A RON NIMZOVICH The First Chess Lesson , from “ How I Became a Grandmaster ”
translated by Momir Radovic
ET ’ S BEGIN at the beginning , that is , by criticizing my very first lesson . I was “ shown the moves .” Was that the right thing to do ? “ Well of course it was ,” my esteemed reader will say . “ You cannot do without that .” But my whole point is that , in this case , the reader is mistaken : this approach is fundamentally false . You cannot take a boy who is entirely new to the game and immediately confound him by showing him that the rook moves like this and the bishop like that , that the pawn crawls forward at such a ridiculous snail ’ s pace , that the knight leaps eccentrically all over the place , that the queen can go anywhere she pleases , that the rook moves and takes in straight lines , but the pawn moves straight forward and takes diagonally , etc .
Dreariness will be the only result from all these demonstrations . Information of this kind , which the beginner absorbs , is purely formal , without a trace of vitality or significance , and by flooding him with all this mass of material , he may only sink into depression .
No , one should not teach first principles in this wise , but quite otherwise . A bit less formal ballast and a bit more substance , that is the basic principle ! But let us show concretely how we think that the first two or three lessons should be conducted .
First lesson : Familiarization with the board , understanding of the demarcation between White and Black , and the center of the board .
The Rook . Understanding about ranks and files , drills and exercises :
White rook on e1 ( the student always has White pieces ), black pawn on e6 . In this position the rook is attacking the pawn .
Exercise : ask the student to attack the pawn . Then ask the student to attack it sideways , and , finally , from behind .
Next , form some obstacles on the board : white rook on h1 , pawns on g2 and h4 , king on f1 , black pawn on d6 . White attacks the d6-pawn by playing Rh1-h3-d3 . Then a black rook is introduced to take the role of the defender of the d6-pawn .
This gives us a primitive basis to set up some basic combinations . For example : White has Ra1 , Black has Rh8 , Pc7 , Pe5 . Ask the student , “ How many moves does it take for the rook to attack both pawns at the same time ?” Let ’ s play : 1 . Ra5 Re8 2 . Rc5 Re7 .
We move on by explaining the natural tendency for the rook to reach the seventh rank . Set the white rook on g1 , the enemy king on h8 and explain to the student that the king attacks one square diagonally . “ Let ’ s go with the rook invade the seventh rank !” We play : 1 . Rg7 Kxg7 . The student is given a pawn on h5 . “ Let us defend the entry point on the seventh rank !” 1 . h6 and then 2 . Rg7 .
In this way , the student will spend an hour or two without getting bored and will intuitively grasp the basic concepts , as well as the basics of combinatorial chess .
Notice how the entire first hour of chess actually uses a single rook and pawn while the king ’ s movements are mentioned just in passing . At the same time , a lively play drives out all formal approach . The rook is to attack the student ’ s pawn ; if the student manages to save it , student wins .
The reader will , I hope , have got our basic idea : from the very start we are playing — fighting , battling — and have no intention of giving precedence to any formal approach . And we are inclined to ascribe a decisive significance to the initial impression formed by the student after the first lesson . One ’ s interest must be appealed to , one must feel from the onset that this is a game in which victory is both possible and gratifying .
When studying the queen ( second lesson ), it is a good thing to introduce the concept of the fork , that is , the simultaneous attack on two enemy pieces , which , by the way , has been partially addressed in the first lesson . And here , again , are practical examples and combinations ….
The third lesson is devoted to a study of the pawn : the pawn attacks an enemy piece , the pawn protects a friendly piece ( through a series of examples ), the pawn protects or creates a strong point ( an outpost ), etc . l
Source : Шахматный листок ( Shakhmatny listok ), 1929
8 The Chess Journalist Fall 2011