Charley, the protagonist, is convinced that he had found a new level in
Grand Central Station. He is aware of how ridiculous this sounds, but as
he has physically been to the third level of this station that, in reality, has
only two, he maintains his story as truth. His psychiatrist called this a
“waking dream wish fulfilment”, and this worries and angers his wife. His
friends agreed with this diagnosis, saying that the speaker’s affinity for
stamp collection was also a feeble attempt at a temporary escape. The
speaker disagreed, deflecting this thought with the assertion that his stamp
collection was started by his grandfather at a time that no escape was
needed, so calling it an escape now is meaningless. This stamp collection
was nothing out of the ordinary, as it was a hobby of President Roosevelt
as well.
One summer night, Charley decided to save time by taking the subway
instead of the bus. He was quite used to the labyrinthine nature of Grand
Central Station and had found new doors and tunnels regularly. That night,
he had no interest in exploring, and his main aim was to just get home to
his wife. However, he came across a tunnel that headed in a weird
direction, and decided to follow it. This is how he found the third level of
Grand Central Station. This level was set in the past, a visible
representation of the year 1894. The people were dressed in old-timey
clothes, there were spittoons on the floor, and he caught sight of a small
locomotive that did not belong in the present day.
He confirmed his assumptions by looking at the newspaper and when he
was sure, he decided to buy train tickets that would take him far away. He
wanted to move with his wife to Galesburg, Illinois. This place would be
free of worry, stress, and insecurity, and the wars wouldn’t be anywhere in
the near future. However, he could not buy the tickets, as he didn’t have
the older style of currency. He left hastily, and the next day, he withdrew
almost all his savings, converted them to the proper currency, and began
searching for the third level again. He couldn’t find that passageway as
much as he tried and soon gave up.
Now, however, he and his wife look for that tunnel every day. His friend
Sam had found the passage to the third level and had moved to Galesburg.
This revelation came about when Charley found an old stamp in his stamp
collection which hadn’t been there before. Sam had addressed a letter to
Charley’s grandfather, and the letter advised Charley to keep looking till he
finds the third level again. Charley doesn’t give up on his search and was
happy that his friend had found a way to a new life. He then reveals that the
friend who moved to the year 1894 was actually Sam, his psychiatrist.
This short story deals with themes of escapism, detachment from reality,
and strong hallucination. It is a manifestation of a desire for peace and
stability in life, and to escape from the stress and insecurity of life following
the two World Wars. The protagonist is incapable of living in the present, as
he is stuck in his desire to leave.
Charley had no doubts about the truth in his assertion that Grand Central
Station had a third level. He was so deeply entrenched in his
own delusional world that he created an entire series of events that led to
him finding the Third Level. On top of that, he built imaginary conversations
and a fully rounded-out train station that was era-appropriate. This whole
imaginary world shows how detached he is from reality, and how he yearns
for a different life.
The apparent third level of Grand Central Station is a representation of
Charley’s desire to escape. This level gives him the ability to go back in
time, to a place that is peaceful, and calm. He thinks of the past as a time
that had no stress, and this is reinforced by his knowledge of his
grandfather’s life. He says “my grandfather didn’t need any refuge from
reality; things were pretty nice and peaceful in his day, from all I hear”. He
is convinced that to escape from reality, it would be best to go into the past.
It is clear that the consequences of the two World Wars weigh on him in his
life. He thinks about 1894 and wants to go to an era where the World Wars
are 20-40 years in the future. Galesburg, Illinois in 1894 is the safe space
he has chosen, a time without fear and insecurity. He yearns for a life of
relaxation and so he is stuck inside his own mind, unable to think about
anything else. His friends and family do not believe him, but this makes no
difference to him as he has built up his own fake world that seems like
reality. This story details the life that a normal person is forced to live
because of the Wars. These people face the harsh reality of
an unbearable life, and the protagonist is the representation of the
overarching desire to take refuge from the world in order to feel some
comfort and security.
The stamps and stamp collecting play an important role in this story, as this
aspect truly shows how delusional the protagonist is. His hobby of stamp
collecting was introduced as a “refuge from reality”, and this was the truth,
though he didn’t believe it. He was obsessed with the past, in a way, and
these stamps helped him maintain that attachment. And, the cherry on top
is that his detachment from reality was so strong that he created an entirely
new stamp and letter purely to support his desires. This stamp collection is
the representation of his desire to escape the unpleasantness of his life,
and it ended up being the vehicle that confirmed his beliefs.
The irony of this story is that the one who managed to escape is not
Charley, but the psychiatrist who called his belief a “waking dream
wish fulfillment.” This friend, Sam, was convinced that the existence of
the third level was purely a psychological issue and entirely wishful
thinking. Charley unconsciously made the psychiatrist find the third level in
his ‘alternate reality’, and this shows how deep his desire for escape is. He
created a circumstance wherein the disbelieving became the one to lead
the way. Still, it was clear that no third level was ever found because Sam
would have provided express instructions in his letter. The vague “Keep
looking till you find the third level!” discloses that it is still just wishful
thinking. Someone who had really found the way would give directions for
others, as Charley did in his extensive description of the way to the third
level in this story.
