Feminism must be closely related to women against the patriarchy system, women empowerment, and gender equality. Women, for a long time, have been stereotyped by the words weak, powerless, untitled, etc. But, everybody will agree that women are beautiful and pretty, being opposed by men or we can call it Feminine and Masculine. Even though, discrimination against women still exists because of the negative stereotype about them. So, Feminism is a way for women to break the negative stereotype and Patriarchy system that has been rooted for a long time.
The Queen of Gambits by Walter Tevis has a women protagonist character in it. This novel told a story about Elizabeth Harmon, or Beth Harmon, an orphan chess prodigy. The novel told the biography of her, a woman who loves to play chess and dedicated her life to becoming an elite chess player but struggling with emotional problems, drugs, and alcohol dependency.
The story begins in the mid-1950s and proceeds into the 1960s. Elizabeth Harmon is orphaned at age 9 when her mother dies in a car crash on New Circle Road. She is taken to an orphanage, where the children are given tranquilizing pills to make them more calm and compliant. The story began while she was cleaning erasers in the basement, she discovers the custodian, Mr. Shaibel, studying chess on his own. After repeated requests, and demonstrating that she has already learned how the pieces move by observing him, he reluctantly agrees to teach her the game. She becomes obsessed and improves quickly, thanks to her spatial intelligence and abuse of the mind-altering tranquilizers, which allow her to focus and visualize chess games on the ceiling above her bed.
Her obsession with chess, lead her to join the various tournaments and beat many high rating chess players in many countries and she decided to dedicate her life to beating the world’s best chess player at the time. She, being a woman and must face another chess player that mostly is men, sometimes face discrimination and must break the stereotype about women that cannot play chess just like other men. She proves it by winning the world’s chess tournament in Russia beating the best player at the time named Burgov. Even though, because of her intelligence, courage, and ambition, she was supported by many people who care about her.
The stereotypes begin when Beth is adopted by a couple named Mr. Wheatley and Mrs. Wheatley. Mrs. Wheatley asked her if she had any hobbies, and Beth said she likes playing chess and asked Mrs. Wheatley if there is someone who can play with her,
“Is there anyone I could play with?”
“Play chess? I have no idea.” Mrs. Wheatley peered at her for a moment.
“Isn’t it primarily a game for boys?”
“Girls play,” she said.
“How nice!” But Mrs. Wheatley was clearly miles away.
Mrs. Wheatley clearly said that chess is just for a boy, and Beth argue her and said everyone include girls can play chess just like boys. The gap between Mrs. Wheatley’s era and Beth’s era show that patriarchy was boldly exist in Mrs. Wheatley’s era, the era that thought women cannot do what men does like chess. Meanwhile chess is a game that was measured by brain strategy not gender. So, Beth thinks that chess can play by everyone, men and women.
