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Chapter 4
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Queen’s Gambit, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Talent, Ambition, Dedication, and Success
Discrimination and Belonging
Coming of Age
Addiction
Friendship and Mentorship
Summary
Analysis
After winning the Kentucky State Championship, Beth goes into town one day after school to open a bank account with her winnings, but at 13 she needs a guardian to do so. When she gets home, she finds Mrs. Wheatley sitting hazily next to four empty beer bottles. Beth looks at the newspaper, which to her surprise, has a picture of her on the front page. In the article, Harry Beltik said she showed “a mastery of the game unequaled by any female.”
Beth’s decision to open an account with her prize winnings shows a mature shift: she is gaining independence and making her own decisions about her future. Separately, Beltik’s comment shows his bias against Beth even after she beats him. His comment that she is better than other women not only undervalues the skill of women generally, but it also ignores the fact that Beth also beat all of the male players at the tournament—she’s good “for a girl,” he seems to be saying.
Themes
Beth asks Mrs. Wheatley to help her open a bank account, and Mrs. Wheatley is astonished to see how much money Beth won—she didn’t realize that people won so much money from chess tournaments. The next day, after going to the bank, Mrs. Wheatley comes up with a plan to have her go to a tournament in Cincinnati the second week in December: the first prize is $500. Mrs. Wheatley has come up with a budget for the trip so that they can make a good profit. Soon after, Beth buys Modern Chess Openings from Morris’s and then she buys a chess set from Purcell’s Department store. When she gets home, she opens the book, starting from the beginning.
This episode again highlights how Beth is starting to take control of her own life and gain independence. She is able to use her money to buy what she wants—namely, a chess set and a chess book—whereas before she had to rely on others to determine what she could or could not have. Even though she needs Mrs. Wheatley’s help to travel to these tournaments, she is making the decision to go to them. Additionally, Beth starts to recognize how she needs to study to supplement her talent—she can’t rely on talent alone to win future tournaments.
Themes
Beth and Mrs. Wheatley stay at the Gibson Hotel in Cincinnati, in a huge suite with a color TV and beautiful furniture. The tournament is in the hotel; though Beth still doesn’t have a rating, the men in the lobby know who she is. There are two games a day with a time control of 120/40—two hours to make 40 moves.
The book suggests that even after her first tournament, Beth is already starting to make a splash in the chess world due to her enormous talent at such a young age. People are already starting to recognize her, making her feel like she fits into the chess world after so many instances of opponents assuming that she didn’t belong.
Themes
When Beth is signing in, she hears a deep voice coming from a strange young man on a sofa dressed in all black. Everyone is listening to him as he talks about the Caro-Kann defense, which he explains is flawed. Beth wanders over to watch as he demonstrates the problem with the move on a board; she is the only girl in the room. Beth has never seen these moves, though she knows them.
Even though Beth is starting to get recognized at the tournaments, the makeup of the tournament players still emphasizes that she is the odd one out, as she is often the only female player in any given room at a chess tournament.
Themes
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As the man moves the pieces, Beth makes a suggestion about what to move next. He notes that she’s the girl who wiped out Harry Beltik, but he shows the holes in her move. Beth is excited watching his display; the game he is demonstrating is dazzling, like some of the best ones that she has seen in books. The man stands up and stretches, explaining that Reshevsky—who played the game he was demonstrating—was playing this way when he was Beth’s age, calling her a little girl.
This exchange again highlights some of the discrimination that Beth faces, as the man dismisses her as a “little girl.” But it also shows how Beth still has a lot of learning to do about chess before she can become a true master—her talent can only take her so far, and disciplined study is also needed if she’s going to take her place among the greats.
Themes
Beth wins her first match easily and then goes out with Mrs. Wheatley, hoping to buy a cashmere sweater. She tries to imagine herself as a member of the Apple Pi club, but she still feels somewhat ugly. Later in the afternoon, she plays a middle-aged man ranked 1910, and she beats him after an hour and a half. She sees a few familiar faces and feels comfort in seeing them, but she is disappointed when she doesn’t see Townes. That evening, Beth studies some endgames, but she is often bored by endgames because they are subtle and slow—no chance for the violent attack she loves. She takes two pills and drifts off—she wants to make sure she can sleep.
Beth continues to grapple with growing up—even as she is becoming more independent and buying new clothing (in contrast to earlier when Mrs. Wheatley bought her clothes), she still struggles with feelings of insecurity. This passage introduces Beth’s reluctance to study the less exciting parts of chess, another sign of her immaturity. While Beth’s instinctive attack strategy has worked so far, this passage hints that it may not work for her forever.
Themes
The second day is as easy as the first for Beth, though she plays better players. In the final match, Beth at first seems trapped and disadvantaged, but she manages to stave off her opponent until he makes a mistake, which she quickly takes advantage of. She wins the match to applause, and Mrs. Wheatley is there to congratulate her. That evening, they calculate that Beth has made over $300. She wonders if she should offer to split the money with Mrs. Wheatley when Mrs. Wheatley asks about taking a 10% commission. Beth agrees, even though she doesn’t want to give Mrs. Wheatley any money.
Again, the book emphasizes Beth’s growing independence. In contrast to her dependent life in the orphanage, she now takes control over her own life and her money, becoming the primary earner in the household and choosing to give her adopted mother a commission. This illustrates that in many ways, their dynamic is reversed: Beth is behaving like the more adult one.
