I think you may be overthinking it a bit.
What is that Chess really teaches?
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As poetic as that was, I have to say that I agree with Kleelof on this one.
Some choose chess. Others choose whiskey. Same educational value.
What is that [insert sport here] really teaches? What's it for? [insert sport here]can be both extremely satisfying and rewarding but it can also be extremely stressing and alienating. It can bring turnmoil, disorder, madness, and chaos into one's life; it can also bring patience, peace, and harmony, and love. It can make one's ego swell, then hurt; it can also teach one to let the ego go and be humble. Of course life events outside [insert sport here] can have decisive influence on one's attitudes; still [insert sport here] - just like life - is full of traps and possibilities.
Doesn't that apply for every sport? Well sort of,
Apr 6, 2014
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#6
Ok, Gentlemen, you can say or vote as you like, but Chess has an extremely long tradition to speak for it. Chess is way down in History and - only to mention the first thing I can think of - it is embedded in big chunks of the most important philosophy books of the XXth Century. So it's quite difficult to dispose of it in such a simplistic way...
Apr 6, 2014
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#7
To me it looks quite evident that chess is a special kind of Riddle, basically like the one that Oedipus had to solve in order to free Thebes from the plague.
How about: it teaches you to think for yourself in both an analytical and creative way. Always thought chess would have been a perfect substitute for the boring Logic 101 lessons that I was required to attend.
Apr 6, 2014
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#10
Check! Nice example of chess puzzle you have there (chess_gg)!
You should only consider that it was not Ebenezer who was haunting the Ghosts. That is (or at least looks like) a serious logical mistake.
Apr 6, 2014
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#11
Chess teaches you humility. No matter how good are you, there is always someone better than you( unless you are Carlsen). However, it's true for all sports.
Apr 6, 2014
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#12
According to Benjamin Franklin, chess teaches and strengthens the following "qualities of the mind":
- Foresight;
- Circumspection;
- Caution;
- and possibly a fourth quality that could be called Endurance
Apr 6, 2014
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#13
openings memorization, tactics problem solving, endgames algorithmic approaches.
chess_gg wrote:
Make that a triple.
Make that quadruple
Apr 7, 2014
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#15
Well, I don't get it, if the topic is of no interest to some of you, why take the trouble of disturbing the 'overthinking' of others.
Chess, as I say, is a piece of Humanity's history and evidence can be found under virtually any rock. I'm not sure if that is a good thing and I won't be the one getting obsessed with chess.
None the less the anthropological, historical, political, humanistic and scientific importance of chess is an undeniable fact and I make it a point of mine to respect intellectual honesty.
Unhappily, it appears to me you are not contributing to the present discussion, but just trying to be cheap-smart. That being, incidentally, one of the abilities chess can teach or strengthen (ability that was overlooked by your Founding Father).
This said, pour a triple scotch for me as well.
That's funny because I studied anthropology and we NEVER discussed chess. I did however find another student in one of my classes who liked to play chess.
I like chess. But, really, it is not as significant to humanity as you are trying to make it out to be. In fact, most people on the face of The Earth know very little or nothing of chess.
Really, it's just a game.
Apr 7, 2014
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#17
Really, kleelof? Hmm.. and why so?
There are Cambodian, Malay, Korean, Japanese, Burmese, Arab, Medieval European, Ancient Indian, Moghul, possibly Afghan, Persian, Turk, Byzantine, Russian, Mongol, etc etc... historical variants of chess. I hope you are aware chess was no invention of the Baron of De Coubertin.
The fact chess is a game, doesn't add or contradict anything I wrote.
Apr 7, 2014
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#18
As you should know, the term "anthropological" doesn't only refer to a specific group of University Courses, but has a much larger use, as in Kant's Die Anthropologie in pragmatischer Hinsicht, for example.
I am none the less surprised your whole anthropology course was never at all concerned with the theme of games and playing, if I understand correctly.
To say Chess is a child's silly board game is akin to saying War and Peace is an old thick book or the Constitution is a government document. It rather over simplifies the matter and ignores the rich history of how and why it came to be. Candyland is a child's board game and to imply any similarities other than superficial is only to broadcast ones ignorance.
denner90 wrote:
To say Chess is a child's silly board game is akin to saying War and Peace is an old thick book or the Constitution is a government document. It rather over simplifies the matter and ignores the rich history of how and why it came to be. Candyland is a child's board game and to imply any similarities other than superficial is only to broadcast ones ignorance.
I do believe I've been misquoted.
I didn't see anyone (in this thread) call chess a "child's silly board game". The closest I saw was me saying "Really, it's just a game". Which, of course, is NOT the same is calling it a silly childs game.
And don't diss Candyland. That was the first board game I ever had and I KICKED ASS AT IT!!!
What is that Chess really teaches? What's it for? Chess can be both extremely satisfying and rewarding but it can also be extremely stressing and alienating. It can bring turnmoil, disorder, madness, and chaos into one's life; it can also bring patience, peace, and harmony, and love. It can make one's ego swell, then hurt; it can also teach one to let the ego go and be humble. Of course life events outside chess can have decisive influence on one's attitudes; still chess - just like life - is full of traps and possibilities.