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Chess Story
Stefan Zweig's last masterpiece – created in 1941 in Brazilian exile
Stefan Zweig's last masterpiece – created in 1941 in Brazilian exile. Individual materials can be downloaded here as PDF documents.
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Chess Story - A Small Work with Great Impact
1934: National Socialist students burn books by Jewish writers in Germany. Created when Jews and Jewish writers were persecuted, arrested and taken to concentration camps under German Nazi rule.
First, the pacifist Stefan Zweig's house in Salzburg was searched for weapons, then he and his family were forced into exile, his furniture was stolen and his books were banned, which had been translated into 56 languages. He left Austria and went first to England, then to America and finally tried to find peace in Brazil. There, in the last months of his life, this unique work was created.
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Chess Story - The Text Here in Original as PDF
Read Stefan Zweig's Chess Story in the original. The complete novella is available here as a PDF download.
Note: The download is for private use only. Reproduction is not permitted.
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🎧 Chess Story as an Audiobook
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Content and Meaning of Chess Story
Chess Story tells the story of Dr. B., an Austrian lawyer, who is taken into solitary confinement by the National Socialists. In his isolation he develops an obsessive passion for chess, which both saves and destroys him.
The work is a psychological study of the effects of isolation, torture and mental destruction. Zweig shows how the human mind reacts under extreme conditions and how even the noblest occupations can become an obsession.
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Significant Quotes from Chess Story
"I had nothing to do, nothing to see, nothing to hear, nothing to think. I was completely isolated, completely alone with myself, with my thoughts."
"Chess became both my salvation and my downfall at the same time."
"I played against myself, I was my own opponent."
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Interpretation and Literary Analysis
Chess Story is more than just a narrative about a board game. It is a metaphor for the destruction of European culture by National Socialism and a warning about the dangers of totalitarian systems.
🎭 Psychological Level
The novella shows how isolation and torture can destroy the human mind. Dr. B.'s chess obsession becomes a survival strategy and at the same time a danger.
🌍 Political Level
Zweig indirectly criticizes the Nazi regime and shows the effects of totalitarian rule on the individual and society.
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Further Literature and Resources
Other Works by Stefan Zweig:
- • The World of Yesterday - Autobiography
- • Burning Secret - Novella
- • Amok - Novella
- • Decisive Moments in History - Historical Miniatures
Literary Studies:
- • Stefan Zweig and Chess Story - Monograph
- • Exile Literature and Chess - Essay Collection
- • Psychology in Literature - Studies
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Discover More from Stefan Zweig
Chess Story is just one work from Zweig's extensive œuvre. Discover his other masterpieces and learn more about his life.
