Loze passie

by Alexander Cockburn

Book by Alexander Cockburn

Genres: Chess

239 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Alexander Claud Cockburn was an American political journalist. Cockburn was brought up in Ireland but has lived and worked in the United States since 1972. Together with Jeffrey St. Clair, he edits the political newsletter CounterPunch. Cockburn also writes the "Beat the Devil" column for The Nation and a weekly syndicated column for the Los Angeles Times as well as for The First Post, which is syndicated by Creators Syndicate.

Reviews

[Chris Tannhauser · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned, as it exceeded the burst rating of my Dada gland.

"The exquisite purity and exactness of the right moves, particularly in problem work, combine here with the unrelenting pressure exercised in the later stages which culminates in the merciless denouement. The sense of overwhelming mastery on the one side matches that of inescapable helplessness on the other. It is doubtless this anal-sadistic feature that makes the game so well adapted to gratify at the same time both the homosexual and the antagonistic aspects of the father-son contest. In these circumstances it will be understood that a serious match places a considerable strain on the psychical integrity and is likely to reveal any imperfection of character development. All games are apt at times to be marred by unsportsmanlike behaviour, i.e., by the sublimation undergoing a regression to its asocial origins, but with chess the strain is exceptionally great and is complicated by the circumstance that a specially high standard of correct demeanour is exacted."

[Damien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly entertaining and caustic study of famous chessmasters through the ages. Very Freudian. Nice glimpse into some really twisted cases. Cockburn wrote this when he was on the Village Voice staff I think.