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Waverly Jong In Rules Of The Game By Amy Tan

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In the short story Rules of the Game by Amy Tan, Waverly Jong is described as a strategic, persistent, and determined young woman. Waverly's first personality trait is that she is manipulative. The short story is all about having young Waverly Jong learn to play chess. She began to play on the weekends in front of a small crowd, where she was observed by a man. He suggested that she play in a local chess tournament. Waverly knew that her mother wouldn't allow that, so she came up with a plan to manipulate her mother into letting her participate. She knew that her mother wouldn't want her to give up because that would bring shame to the family, so she used that to her advantage. It says in the story, "So as we walked home, I said in a small voice that I didn't want …show more content…

There were many times in the short story when she continuously persisted to get what she wanted. For example, after her brothers got the chessboard as a gift from the church's Christmas party, they began to play with it. Waverly watched them play and got very intrigued. She repeatedly begged her brothers to teach her how to play. In the story, it states, "Let me! Let me! I begged between games when one brother or the other would sit back with a deep sigh of relief and victory, the other annoyed, unable to let go of the outcome" (Tan 2). This shows the persistence of Waverly, who begged and begged her brothers to teach her chess until they finally gave in. The last character trait Waverly presents is being very determined. She has her mind set on something and will do anything to achieve it. For example, after losing many games of chess and many lifesavers to her brothers, she became very determined to surpass them. So she worked as hard as she could to become the most challenging opponent. It states in the story, "I carefully drew a man-made chessboard and pinned it to the wall next to my bed, where I would stare for hours at imaginary

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In “Rules of the Game,” the author directs her focus on the strained relationship between an immigrant mother and her daughter born in America but of intense Chinese background. The narrator, Waverly Jong describes her encounter at the marketplace with her mom; who taught her the art of invincible strength. She explains how her mother termed it as a strategy for winning arguments, respect from others stating that the strongest wind never meets the eye. This lesson proves pivotal in Jong’s spectacular chess expeditions that saw her crowned national champion as well as defined the latter`s relationship with her mother, whom she often saw as an opponent. Jong becomes entrapped in her conflicting environments, forcing her to adjust accordingly to both her physical and social environment.

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She credits her success to her mother’s lesson of the power of invisible strength. She recounts how “my mother taught me the art of invisible strength. It was a strategy for winning arguments, respect from others, and eventually, though neither of us knew it at the time, chess games.” (p. 89) Waverly goes on to have a lucrative career as an attorney, while her mother 's power over her gradually wanes reminiscent of the Taitai’s power over Lindo.

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