The Third Level

Imagine wondering into this magical place in Grand Central Station, but nobody believes you. While Charley explains this to his wife she sends him to a psychiatrist, his name is Sam. Will he believe me? Wouldn’t this thought go through your head, along with many others? They are thoughts that Charley is probably thinking in this Romance, a lot like Narnia, that teaches a valuable lesson.
Unless this story sounds like an incredibly appalling world to you, it is definitely a intolerably written Romance called “The Third Level” by Jack Finney. Throughout this story there is a mild conflict happening to the main character. This mild conflict is that Charley cannot find the third level, ever again. In the end there is a life-affirming symbol that I really dislike because I believe that a life-affirming symbol should be a happy one for all people, especially in a romance. The upsetting life-affirming symbol that Finney put into this story is that Sam is now back in 1894. The way that Charley figured out he has now lost his psychiatrist, Sam is that he was looking through his stamp collection and he sees one he has never seen before from 1894. Usually in the envelopes holding the new stamp on the front is a blank sheet of paper inside but in this one there is a letter saying…
“Charley:
I got to wishing that you were right. Then I got to believing you were right. And, Charley, it’s true; I found the third level! I’ve been here two weeks, and right now, down the street at the Daly’s, someone is playing the piano, and they’re all out on the front porch singing, “Seeing Nellie home.” And I’m invited over for lemonade, Come on back, Charley and Louisa. Keep looking till you find the third level! It’s worth it, believe me!” It was signed Sam. While reading this story it really reminded me of what happened in Narnia, only I really liked Narnia.
Because Narnia is also very unrealistic and takes place in a perfect world with a little magic going on it really triggered my mind that this story is just like Narnia! To start out in Narnia they all are happy with their lives and they are just normal children play hide ‘n seek. When one of the girls wonders into the closet she falls backwards and she sees this whole other world. Any kid would be completely shocked, much like Charley was when finding the third level. In the end in both of these stories there are main characters who are both just either looking for or going into their magical world to escape their problems, which means they both have a very valuable lesson to learn.
There is a lesson that both of the characters in these stories need to learn. Throughout the stories the characters are trying to escape their fears and problems, but why? The lesson that many people need to learn from this story is not to escape your problems and fears and they need to just encounter their problems and work through or around them. If Charley would’ve done this, nobody would think he is crazy, and his wife would’ve never had to get him a psychiatrist. Although everything did work out in this story you should still take this lesson from “The Third Level” even though it is not the best written story in the world.
Now, what do you do if you imagine yourself walking into a mystical world? When I think about I don’t get excited anymore, I actually get disappointed because I am perfectly happy with my life just the way it is. This story really taught me a lot and I am very exultant that I read it although I still dislike this romance by Jack Finney, a lot like Narnia, and I am glad it taught me the lesson of facing your fears and not just escaping them.