Previous
Charley’s Psychiatrist (Sam)
Louisa is Charley’s wife. She is supportive of Charley and dislikes some of Sam’s hypotheses about him, such as Sam’s suggestion that Charley is unhappy. Even so, she is initially on Sam’s side and does not want Charley to look for the third level again after hearing about his initial experience there. However, this soon changes after she and Charley discover that Sam has made it to 1894 via the third level. After learning this, she helps Charley resume his search for the third level, suggesting that she, too, longs to escape modernity for the past.
Louisa Quotes in The Third Level
The The Third Level quotes below are all either spoken by Louisa or refer to Louisa. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
The Third Level Quotes
I told him about the third level at Grand Central Station, and he said it was a waking-dream wish fulfillment. 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, hell, who doesn’t? Everyone I know wants to escape, but they don’t wander down into any third level at Grand Central Station.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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 a 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!
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Third Level LitChart as a printable PDF.
Louisa Character Timeline in The Third Level
The timeline below shows where the character Louisa appears in The Third Level. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Third Level
...is not trying to escape anything, but merely trying to get home to his wife Louisa. In attempting to find his train, he gets lost in the station. According to him,...
(full context)
...approaches the ticket gate with the intention of buying two tickets to Galesburg, Illinois for Louisa and himself. Galesburg, he claims, is a beautiful town even in the present, thanks to...
(full context)
...get arrested, quickly leaves. The next day, he spends $300—nearly all the money he and Louisa have—in order to get less than $200 in old currency, rationalizing his decision by pointing...
(full context)
After his failure, Charley initially gives up on searching for the third level at Louisa’s insistence and goes back to his stamp collection. However, he and Louisa both eventually pick...
(full context)
