“I’ve taken the obvious step.” Explain.

Ans. Nobody believed in Charley’s statement about the existence of The Third Level. His wife was
alarmed and brought him to the psychiatrist. Charley himself needed to meet the psychiatrist. It was
an ‘obvious step’.

“But now we are both looking.” What does this refer to? Explain.
Ans. The above mentioned words were said by Charley as he and his wife Louisa, both every
weekend started to search for the third level because they had the proof that Charley’s friend Sam
had disappeared. So, both Charley and Louisa were looking for the third level.

Do you think that the third level was a medium of escape for Charley? Why? (CBSE 2005,
2008)
Ans. Yes. The third level was a medium of escape for Charley because he might be unhappy and
fearful from worldly worries. He explained that he meant the modern world is full of insecurity, fear,
war, worry and all the rest of it and he just wanted to escape from that. Perhaps Charley was not able
to handle the stress.

What do you infer from Sam’s letter to Charley?

OR
In his letter to Charley, Sam writes, ‘…then I got to believing you were right.’ What could have
made Sam begin to believe? (CBSE SAMPLE QUESTION PAPER 2020-21)
Ans. Sam’s letter to Charley proves that Sam had found and reached the third level. He had been
staying there in Galesburg since the last two weeks watching various activities and explaining to
Charley. He invites both Charley and his wife Louisa and motivates them to continue their search for
the third level. So, we can say that Sam was also a victim of worldly worries and sought the escape,
like Charley.

“The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry and stress. What are the ways in
which we attempt to overcome them?
Ans. No doubt, the modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war worry and stress. To overcome them,
people start to adopt their own ways. As some people start to imagine and develop their own unreal
world whereas some people start to use alcoholic products and destroy their lives. These all ways
are just escapement and not the solution.

What would you describe as your “waking-dream wish fulfilment”? Explain. (CBSE QUESTION
BANK)
Ans. Charley quoted this statement. A waking dream wish fulfilment is what we wish to happen or
see. It’s not the reality. He told this to Sam, his psychiatrist. While talking about the third level,
Charley quoted this statement. He is an Escapist. He couldn’t bear all the tensions happening around
him. He said this out of his imagination.

How would you evaluate Sam’s character? Elucidate any two qualities, and substantiate with
evidence from the text. (CBSE QUESTION BANK)
Ans. Sam is a fiercely devoted friend to Charlie. Sam considers emigrating to the tranquil World of
Galesburg in order to escape the pulls and stresses of modern life. He writes a letter from The Third
Level of Grand Central after locating it, telling Charlie to keep looking for The Third Level.

