The biggest lie about chess

You might be familiar with the following expressions:

"X has an overwhelming position"

"With this move, X gets the initiative and easily wins"

Typically found in any chess book or article, they are two of the biggest offenders ever seen in chess literature. Before you start whining and calling me a "materialistic pig" or something worse, let me explain this point properly.

When the word "initiative" is mentioned, one can be pretty sure that the author will soon move to another topic. Often used as a way to stop talking about a position, when one does not want to make an effort and calculate the lines that lead to the win. This is what the initiative is about. A smokescreen. And when the smoke disipates, a new, usually unrelated position appears. So the author can sell the book saying it contains "more than X positions about whatever" without properly explaining them.

Not really.  Generally those phrases are used when the following position requires no commentary.

The amateur, oblivious of this practice, tends to blame himself for not understanding what happens at the end of the sequence of moves. Just something like "The win is easy" makes the poor sub2000 player thinks he has to improve his positional skills.

-GM X says there is an easy win here. And it certainly looks promising. But what should I play?

What if two masters were to play one of those positions? Would the supposedly losing side resign without thinking for a moment? I bet they would not in most cases. They would play on. Hoping for a draw. And guess what, they might get it from time to time. Would the win be so easy then?

Typical comment by an alienated amateur. Initiative is just one of the lies (the biggest in fact) chess authors spread in order to get away with being lazy. But there are many others: e.g. positions where the best line finishes in a difficult ending like Q+K vs R+K and the author does not even bother to mention how complex the following endgame is.

How complex can Q+K vs. R+K be? Unless he plays like a total idiot, the side with Q+K can easily force the draw.

Honesty is the best policy. 

Indeed, I completely agree! What an apt response to the original post!

That's right up there with, "No I won't take your queen".

The best to teach chess properly, but not to write books fast and effortlessly.

Get some better books if you are seeing that junk

I agree buddy, they are all crap, they just talk about initiative and this and that and never provide any real analysis to sustain their arguments.

That is why I stopped suporting this monopoly

#PIRATEBAYTILGM

Only if you have the initiative.

Well what do you expect from the chess author? That he analyses every line possible to move 30? Is that the ideal opening book? Having thousands of possible lines analysed to the late middlegame/endgame? To me the initiative phrase means that we reached a position that does not bring a lot of problems to you and you are the only one that can be better because you have the initiative, you have the pressure. It means that this is not a line that is critical. There is no need to further analyse this as there are lines that are more challenging.

Those are big offenders too, but at least when you see a damaged pawn structure you usually know where you should attack, which is not the case with the "overwhelming initiative".

Why are all these accounts getting closed!? I miss them so much! Just when I started to know them, POOF, they're gone.

POOF

thats ok. the socks will come and the voices will multiply...

anyways I like the OP's post.  thas is a great one.  there is NO such thing as initiative.   Magnus surely lives by that principle....

Of course initiative exists. You find it comfortable to play an objectively equal position where you have to defend accurately while your opponent applies pressure to you with every move? He sets the rythm not you. Thats initiative and it surely DOES exist.

Of course a chess player might find a position comfortable to play when the opponent is defending and has no easy counter-threats. However, that doesn't mean the position is "an easy win" as it is often claimed in the books.

Nah thats surely never claimed in any book. Even if you could wrongly interpret that I never saw any chess author write " white has the initiative that means its an easy win for him". Never. I actually doubt you can give me 1 example

Play the MAIN lines and your problem is solved.