The Presidents of the New York Central and the New York, New Haven and Hartford railroads
will swear on a stack of timetables that there are only two. But I say there are three, because I’ve
been on the third level of the Grand Central Station. Yes, I’ve taken the obvious step: I talked to a
psychiatrist friend of mine, among others. I told him about the third level at Grand Central Station,
and he said it was a waking dream wish fulfilment.
1. Name the chapter.
2. Name the author
3. Who is ,” it” in the above extract
4. “There are only two”. What is two in this statement?
B. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
He said I was unhappy. That made my wife kind of mad, but he explained that he meant the
modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry and all the rest of it, and that I just want to
escape. Well, who doesn’t? Everybody I know wants to escape, but they don’t wander down into
any third level at Grand Central Station. But that’s the reason, he said, and my friends all agreed.
Everything points to it. they claimed. My stamp collecting, for example; that’s a ‘temporary refuge
from reality.’ Well, maybe, but my grandfather didn’t need any refuge from reality; things were
pretty nice and peaceful in his days, from all I hear, and he started my collection.
Why did Sam’s verdict make Charley’s wife ‘mad’?
A. It made it difficult for her to accept that Charley would consult a psychiatrist.
B. It seemed to suggest to her that she was the cause of Charley’s unhappiness.
C. It made her aware of Charley’s delicate state of mind.
D. It offended her that Charley and Sam collectively accused her.
Sam’s explanation to the reaction of Charley’s wife was ___________ in nature
A. critical
B. aggressive
C. clarifying
D. accusatory
Select the option that signifies the condition of people of the ‘modern world’ mentioned in the
extract.
(1) unsure
(2) lazy
(3) offensive
(4) anxious
(5) afraid
Select the option that signifies the condition of people of the ‘modern world’ mentioned in the
extract.
(1) unsure
(2) lazy
(3) offensive
(4) anxious
(5) afraid
A. (1) and (3)
B. (2) and (5)
C. (2), (3) and (4)
D. (1), (4) and (5)
5.Why didn’t Charley’s grandfather need refuge from reality?
A. He was too busy to bother.
B. He had chosen to deny his reality.
C. He lived in peaceful times.
D. He was a very secure person
I’m just an ordinary guy named Charley, thirty-one years old, and I was wearing a tan gabardine
suit and a straw hat with a fancy band; I passed a dozen men who looked just like me. And I
wasn’t trying to escape from anything: I just wanted to get home to Louisa, my wife. I turned into
Grand Central from Vanderbilt Avenue, and went down the steps to the first level, where you take
trains like the Twentieth Century. Then I walked down another flight to the second level, where
the suburban trains leave from, ducked into an arched doorway heading for the subway- and got
lost. That’s easy to do.
1. What is ‘Gabardine”?
A. A firm durable fabric
B. Brown colour
C. Kind of tight outfit
D. None of these
2. What does the speaker mean by “suburban”?
A. Place located on the outskirts of the city
B. Place located in the city
C. Place located far away from the city
D. Place located in the centre of the city
3. What does ‘Duck into’ mean?
A. To move downwards and enter
B. To move upwards and enter
C. To move aside and enter
D. None of these
4. Where does the narrator get lost?
A. On the first level
B. On the second level
C. On the third level
D. All of these
D. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
I’ve been in and out of Grand Central hundreds of times, but I’m always bumping into new
doorways and stairs and corridors. Once I got into a tunnel about a mile long and came out in the
lobby of the Roosevelt Hotel. Another time I came up in an office building on Forty-Sixth Street,
three blocks away. Sometimes I think Grand Central is growing like a tree, pushing out new
corridors and staircases like roots. There’s probably a long tunnel that nobody knows about
feeling its way under the city right now, on its way to Times Square, and maybe another to
Central Park. And maybe – because for so many people through the years Grand Central has
been an exit, a way of into…. escape maybe that’s how I got into the tunnel.
