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In 'The Queen's Gambit' and beyond, chess holds up a mirror to life

  • Written by Jenny Adams, Associate Professor of English, University of Massachusetts Amherst

In the closing sequence of “The Queen’s Gambit,” the chess-playing heroine, Beth Harmon, defeats her archrival Vasily Borgov at the Moscow Invitational. The next day she impulsively skips her flight home to join a group of adoring chess players in what appears to be Moscow’s famous Sokolniki Park. The symbolism of this...

Read more: In 'The Queen's Gambit' and beyond, chess holds up a mirror to life

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