found new doors, new corridors, and new staircases.
Q. From where did Charley turn into Grand Central?
Ans. Vanderbilt Avenue
Q. Why does Charley compare Grand Central to a tree?
Ans. Just like a tree shoots up new roots and branches, similarly, Charley found new corridors, new doors, and new staircases while going to the Grand Central through the subway. Once he got lost and reached the lobby of the Roosevelt Hotel while on another occasion he came up in an office building on 46th Street.
Q. Where did Charley duck into?
Ans. An arched doorway.
There is probably along the tunnel that nobody knows………… But I never told my psychiatrist friend about that Idea.
According to Charley, he believed that there was a long tunnel going underway leading to Times Square as well as Central Park. And for years the Grand Central had been an exit for thousands of people. It was a kind of escape. Charley did not disclose it to his friend.
Q. What was Charley's thinking or belief?
Ans. Charlie thought that there was a long tunnel passing underway to Times Square and Central Park
Q. What did the Grand Central symbolise?
Ans. Grand Central had been an exit point for thousands of people. In other words, it was the place from where one could escape from the hustles and bustles of New York.
Q. What did Charlie hide from his psychiatrist friend?
Ans. That the Grand Central had been an exit point.
Q. What can be inferred from the tunnel?
Ans. A gateway into the past.
Q. What does the passage tell us about Charley?
Ans. He was an imaginative person.
The corridor I was in began angling left and slanting download ……… Then I saw why; open flame gas- lights.
According to Charley, he entered a corridor that started moving left and then downward. Though he realised that he was going in the wrong direction, he continued. He did not find even a soul. He went down a short flight of stairs.
He came out on the first level. Initially, Charley thought that he was on the second level. But then he found fewer train gates and ticket windows. Moreover, the information booth was made of wood and old-fashioned. The man in the information booth was wearing green eyeshades and full-sleeve protectors. He also noticed that the lights were flickering. Very soon he realised that they were not electric lights but gaslight.
Q. Initially Charlie thought that he was on the second level. Then what made him think he was on the third level?
Ans. He found fewer train gates and ticket windows, an old old-fashioned wooden information booth, and the man in the information booth with full sleeve protectors and green eyeshades. Finally, he noticed gaslight.
Q. How did Charley come to know that there was a gaslight?
Ans. The light was dim and flickering.
Q. What was the man in the information booth wearing?
Ans. Green eyeshades and sleeve protectors.
There were brass spittoons on the floor……. And then I knew
On the platform, there were brass spittoons. Suddenly there was a glint of light. Then he observed that a man had taken out a golden pocket watch. The man was wearing a black four-buttoned suit with tiny lapels. He was wearing a derby hat and had a handlebar moustache.
When he looked all around, he found that so many people had fancy moustaches, long sideburns, and beards. Further, he noticed a woman with leg-of-mutton sleeves as well as high-button shoes. He also noticed the Currier and Ives locomotives with the funnel-shaped stack. Whatever he noticed on the third level, made him realise that he was in the era of the 1890s.
Q. What were the spittoons made of?
Ans. The spittoons were made of brass
Q. What did the man take out from his vest pocket?
Ans. Golden pocket watch.
Q. How did the man open the watch?
Ans. By snapping it.
Q. What was the man wearing?
Ans. He was wearing a derby hat and a black four-buttoned suit with tiny lapels.
Q. What did Charley notice about the man on the third level?
Ans. The man had a fancy moustache and beard.
Q. What did Charley notice about a woman?
Ans. She was wearing leg-of-mutton sleeves and a skirt to the top of high-buttoned shoes.
Q. What did Charlie notice about the locomotives?
Ans. He noticed a very small Currier and Ives locomotive with a funnel-shaped stack.
To make sure, I walked over to a newsboy and glanced at the stack of paper at his feet. ……… It was printed June 11, 1894.
Charley wanted to confirm if he was really in the age of 1890s something. Therefore we went to the newsstand where he found the newspaper 'The World' which had not been published for ages. The date printed was June 11, 1894, and the cover story was about President Cleveland. Charley had come across the front page in the public library files. At this juncture, he was confirmed that he was in the age of 1890s something
Q. What was the date printed in the newspaper?
Ans. June 11, 1894.
Q. What was the name of the newspaper?
Ans. The World
Q. What was the cover story?
Ans. About President Cleveland.
I turned toward the ticket windows knowing that here-- ……… I wanted two tickets for that.
Charley decided to go to Galesburg, Illinois which was a quiet and peaceful town in the 1890s. According to Charley, one could notice the tall trees meeting overhead, big frame houses, and on summer evenings people sitting on their lawns.
Q. How was Galesburg, Illinois in the 1890s?
Ans. Galesburg, Illinois was a quiet and peaceful place. Life was without any hustle and bustle. The tall trees on both sides of the roads and streets met overhead. The people used to spend more time in summer evenings talking and enjoying themselves.
Q. What type of houses were in Galesburg?
Ans. Big old frame houses with huge lawns.
Q. What can be inferred from the line "summer evenings were twice as long"?
Ans. Charley was nostalgic.
Q. Where did Charley want to go from the third level and why?
Ans. Galesburg, Illinois, because life was so easy and relaxing. He wanted to escape from the hustle and bustle of the modern world.