Themes
That evening at dinner, over veal and a carafe of wine, Mrs. Wheatley suggests going to another tournament over Christmas in Houston, and Beth agrees—calling her “Mother.” Time jumps to their flight to Houston—their Christmas dinner is microwave turkey on an airplane, with champagne for Mrs. Wheatley. It is the best Christmas that Beth has ever had. They plan out more tournaments for Beth to go to—one a month, so as not to make the school suspicious. In Houston, Beth wins the tournament without any trouble, even though she has to draw her third game. More articles come out about her, calling her a “Wunderkind.”
The fact that this is Beth’s best Christmas reminds readers of just how far she’s come in a short amount of time. Her talent and drive have brought her major success—so much so that she is a “wunderkind” and a marvel in the eyes of the chess world. But it also demonstrates that she’s been able to gain an incredible amount of independence in contrast with her childhood at Methuen, when everything was regimented. Now, she’s able to travel freely and even provide for her household.
Themes
Beth continues to attend and win tournaments through March. She loves traveling with Mrs. Wheatley, who is high-spirited and amusing. She loves hotels and restaurants and the excitement of winning. People recognize her there—she is always the youngest and sometimes the only woman. School seems more and more drab in comparison, particularly because she talks to no one about her travels. After the tournament in March, Beth finally gets a rating: 1881. The next big step is Master, at 2200.
Chess has become Beth’s primary focus in life. She’s not a typical teenager; ordinary things like school have gotten pushed to the margins by her remarkable success. Yet because of her age and gender, she doesn’t feel like an insider at tournaments, either.
Themes
That summer, Beth attends a tournament in New York, which she loves. Her only problem is that she takes pills each night to help her sleep, and sometimes she needs an hour to clear her head in the morning, so she often drinks several cups of coffee. Mrs. Wheatley doesn’t know about the pills and largely treats Beth as an adult—sometimes Beth feels as if she were the older of the two. Together, they get fancy dinners and go to the Radio City Music Hall.
This passage returns to Beth’s growing addiction. Even though she uses the pills to make sure that she can get a good night’s sleep, it also starts to negatively affect her gameplay, showing how it is becoming a growing dependency. In addition, this section highlights Beth’s growing responsibility and independence, particularly in contrast with Mrs. Wheatley, as Beth feels more mature than her mother.
Themes
Soon after, a reporter from Life, Jean Balke, comes to the house to take pictures and interview Beth. The reporter asks about what it’s like to play with all those older men, explaining that she was never allowed to be competitive. She asks if Beth has a boyfriend, but Beth says she’s 14 and interested in chess. She tries to talk about how she learned the game, but Beth can tell the woman is not really interested.
The reporter’s questions are sexist, making this interview no better than the newspaper article about Beth after the Kentucky State Championship. The questions are more about highlighting her gender—noting how she doesn’t belong in the chess world among all the older men—rather than expressing interest in the uniqueness of Beth’s story.
Themes
A week later, the article comes out, talking about how chess is a “birthright” for Beth, who exploded onto the male-dominated world of the nation’s top chess tournaments. Beth buys a copy, and she sees that it talks about the orphanage and gives one of her games—but it’s mostly about her being a girl. Mrs. Wheatley assures her that it makes her a celebrity, but Beth laments that it doesn’t talk enough about chess or the way she plays.
Even Beth recognizes how these stories highlight her outsider status in the chess world, understanding that they care more about her as a girl than as a player. Mrs. Wheatley, too, sees Beth more as a “celebrity” than as an individual. At the same time, the article’s recognition that chess is a “birthright” for Beth recognizes her instinct for the game.
Themes
The next day, Margaret invites Beth to a pledge party for the Apple Pi’s. Mrs. Wheatley helps Beth pick out a dress, but at the party, Beth finds it tedious. The girls don’t ask her about chess, they only ask her about the boys at the tournaments and whether she dated any of them. Later in the evening, they watch a movie. She is astounded at how dull it is—she doesn’t participate in the gossip and laughter. She’s relieved when she gets home, spending an hour with another chess book.
This is another turning point in Beth’s coming of age. Finally having gained a sense of belonging in the Apple Pi club, Beth realizes it’s actually not the kind of club she wants to belong to and that the other girls don’t care about her as a person. Part of her emergence into adulthood is finding greater comfort in her own skin and choosing what she wants to do rather than conforming to others’ expectations of her.
Themes
At the next tournament, Beth doesn’t even have to lie about being sick because the school now knows about her winnings. At the tournament, the director takes Beth and Mrs. Wheatley out to dinner, and they talk about Beth’s wanting to compete in the U.S. Open and then internationally. He warns her that Russian players are very good: Russia pays people to play chess.
The tournament director’s description is Beth’s first introduction to Russian players. It hints not only at how her ambition and talent drive her to want greater and greater success, but also that she is soon to face formidable foes and may reach the limits of her talent.
Themes
Unfortunately, Beth is unable to go to the U.S. Open that year. Mrs. Wheatley is sick in bed for two weeks and Beth doesn’t want to make the trip to Los Angeles alone. The Open isn’t as important as the U.S. Championship, but she’s sad to miss it, because she wants to start getting into invitation-only tournaments. She wants to become a truly professional woman and the finest chess player in the world, traveling confidently by herself. By the time Beth turns 16, she’s taller and better looking, and her bank account is growing. But she is too old to be called a prodigy anymore—she feels like she has plateaued.
Here Beth faces a tension common among teenagers: she is starting to gain greater independence (and in Beth’s case, considerably more independence than most). And yet, at the same time, she isn’t fully in control of her life—she still relies on Mrs. Wheatley to travel with her and dreams of her future as a professional woman, implying that she’s not quite there yet. This builds on the book’s portrayal of coming of age as gaining agency over one’s own life. At the same time, the book hints that, now that Beth is no longer a little kid, she’ll have to develop her talent in new ways.
Themes
