The Third String by W. W. Jacobs
The story follows the life of a young man named Tom, who is a third-string violinist in a small orchestra. Tom is a talented musician, but he is constantly overshadowed by the more experienced and better-known first and second string players. Despite his lack of recognition, Tom is content with his life and enjoys playing music with his friends. One day, Tom is offered the chance to play a solo at a prestigious concert. He is excited by the opportunity, but he is also nervous about performing in front of such a large audience. Despite his fears, Tom decides to take the chance and performs brilliantly. His performance is so impressive that he is offered a job as the first-string violinist in the orchestra. Tom is overjoyed by the offer, but he soon realizes that he is not as happy as he thought he would be. He misses the camaraderie of the third-string players and the joy of playing music with his friends. In the end, Tom decides to turn down the offer and remain a third-string player. He realizes that he is happier playing music with his friends than he would be playing as a first-string violinist.
By W. W. Jacobs · First published 1843 · Genre: Humor, Fiction, Realism · 4,599 words
First lines
Love? said the night-watchman, as he watched in an abstracted fashion the efforts of a skipper to reach a brother skipper on a passing barge with a boathook. Don't talk to me about love, because I've suffered enough through it. There ought to be teetotalers for love the same as wot there is for drink, and they ought to wear a piece o' ribbon to show it, the same as the teetotalers do; but not an attractive piece o' ribbon, mind you. I've seen as much mischief caused by love as by drink, and the funny thing is, one often leads to the other. Love, arter it is over, often leads to drink, and drink often leads to love and to a man committing himself for life afore it is over.
What this Textopian page supports
The Third String is listed on Textopian as a novel by W. W. Jacobs, dated 1843 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Novel
- Author: W. W. Jacobs
- Date: 1843 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Humor, Fiction, Realism, Romance
- Length: 4,599 words
- Structure: 1 section, 143 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Third String by W. W. Jacobs
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
Discussion starters
- What should a reader notice first when entering The Third String?
- How does this novel by W. W. Jacobs fit its genre, period, or classroom use?
- Where does Humor first become important in the reading?
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Genres
- Humor — The Third String is a humorous short story by W. W. Jacobs, known for his humorous writing style.
- Fiction — The Third String is a work of fiction, as it is a short story written by W. W. Jacobs.
- Realism — The Third String is a realistic story, as it is set in a realistic setting and features characters with realistic motivations and behaviors.
- Romance — The Third String contains elements of romance, as the protagonist is in love with a woman and is trying to win her affections.
Tags
England · English · Fiction · Humorous stories · Sailors · Social life and customs · afore · agin · arter · beat · bed · bit