NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English Chapter 1 - Third Level

Question

1. What does the third level refer to?

Ans: The third level was the subway of the Grand Central Station, and it took passengers from Galesburg, Illinois. Metaphorically it refers to an escape medium that takes man away from the harsh realities of life. In the present world, people are lost in the rush to achieve more and are clouded by worries and anxieties. A man wishes to fulfill the wishes that are rooted in his subconscious mind. The third level provided space to fabricate fantasy and reality.

Question

1. 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. He withdrew three hundred dollars from the bank so that he could arrange some “old currency” since it belonged to a different time period. He could not find the third level since it was just a strand of his imagination to escape reality and has entered the world of romance and fantasy.

Questions

1. Do you think that the third level was a medium of escape for Charley? Why?

Ans: Yes, I think the third level was a medium of escape for Charley. His life was full of worries, stress, insecurity, and fear which caused him a lot of mental strain. The mental strain he had gone through was harsh and it made living for him unbearable and unpleasant. Since his reality was so unpleasant, he did various things that helped him escape reality. His stamp collecting was a ‘temporary refuge from reality. Later when he contacted his psychiatrist friend and told him about the third level incident, he termed it “a waking-dream wish fulfillment”.

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

Ans: Sam’s letter was received from the third level- Galesburg, dated July 18, 1894. The envelope had the address of his grandfather and a picture of President Garfield as the postmark. In the letter, he stated that he had been there for two weeks now and it was a hospitable place. The letter appears to be an outcome of Charley’s imagination but it successfully brought out the difference between the present world, which was troublesome and filled with tension, and the pre World war era that was tranquil.

3. ‘The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry, and stress.’ What are the ways in which we attempt to overcome them?

Ans: The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry, and stress.’ Stress and worries are an inevitable part of daily and busy life especially in the hustle and bustle of the modern world. We are more involved in gaining more profit and collecting material wealth and losing connection with our inner desires. Doing things like meditation and yoga daily can help us get rid of the anxieties and fears that we have. Eating a healthy diet not only maintains your body health but also mental health too. Finding your hobbies and doing them on a regular basis helps us to distract our mind from the daily stress and concentrate on something productive that our heart loves. Going out with people you love, occasionally also refreshes your mind and helps you let go of all the worries in your head. For more busy days, listening to calming music or playing with your pet can make you feel instantly refreshed and in a good mood. These small activities won't seem very significant but will make you feel much better and happy.

4. Do you see an intersection of time and space in the story?

Ans: Yes, the author has cleverly used elements of time and history to make the story more thrilling. The first instance of the same could be seen in the different levels that existed in the Grand Central Station. The first two levels were in the present while the third level belonged to the 1890s. He rushes to a bank to get an old currency denomination to pay for the train tickets for Galesburg. The architecture of the third level was old and unconventional. The people on the station dressed very typically like the people from the 1890s and held a newspaper, The World dated June 11, 1984. Finally, we see that the letter which was mailed to Charley’s grandfather on 18th, July 1894 intersected the time and space since the sender and receiver belonged to the present time.

5. Apparent illogicality sometimes turns out to be a futuristic projection? Discuss.

Ans: Yes, I do believe that apparently, illogically sometimes I turn out to be a futuristic person. Anyone who does an invention is apparently a step towards the future and appears like a futuristic projection. Before Graham Bell’s invention of the telephone, it was a thing people could have only imagined seeing. Similar goes for Wright Brothers too who invented the first airplane. These things were impossible to believe during the period of time they were discovered but were apparently true. More modern-day machines like a sewing machine would have been something that the general masses could not have believed in. All these thoughts soon turn into reality and the things that seem illogical might actually be a step into our future.

6. 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: Philately helps keep the past alive. There are various other ways too that can help us keep the past alive. The collection of various paintings, inscriptions, artifacts, books, etc. helps to preserve what actually existed a while ago in the period of time. Keeping sketches, letters, and diary entries is another fun way of preserving the past with oneself. These not only help us to keep our history alive but also keeps our tradition and culture to survive and sustain for years. These things also provide us an opportunity to learn what history contained and unveil its secrets before us. Old buildings and artifacts are also a source of history for us. It's amazing that the human brain tends to move between present, past and future. But this capacity can be a great source of stress and depression. Thinking and worrying about what happened in the past and what will happen in the future always keeps us in a state of unrest. We should learn to accept what the present has for us and try to live it to the fullest. The present provides us opportunities to learn which our past holds memories for us to cherish later.

