The Royal Game
Encyclopedia
The Royal Game is a novella
by Austria
n author Stefan Zweig
first published in 1942, after the author's death by suicide. In some editions, the story titles a collection that also includes ""Amok", "Burning Secret
", "Fear", and "Letter from an Unknown Woman
".
After absorbing every single move of any variation in the book, and having nothing more to explore, Dr. B begins to play the game against himself, developing the ability to separate his psyche into two personas: I (White) and I (Black). This psychological conflict causes him to ultimately suffer a breakdown, after which he eventually awakens in a sanatorium. Being saved by a sympathetic physician, who attests his insanity to keep him from being imprisoned again by the Nazis, he is finally set free.
After happening to be on the same cruise liner as a group of chess enthusiasts and the world chess champion Czentovic, he incidentally stumbles across their game against the champion. Mirko Czentovic was a peasant prodigy
possessing no obvious redeeming qualities besides his gift for chess. Dr. B helps the chess enthusiasts in managing to draw their game in an almost hopeless position. After this effort, they persuade him to play alone against Czentovic. In a stunning demonstration of his imaginative and combinational powers, Dr. B sensationally beats the world champion.
Czentovic immediately demands a return game to restore his honour. But this time, having sensed that Dr. B played quite fast and hardly took time to think, he tries to irritate his opponent by taking a lot of time before making a move, thereby putting psychological pressure on Dr. B, who gets more and more impatient as the game proceeds. His greatest power turns out to be his greatest weakness: he reenacts the match in his mind repeatedly with all imaginable possibilities so rapidly that Czentovic's deliberation and placidness drive him to distraction and ultimately insanity, culminating in an incorrect move after which Dr. B awakens from his frenzy.
film Brainwashed
, originally titled Die Schachnovelle, as well as for the 1980 Czechoslovakian film "The Royal Game
".
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
by Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n author Stefan Zweig
Stefan Zweig
Stefan Zweig was an Austrian novelist, playwright, journalist and biographer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most famous writers in the world.- Biography :...
first published in 1942, after the author's death by suicide. In some editions, the story titles a collection that also includes ""Amok", "Burning Secret
Burning Secret
Burning Secret is a 1988 drama film, based on the short story Brennendes Geheimnis by Stefan Zweig, about an American diplomat's son who befriends a mysterious baron while staying at an Austrian spa during the 1920s. The film was written and directed by Andrew Birkin, and stars Klaus Maria...
", "Fear", and "Letter from an Unknown Woman
Letter from an Unknown Woman
Letter from an Unknown Woman is a novella by Stefan Zweig. Published in 1922, it tells the story of an author who, while reading a letter written by a woman he does not remember, gets glimpses into her life story.- Film :...
".
Plot summary
Driven to mental anguish as the result of total isolation by the National Socialists, Dr. B, a monarchist hiding valuable assets of the nobility from the new regime, maintains his sanity only through the theft of a book of past masters' chess games which he plays endlessly, voraciously learning each one until they overwhelm his imagination to such an extent that he becomes consumed by chess.After absorbing every single move of any variation in the book, and having nothing more to explore, Dr. B begins to play the game against himself, developing the ability to separate his psyche into two personas: I (White) and I (Black). This psychological conflict causes him to ultimately suffer a breakdown, after which he eventually awakens in a sanatorium. Being saved by a sympathetic physician, who attests his insanity to keep him from being imprisoned again by the Nazis, he is finally set free.
After happening to be on the same cruise liner as a group of chess enthusiasts and the world chess champion Czentovic, he incidentally stumbles across their game against the champion. Mirko Czentovic was a peasant prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
possessing no obvious redeeming qualities besides his gift for chess. Dr. B helps the chess enthusiasts in managing to draw their game in an almost hopeless position. After this effort, they persuade him to play alone against Czentovic. In a stunning demonstration of his imaginative and combinational powers, Dr. B sensationally beats the world champion.
Czentovic immediately demands a return game to restore his honour. But this time, having sensed that Dr. B played quite fast and hardly took time to think, he tries to irritate his opponent by taking a lot of time before making a move, thereby putting psychological pressure on Dr. B, who gets more and more impatient as the game proceeds. His greatest power turns out to be his greatest weakness: he reenacts the match in his mind repeatedly with all imaginable possibilities so rapidly that Czentovic's deliberation and placidness drive him to distraction and ultimately insanity, culminating in an incorrect move after which Dr. B awakens from his frenzy.
Adaptations
This novella was the inspiration of the 1960 Gerd OswaldGerd Oswald
Gerd Oswald was a director of American films and television. The son of German film director Richard Oswald, he was born in Berlin and died in Los Angeles, California....
film Brainwashed
Brainwashed (film)
Brainwashed is a German film. The 1960 film is based on Stefan Zweig's novella The Royal Game.- Plot :Chess world champion Centowic wants to travel by ship to an important chess tournament...
, originally titled Die Schachnovelle, as well as for the 1980 Czechoslovakian film "The Royal Game
The Royal Game (film)
Královská hra is a Czechoslovakian adaptation of Stefan Zweig's novel The Royal Game.-External links:*...
".
External links
- PushkinPress.com English editions of Stefan Zweig's novellas