By positional play a master tries to prove and exploit true values, whereas by combinations he seeks to refute false values ... A combination produces an unexpected re-assessment of values.
Emanuel LaskerRead
Education in Chess has to be an education in independent thinking and judging. Chess must not be memorized.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Chess education should focus on developing independent thinking rather than rote memorization.
Emanuel Lasker's quote emphasizes the importance of fostering critical thinking skills in chess education, suggesting that players should learn to evaluate positions and make decisions independently rather than simply memorizing moves and strategies. This approach not only enhances a player's ability in chess but also equips them with valuable problem-solving skills applicable in various aspects of life.
Themes
ChessEducationThinkingIndependenceJudgment
In practice
Example use cases
In a seminar on critical thinking skills, this quote could be used to underline the importance of analytical thought over memorization.
More from Emanuel Lasker
All quotes βThe game gives us a satisfaction that Life denies us. And for the Chess player, the success which crowns his work, the great dispeller of sorrows, is named 'combination'.
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Of my fifty-seven years I have applied at least thirty to forgetting most of what I have learned or read. Since then, I have acquired a certain ease and cheer which I should never again like to be without. (...) I have stored little in my memory, but I can apply that little, and it is of use in many and varied emergencies. I keep it in order, but resist every attempt to increase its dead weight.
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The laws of chess do not permit a free choice: you have to move whether you like it or not.
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When Alekhine recognizes the weakness in his position he has a tendency to become very aggressive. Patient defence is not for him if he can see the slightest chance of creating an attack. Yet sound strategy often demands that you submit to the opponent's will so as to strengthen your weaknesses and get rid of defects in your game.
Emanuel LaskerRead
Truth derives its strength not so much from itself as from the brilliant contrast it makes with what is only apparently true. This applies especially to Chess, where it is often found that the profoundest moves do not much startle the imagination.
Emanuel LaskerRead
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