Mana .. I know you said you relate the pieces to real life but I'm still thinking of them as toys.. dolls .. a pretend kingdom.
You may relate to the pieces as toys, dolls, Alice in Wonderland, etc. but the main idea is on your relationships with your toys, dolls, in your (pretended) kingdom during the Chess game. How does such relationships affect your game, or I must ask how does such relationships affect your decision to make the next move?
If you say, your relationships are imaginery, changing from game to game, and considering that every possible game that your play on a 8x8 board has finite number of possibilities, perhaps a good relationship on all levels among all Chess pieces will very greatly help you make the best move.
Maybe, use of Mathematical induction might be useful to understand this model of Chess and Life relations.
Mycows ... sure the queen is an amazing warrior but the king is the mastermind (many a genius lack physical prowess), the boss, everyone serves him and the enemy wants to replace him. The other pieces can be admired for their ability in battle, but the king is desired. A good question is would you rather be desired or admired.
Mana .. I know you said you relate the pieces to real life but I'm still thinking of them as toys.. dolls .. a pretend kingdom.
You almost convinced me.
However, disregarding political correctness, the most powerful piece on the board should be called King. This piece's main job is protecting the "stay at home" piece.
By the by, this whole discussion is silly.