7. You have read ‘Adventure’ by Jayant Narlikar in Hornbill Class XI. Compare the interweaving of fantasy and reality in the two stories.

Ans: The stories hold various supernatural and mystical elements within them. The stories help us drift away from practical reality and help us explore the world that our brain can create. In ‘Adventure’ Jayant Narlikar brought forth his view that various worlds could exist simultaneously. The worlds that exist can be separated by time. In ‘The Third Level,’ Charley encounters a new world from the past on the third floor of the Grand Central Station. He finds a gateway that leads to the past of 1894. He even didn't have any currency of that period for which he had to rush to the bank. Both these stories had elements of time travel.

NCERT Solutions For Class 12 English Vistas – Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions of Class 12 English Vistas Chapter 1 is 'The Third Level' by Jack Finney, an American writer. NCERT Solutions offer comprehensive information on the topic and the types of questions- both short and long that may be asked from the story. It often happens that the question paper asks you to compare two of the short stories prescribed in the syllabus or critically analyze the theme, plot or characters in the story.

You need to have proper understanding and knowledge about the story from different aspects to answer these questions. NCERT Solutions takes away this burden of searching and scrolling through various books and internet sites and compiles all of this into a pdf, thereby saving your precious time. You can easily study The Third Level Class 12 NCERT Solutions online or download the pdf available on this page and study offline for free.

Chapter-wise NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English Vistas

• Chapter 1 - The Third Level

• Chapter 2 - The Tiger King

• Chapter 3 - Journey to the end of the Earth

• Chapter 4 - The Enemy

• Chapter 5 - Should Wizard hit Mommy

• Chapter 6 - On the face of It

• Chapter 7 - Evans Tries an O-level

• Chapter 8 - Memories of Childhood

The Third Level by Jack Finney is a psychological story which reflects on a 31-year-old man named Charlie. The background is set at the subway of the grand central railway station which takes the passengers to Galesburg. On a metaphorical level, this subway reflects the interconnection between the fantasy and harsh reality of the narrator and also, a connection between time and space.

The story describes the anxiety, stress and uncertainty of the modern world where man is dying to find an escape from the bitter reality into the soothing world of fantasy. The Third Level is the escape for Charlie. The story details the psyche of a modern man and how much trapped he is inside his own body. Some may understand the essence of this short story completely; some may not. NCERT Solutions can help you with this and also give you access to answer any questions so that you can keep a check of how much you learnt.

Importance of Preparing NCERT Class 12 Solutions for English Vistas

• NCERT Vistas is a supplementary textbook for Class 12 English students prescribed by CBSE.

• It consists of 8 chapters that offer interesting and thought-provoking reads.

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• The solutions include solved exercise questions, additional notes, discussions on summaries, themes, and important concepts.

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• Using the solutions will help students score well in board and term examinations, improving their overall percentage.

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• NCERT Solutions provide comprehensive study material and questions for all subjects, chapters, and topics, specifically tailored for Class 10th and 12th students, saving them the trouble of searching for additional resources.

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• Class 12 English Vistas PDFs contain critical and analytical questions that help students develop a narrative and learn how to write precise and direct answers.

• The solutions are easily accessible in PDF format, free to download, and can be studied offline by taking printouts.

• By referring to the solutions, students can grasp the fundamental themes of stories, such as the symbolic significance of gateways in Chapter 1: The Third Level.

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• These solutions serve as a valuable resource for last-minute revisions, covering important concepts and questions.

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Vedantu is well-known for its study material and helps students explore different subjects from a new perspective apart from the boring ones given in the prescribed books. Thus students develop a keen interest in studies and learn easily. When it comes to English, sometimes it gets difficult to decode the message entailed in the story mainly because of the difference in writing styles by different writers, some may write to the point, others may write in a symbolic tone. Therefore, NCERT Solutions by Vedantu help you gain a better understanding and knowledge about the short stories.

Conclusion

The NCERT Solutions provided by Vedantu for Class 12 English, specifically for "The Third Level," offer valuable assistance to students. These solutions are designed to help students understand and analyze the story effectively. They provide a comprehensive explanation of the text, including important themes, literary devices, and character analysis. Furthermore, the solutions offer a step-by-step approach to answering questions and engaging with the story's concepts. Overall, the NCERT Solutions by Vedantu serve as a reliable resource for Class 12 English students, enhancing their comprehension and facilitating a deeper understanding of "The Third Level."