‘It’s easy to judge others and give advice, but much more difficult to apply it to ourselves.’
Elaborate with reference to the character of Sam in The Third Level. (CBSE SAMPLE
QUESTION PAPER 2022-23)
Ans. Sam was being judgmental when he told Charley that he was dissatisfied with life and was
looking for an escape. The third level was just an imagination, so Charley should accept reality and
be satisfied with it. However, Sam himself wanted an escape from the stress filled modern life and
went in search for the third level.
Do you think that the third level was a medium of escape for Charley? Why? (CBSE 2005,
2008)
Ans. Actually, Grand Central Station did not have a third level. Charley stated that while travelling
back to his house, he just made an imaginary trip to the third level in order to escape the unsettling
reality of this planet. He would frequently explore relocating to Galesburg, which had already been
established in 1894 and was thought to be a peaceful community at the time.
He himself had aspirations of going there and pictured himself living in that era. Whenever he got
back to his regular life, he couldn’t stop thinking about that realm. In this way, we can claim that the
third level was unquestionably a medium of escapement for Charley because his friend Sam’s
disappearance forced him to believe in it and subsequently he and his wife Louisa both started to
search the third level. Even though it was just in his head, it made him feel better.
Why did Charley again want to go to the third level?
OR
How did ‘The World’ help Charley to confirm his doubts regarding the existence of a third
level? (CBSE SAMPLE QUESTION PAPER 2019-20)
Ans. Since Galesburg had been in Charley’s thoughts since the beginning as a peaceful place, he had
found and noticed a significant difference once he had visited the third level in his imaginations.
However, when Charley arrived at the ticket window, he discovered that he was unable to purchase
tickets or complete any transactions due to the lack of currency of those days. Once he realised it, he
went back to the actual world to get some old-fashioned money from the exchange before going back
to the third floor and Galesburg to settle down.
He originally intended to get two tickets to Galesburg for himself and his wife since he was certain
that there, people lived carefree lives with plenty of time for one another. With the money he had
with him, he could easily subsist there because everything was so inexpensive. Thus, even though
the third level didn’t actually exist—it was just in Charley’s head—he wanted to go back there for his
escape and satisfaction.
Philately helps keep the past alive. Discuss other ways in which this is done. What do you
think of the human tendency to constantly move between the past, the present and the
future?
Ans. Many people use stamp collecting, the study of postage stamps, postal routes, postal history,
etc. as a way to keep memories of the past fresh. Other than this, there are many other ways to
preserve our past, including museums, historical structures & monuments, items used by people in
the past, photographs, and old literature; we travel into our past. This is termed as philately.
Humans frequently have a tendency to wander back and forth between the past, present, and future.
Although we actually exist in the present, thanks to God’s gift of memory, we can travel back in time
and attempt to look into the future. We find fulfilment, enjoy life, and manage to survive in the
present because our conscious and unconscious minds are in control of this shifting.
Do you see an intersection of time and space in the story?
Ans. Absolutely, the story shows how time and space intertwine. As an escapist, Charley travels from
the present to the past. It is practically impossible for someone to have reached the final century in
1894, yet thanks to his imagination, he was sent to the third level and ended up in Galesburg, Illinois.
That appears to be psychological, and Sam, his psychiatrist friend, also slips to the third level and
becomes a victim of the contemporary worldly concerns. Science fiction author Jack Finney discusses
the intersection of time and space in a highly rational way and establishes its plausibility through
escapement.
Apparent illogicality sometimes turns out to be a futuristic projection? Discuss.
Ans. Sometimes what seems to be nonsensical turns out to be a futuristic vision, much like the
majority of what we see around us. were once in someone’s head and seemed impossible, but
subsequently turned out to be possible. It’s now achievable thanks to science. Such occurrences are
caused by our unconscious mind.
With the help of these factors combined, we are occasionally able to create or learn incredible truths
and things that were completely unknown to the world until their physical manifestation. Hence,
impossibility appears at first but quickly enters the view due to correct projection, shocking the
general populace.
At the beginning of the story, Sam is sceptical of Charley’s discovery of the third level. By the
end of the story, the reader is told that he found the third level and travelled back in time.
How would Sam diagnose himself? (CBSE QUESTION BANK)
Ans. Sam worked as a therapist. He was also Charley’s pal. Charley went to Sam for advice when he
had fantasies about the Third Floor at Grand Central Station. Sam declared it to be only a short-term
relief from his anxiety. A waking-dream-wish-fulfillment, as he put it. Yet over time, he found himself
ensnared in this made-up universe. He spoke with numerous psychic patients every day, who shared
their problems and concerns with him. Sam’s life has been burdened as a result. He also began
looking for sojourn. After hearing about the suffering of those with mental illnesses, he yearned to
leave the life that had become miserable.
Unconsciously, he also had the urge to escape the constraints of everyday reality and roam freely in
the realm of fantasy. He desired to picture himself existing in a society free of suppressed anxieties
and internal problems. Although he first did not believe in the Third Level’s whim, he secretly
wished to believe in this fantasy. He was aware that Charley was wrong, yet he still wanted Charley
to be correct. As a result, he eventually began to discover reality on a whim and became trapped.