The clerk figured the fare-- he glanced at my fancy hatband,......... There's nothing nice about jail, even in 1894.
Charley had a sudden urge to visit Galesburg, Illinois from the third level. Therefore, he went to the ticket window and asked for two tickets to Galesburg, Illinois. The clerk started calculating the fare. He was staring at Charley in amazement as he was wearing a fancy hatband. Moreover, when he found Charley with the modern currency, he warned saying that he must not try to swindle him as he would not be able to go far. Charley was alarmed when he noticed the difference between the currency he was having and the currency which was in the drawer of the booking clerk. Charley ran away from the third level because he did not want to go to jail.
Q. How many tickets did Charley want and for whom?
Ans. Charley wanted two tickets, one for himself and another for his wife Louisa.
Q. Where did Charley want to go from the third level?
Ans. Charley wished to visit Galesburg, Illinois along with his wife.
Q. Why did Charley run away from the third level?
Ans. Charley feared that he might be arrested and sent to jail for having a different currency.
Q. What was the warning given by the booking clerk?
Ans. The booking clerk warned him saying that he would not be able to escape after deceiving him.
And that was that. I left the same way I came,....... Eggs were 13 cents a dozen in 1894.
Even after returning from the third level, Charley did not stop making efforts. The next day, during lunch hour, he went to the bank and withdrew all his savings which were around $300. Thereafter, he went to a coin dealer and got them converted into old currency. He received less than $200 as he had to pay the premium. But he was not worried as everything was very cheap in 1894. One could purchase a dozen eggs for just 13 cents. After getting old currency, once again he tried to reach the third level, but he could not because it did not exist.
Q. Why did Charley go to the bank during lunch hour?
Ans. Charley went to the bank to withdraw all his savings and thereafter he got them converted into old currency. His main purpose was to reach the third level and from there Galesburg, Illinois.
Q. How much did Charley get in return for $300?
Ans. Less than $200.
Q. Why was Charley not worried even when he received less than $200?
Ans. Everything was cheap in the the1890s, and one could get even a dozen eggs for just 13 cents.
Q. Was Charley able to reach the third level? Why /Why not?
Ans. Charley was not able to reach the third level as there was no existence of it at all.
Louisa was pretty worried when I told her all this………………. And that’s where he is, all right in 1894.
When Charley informed his wife that he was trying to reach the third level, Louisa was a bit worried and asked him not to try anymore. Thereafter, Charley turned towards his stamps.
Moreover, Charley expressed that both he and his wife had proof. All of a sudden, his friend, Sam Weiner disappeared. Charley began to believe that he had gone to Galesburg Illinois because whenever Charley told him about Galesburg, where he went to school as a child, Sam Weiner got interested.
Q. How did Charley's wife react when she came to know that her husband was trying to reach the third level?
Ans. After knowing that Charley was trying to reach the third level his wife Louisa was a bit worried. She instructed him not to try anymore.
Q. What did Charley do after his wife asked him not to try to reach the third level?
Ans. Charley turned towards his stamp collection.
Q. What happened to Sam Weiner?
Ans. He suddenly disappeared.
Q. Why did Charley think Sam Weiner had gone to Galesburg, Illinois?
Ans. It was because whenever Charley described Galesburg Illinois, his friend Sam Weiner liked the place as well as the kind of life people used to live there.
Because one-night fussing with my stamp collection………... Why Sam was my psychiatrist.
One night while Charley was fussing with his grandfather's collection, he found something which was extraordinary, that he could not have been there. It was a first-day cover.
Whenever a new stamp is issued, a stamp collector collects it and mails it to himself. The envelope has blank paper inside. The postmark shows the date. This is called a first-day cover.
The first-day cover that Charley found in his grandfather’s collection was worth six cents. It was brown, with a picture of President Garfield. The strange thing about the cover was that it contained a letter. The date printed was July 18, 1894.
The address was 941 Willard Street, Galesburg, Illinois. The letter was addressed to Charley.
In the letter, Sam Weiner mentioned that he had reached the third level and from there Galesburg, Illinois. He also suggested Charley and Louisa keep trying as the third level existed.
Later when Charley visited the coin dealer’s shop, he was informed that his psychiatrist friend bought $800 worth of old currency. According to Charley, his friend Sam must be either in the hay business or grain business or feed business because there was no need for a psychiatrist in 1894.
Q. What did the stamp cost?
Ans. 6 cents.
Q. Where did Charley find the first-day cover?
Ans. In his grandfather's collection.
Q. How was the first-day cover found in his grandfather's collection different from other first-day covers?
Ans. In a first-day cover, the paper is blank. But there was a letter addressed to Charley.
Q. Whose picture was on the stamp?
Ans. President Garfield’s picture.
Q. What was the address on the letter?
Ans. 941, Willard Street, Galesburg Illinois.
Q. What was the advice given to Charley by his psychiatrist friend?
Ans. Both Charley and Louisa should continue to search for the third level.
Q. Where did Sam visit in Galesburg?
Ans. Daly’s
Q. Why did Charley think his psychiatrist friend would either be in the hay business or feed business or grain business?
Ans. There was no need for a psychiatrist in 1894 as life was so easy, comfortable, and free from tension and worry.
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