1. What does the word ‘Bumping’ mean?
A. Collide with force
B. Collide with empathy
C. Collide without any support
D. All of these
2. What does the narrator mean by ‘Grand Central has been an exit”?
A. People get lost in it
B. People want to escape through Grand Central station
C. People need excuses to go to Grand Central station
D. It is the best mode to reach the under-ground tunnel
3. Which literary device has been used in ‘Grand Central Station growing like a tree’
A. Alliteration
B. Metaphor
C. Simile
D. Personification
4. Why does only Charley get lost at the third level?
A. Because he is practical
B. Because he is an escapist
C. Because he loves to do adventurous things
D. All of these
G. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
A woman walked in through the train gate; she wore a dress with leg. of mutton sleeves and
skirts to the top of her high-buttoned shoes. Behind her, out on the tracks, I caught a glimpse of a
locomotive, a very small Currier & Ives locomotive with a funnel-shaped stack. And then I knew.
To make sure, I walked over to a newsboy and glanced at the stack of papers at his feet. It was
The World; and The World hasn’t been published for years. The lead story said something about
President Cleveland. I’ve found that front page since, in the Public Library files, and it was printed
June 11, 1894.
1. What is a locomotive?
A. Engine
B. Loco
C. Rail road
D. All of these
2. What does the speaker mean by stack of papers?|
A. Pile of papers
B. Pile of wastage
C. Pile of stamp papers
D. All of these
3. What was ‘The World’?
A. Journal
B. Magazine
C. Newspaper
D. Book
4. Where had Charley traveled to?
A. Present
B. Past
C. Future
D. None of these
Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:
For just a moment I thought I was back on the second level, but I saw the room was smaller,
there were fewer ticket windows and train gates, and the information booth in the centre was
wood and old looking. And the man in the booth wore a green eyeshade and long black sleeve
protectors. The lights were dim and sort of flickering. Then I saw why; they were open-flame
gaslights.
1. What is an eyeshade?
A. Visor
B. hat
C. eye shadow
D. None of these
2. What is ‘flickering’?
A. Move back and forth rapidly
B. Shine unsteadily
C. Flash intermittently
D. All of these
3. What is Charley talking about?
A .The first level
B. The second level
C. The third level
D. None of these
4. Where did Charley want to go?
A. Illinois
B. Galesburg
C. New York
D. Gabba
Previous year questions
Q1 What did Charley find at the Grand Central Station?
Ans. At the third level, Charley saw the people wearing old-fashioned dress, an old locomotive,
newspaper dated June 11, 1894, brass spittoons, flickering gas same lights and many other
things related to that era.
Q2 “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’.
Q3 What was Charley’s vision about Galesburg town? (CBSE 2013)
Ans. Charley thought that Galesburg was still a wonderful town. In that century in 1894, people
used to sit in their lawns, having sufficient time to talk to each other, smoking cigars and women
waving palm leaf fans on very long summer evenings. Overall, it was a peaceful and friendly
place.
Q4 Why did Charley return from the third level?
Ans. With the wings of imagination Charley returned to collect enough money to buy two tickets
to Galesburg town for himself and his wife Louisa. The clerk did not accept the currency which
Charley had so he went back to get the old currency.
Q5 When and how did Charley find the letter of Sam?
Ans. One night while fussing with his stamp collection, Charley found, among his oldest first-day
covers, the letter of Sam with a six cent stamp mailed to his Granddad. It had been in his
collection.
Q6 What did the ticket clerk say to Charley? (CBSE 2010)
Ans. The ticket-clerk scolded Charley that that was not the real currency which he was having.
Additionally, he warned Charley that if he was trying to skin him, he would not go very far. He
would be prisoned.
Q7 “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.
Q8 What does the third level refer to? (CBSE 2001, 2004)
Ans. The third level refers to the subway of the Grand Central Station in New York. Though this
Third level was not present there physically, Charley claimed it to be present there.
Q9 Would Charley ever go back to the ticket counter on the third level to buy tickets to
Galesburg for himself and his wife?
Ans. No, Charley would never go back to the ticket-counter on the third level to buy tickets to
Galesburg for himself and his wife because he would never find that third level again possibly.
Q10 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.
Q11 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.
Q12 “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.
Q13 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.
Q14 Why do you think Charley withdrew nearly all the money he had from the bank to buy
old-style currency? (CBSE QUESTION BANK)
Ans. Charley had got his three hundred dollars out of the bank and got them changed into
old-style currency so that he could go back to the third level and buy the tickets to Galesburg.
Q15 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.
Q16 ‘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
Q1 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.
Q2 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.
Q3 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.
Q4 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.
Q5 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.
Q6 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.
