The Queen's Gambit (novel)
Encyclopedia
The Queen's Gambit is an American
novel
by Walter Tevis
. The bildungsroman
coming-of-age novel was originally published in 1983
and covers themes in feminism
, chess
, drug addiction, and alcoholism
.
is "The Long-Legged Fly" by William Butler Yeats
. This poem highlights one of the novel's main concerns: the inner workings of genius in a woman. Tevis discusses this concern in a 1983 interview, and never wrote the sequel he mentions in the interview.
favored by the protagonist Beth Harmon, The Queen's Gambit traces Harmon's life from her childhood in an orphanage through her struggles with tranquilizer and alcohol addiction to her triumphant rise through the Grandmaster ranks.
Eight-year-old orphan
Beth Harmon is quiet, sullen, and by all appearances unremarkable. That is until she plays her first game of chess
. Her senses grow sharper, her thinking clearer, and for the first time in her life she feels herself fully in control. By the age of sixteen, she’s competing for the U.S. Open championship. But as she hones her skills on the professional circuit, the stakes get higher, her isolation grows more frightening, and the thought of escape becomes all the more tempting.
and for the technical accuracy of its depictions of chess:
Tevis based the chess scenes on his own experience as a class C player and on his long study of the game (The Queen's Gambit, endnote "About the Author"), and he elaborates on this in the Author's Note:
when The New York Times
journalist Jesse Kornbluth acquired rights for a screenplay
, nearly every actor and director that he knew was interested in participating. When Tevis died in 1984, rights to the movie were sold to another studio and the movie was called off due to financial concerns.
In 1992, Scottish screenwriter Allan Scott
acquired rights for a screenplay of a planned art house film
. Among the directors who were involved at some point included Michael Apted
and Bernardo Bertolucci
, but each eventually moved on to other projects. In 2007 and 2008, Scott was working with Heath Ledger
on what would have been Ledger's directorial debut, and who was set to star alongside Ellen Page
. Production and principal photography were planned for late 2008 but were put on hold following the Ledger's death on January 22.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Walter Tevis
Walter Tevis
Walter Stone Tevis was an American novelist and short story writer. Three of his six novels were adapted into major films: The Hustler, The Color of Money and The Man Who Fell to Earth...
. The bildungsroman
Bildungsroman
In literary criticism, bildungsroman or coming-of-age story is a literary genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood , and in which character change is thus extremely important...
coming-of-age novel was originally published in 1983
1983 in literature
The year 1983 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Ironweed by William Kennedy is published.*Salvage for the Saint by Peter Bloxsom and John Kruse is published. This is the final book in a series of novels, novellas and short stories featuring the Leslie Charteris...
and covers themes in feminism
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
, chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
, drug addiction, and alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
.
Epigraph
The novel's epigraphEpigraph (literature)
In literature, an epigraph is a phrase, quotation, or poem that is set at the beginning of a document or component. The epigraph may serve as a preface, as a summary, as a counter-example, or to link the work to a wider literary canon, either to invite comparison or to enlist a conventional...
is "The Long-Legged Fly" by William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
. This poem highlights one of the novel's main concerns: the inner workings of genius in a woman. Tevis discusses this concern in a 1983 interview, and never wrote the sequel he mentions in the interview.
Plot
Named after a chess openingChess opening
A chess opening is the group of initial moves of a chess game. Recognized sequences of opening moves are referred to as openings as initiated by White or defenses, as created in reply by Black. There are many dozens of different openings, and hundreds of named variants. The Oxford Companion to...
favored by the protagonist Beth Harmon, The Queen's Gambit traces Harmon's life from her childhood in an orphanage through her struggles with tranquilizer and alcohol addiction to her triumphant rise through the Grandmaster ranks.
Eight-year-old orphan
Orphan
An orphan is a child permanently bereaved of or abandoned by his or her parents. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents is called an orphan...
Beth Harmon is quiet, sullen, and by all appearances unremarkable. That is until she plays her first game of chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
. Her senses grow sharper, her thinking clearer, and for the first time in her life she feels herself fully in control. By the age of sixteen, she’s competing for the U.S. Open championship. But as she hones her skills on the professional circuit, the stakes get higher, her isolation grows more frightening, and the thought of escape becomes all the more tempting.
Literary significance and reception
The novel is difficult to classify, occupying a space between thriller, sports/game novel and bildungsroman. It has cult status for its addictive plot:and for the technical accuracy of its depictions of chess:
Tevis based the chess scenes on his own experience as a class C player and on his long study of the game (The Queen's Gambit, endnote "About the Author"), and he elaborates on this in the Author's Note:
Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
in 1983 an attempt was made to turn the novel into a feature filmFeature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
when The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
journalist Jesse Kornbluth acquired rights for a screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
, nearly every actor and director that he knew was interested in participating. When Tevis died in 1984, rights to the movie were sold to another studio and the movie was called off due to financial concerns.
In 1992, Scottish screenwriter Allan Scott
Allan Scott (Scottish screenwriter)
Allan Scott, the alias of Allan Shiach, is a Scottish screenwriter and producer, nominated for BAFTA's Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film and a Genie Award for his 1997 film Regeneration...
acquired rights for a screenplay of a planned art house film
Art film
An art film is the result of filmmaking which is typically a serious, independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience...
. Among the directors who were involved at some point included Michael Apted
Michael Apted
Michael David Apted, CMG is an English director, producer, writer and actor. He is one of the most prolific British film directors of his generation but is best known for his work on the Up Series of documentaries and the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.On 29 June 2003 he was elected...
and Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci is an Italian film director and screenwriter, whose films include The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris, 1900, The Last Emperor and The Dreamers...
, but each eventually moved on to other projects. In 2007 and 2008, Scott was working with Heath Ledger
Heath Ledger
Heath Andrew Ledger was an Australian television and film actor. After performing roles in Australian television and film during the 1990s, Ledger moved to the United States in 1998 to develop his film career...
on what would have been Ledger's directorial debut, and who was set to star alongside Ellen Page
Ellen Page
Ellen Philpotts-Page , known professionally as Ellen Page, is a Canadian actress. Page received both Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for her role as the title character in the film Juno...
. Production and principal photography were planned for late 2008 but were put on hold following the Ledger's death on January 22.