The Third Level: A Journey to the Past

• The story revolves around Charley, a 31-year-old man, who experiences something extraordinary.
• Charley's encounter leads him to believe in the existence of a third level at Grand Central Terminal, a level that supposedly exists in the past.

Grand Central Terminal

• Grand Central Terminal is a large railway station in New York City.
• In reality, Grand Central has only two levels.
• Charley gets lost within its passages and stairways.
• Many people get lost in Grand Central's complex layout.
• One night, while taking the subway home from work, Charley finds himself in a corridor he doesn't recognize.
• He follows this new corridor, and it leads him to a different world.

The Third Level

• The third level is different from the other two levels.
• The third level is set in the 1890s.
• The rooms on the third level are smaller.
• There are fewer ticket windows and train gates.
• The information booth in the center is made of wood and looks old.
• The people on the platform are dressed in old-fashioned clothing.
• Charley notices a man pulling a gold watch from his pocket.
• People wore derbies, a type of hat, and four-button suits.
• He sees a brass spittoon, an old container for spitting, on the floor.
• There are flickering gaslights.

Galesburg, Illinois

• Charley glances at a newspaper and sees that it is dated June 11, 1894.
• He confirms that he has traveled back in time to 1894.
• Charley wants to go to Galesburg, Illinois.
• Galesburg represents a peaceful and idyllic life for Charley.
• Galesburg is a wonderful town with big old frame houses, huge lawns, and tremendous trees.
• In 1894, summer evenings were longer, and people sat out on their lawns.
• Men smoked pipes and talked quietly, and women waved palm-leaf fans.
• Charley wants to escape to Galesburg.
• He wants to take his wife, Louisa, with him.

The Ticket Purchase

• Charley goes to the ticket window.
• He tries to buy two tickets to Galesburg.
• The clerk says that the money is counterfeit.
• The clerk threatens to call the police.
• Charley realizes that he is trying to use modern money in 1894.
• He leaves quickly to avoid getting arrested.

Back to the Present

• He goes back to his own time.
• Charley never finds the third level again.
• He tells his wife, Louisa, about his experience.
• Louisa asks him to stop looking for the third level.
• Charley wants to believe in the third level.
• He resumes his stamp collecting to distract himself.

Sam's Disappearance

• Charley tells his psychiatrist friend, Sam, about the third level.
• Sam explains it as a waking-dream wish fulfillment.
• Sam says that Charley is unhappy and wants to escape reality.
• Sam disappears.
• Louisa is worried after Sam disappears.
• Charley finds a letter from Sam.
• Sam's letter is dated July 18, 1894.
• Sam writes that he has arrived in Galesburg.
• Sam encourages Charley and Louisa to come to Galesburg.
• Sam says he is enjoying life in Galesburg.
• Charley finds out that Sam bought old currency worth eight hundred dollars.
• Sam used the money to set up a small hay and feed business in Galesburg.

Reality vs. Illusion

• The story explores the theme of escaping reality.
• Charley wants to escape the stress and anxiety of modern life.
• The third level represents this escape.
• The story questions the line between reality and illusion.
• Is the third level real, or is it just a figment of Charley's imagination?
• The story suggests that people sometimes create their own realities to cope with their problems.
• The ending is ambiguous, leaving the reader to wonder whether the third level is real.

Characters

Charley

• The protagonist of the story.
• He is a 31-year-old man living in New York City.
• He works in the city.
• Charley is imaginative and introspective.
• He is trying to escape from the pressures of modern life.

Louisa

• Charley's wife.
• She is supportive of Charley but also concerned about his mental health.
• She is initially skeptical about the third level, but she becomes more open to the idea when Sam disappears.

Sam

• Charley's psychiatrist friend.
• He initially dismisses the third level as a fantasy.
• He later disappears.
• Sam travels to Galesburg.

Charley, a 31-year-old, hallucinates a third level at Grand Central Terminal that transports him to the 1890s. He notices the antiquated architecture and realizes he has traveled to a different era. The level evokes a sense of nostalgia for a simpler time.