Before Reading

Rules of the Game

Short Story by Amy Tan

Can allies be
opponents ?
KEY IDEA Family, friends, coaches—these are people who usually
want the best for you. Then why can it feel like they’re always giving
you a hard time? Understanding people’s good intentions can be
challenging, and it may even feel like your supporters aren’t on
your side. In “Rules of the Game,” find out why a young girl sees
her mother—who is her biggest fan—as her main opponent.

222
literary analysis: first-person point of view
When a writer uses the first-person point of view, the narrator
Change of Heart
is a character in the story—usually the main character. A story The daughter of
is told in the first-person point of view when the narrator Chinese immigrants,
Amy Tan grew up
• describes people and events as he or she experiences them
in California having
• uses the pronouns I and me to talk about himself or herself little interest in her
• doesn’t know what other characters are thinking and feeling heritage. When she
was a teenager, her
As you read, notice how seeing people and events through the father and older
narrator’s eyes affects your understanding of the selection. brother died. Their
deaths devastated
her, and her rocky Amy Tan
reading skill: draw conclusions relationship with born 1952
In reading and in life, you often have to draw conclusions, her mother became
or make logical judgments, about things that are not directly worse. Tan’s mother wanted her to become
a doctor or a concert pianist, but Tan became
stated. Follow these steps to draw a conclusion:
a business writer instead. She later turned
• Gather evidence from the literature. to fiction writing as a hobby, which helped
her express her emotions about her family
• Consider your own experience and knowledge.
and embrace her Chinese heritage as an
• Make a judgment that combines both. important part of her identity. Tan’s hobby
became her new career.
As you read, use a chart like the one shown to help you form
conclusions about Waverly’s relationship with her mother. Mother-Daughter Ties Tan wrote “Rules
of the Game” for a writing workshop in
Evidence My Thoughts Conclusion 1985. She later used it as part of her first
novel, The Joy Luck Club, which is a series of
Mrs. Jong scolds I know parents try to Mrs. Jong wants interconnected stories about four Chinese
Waverly for crying out teach their kids how Waverly to learn self-
mothers and their Chinese-American
for salted plums. to behave. control.
daughters. Tan’s family stories have inspired
her writing. She once said of her mother,
“My books have amounted to taking her
stories—a gift to me—and giving them
back to her.”
vocabulary in context
Amy Tan uses the words listed to help her describe one girl’s Background
conflicts with her mother. Place each word in the appropriate An Old Game Lives On Although the game
column of a chart like the one shown. of chess is hundreds of years old, competitive
chess remains a popular pastime today. A
word adversary impart pungent special class of players strives for the title of
list benefactor malodorous retort grand master, which only the top 0.02% of
tournament players worldwide earn. A player
concession ponder tactic
must accumulate at least 2,500 points in
foresight
tournament play to be recognized as a grand
master by the World Chess Federation.
Know Well Think I Know Don’t Know at All

rules of the game 223

 l e s
uu of the
Rame
G Amy Tan

I was six when 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.
ANALYZE VISUALS
Note which details of this
photograph are in focus
and which are blurry.
“Bite back your tongue,” scolded my mother when I cried loudly, yanking What effect does this
her hand toward the store that sold bags of salted plums. At home, she said, have on you, the viewer?
“Wise guy, he not go against wind. In Chinese we say, Come from South, blow
with wind—poom!—North will follow. Strongest wind cannot be seen.”
The next week I bit back my tongue as we entered the store with the
forbidden candies. When my mother finished her shopping, she quietly
10 plucked a small bag of plums from the rack and put it on the counter with the
rest of the items. a a POINT OF VIEW
My mother imparted her daily truths so she could help my older brothers Identify who is telling
this story. What has she
and me rise above our circumstances. We lived in San Francisco’s Chinatown.
suggested about her
Like most of the other Chinese children who played in the back alleys of relationship with her
restaurants and curio shops,1 I didn’t think we were poor. My bowl was mother so far?
always full, three five-course meals every day, beginning with a soup full of
mysterious things I didn’t want to know the names of. impart (Gm-pärtP) v.
to make known; reveal
We lived on Waverly Place, in a warm, clean, two-bedroom flat that sat
above a small Chinese bakery specializing in steamed pastries and dim sum.2

1. curio shops: shops that sell curious or unusual objects.

2. dim sum: small portions of a variety of Chinese foods and dumplings.

224 unit 2: char acter and point of view

20 In the early morning, when the alley was still quiet, I could smell fragrant
red beans as they were cooked down to a pasty sweetness. By daybreak, our
flat was heavy with the odor of fried sesame balls and sweet curried chicken
crescents. From my bed, I would listen as my father got ready for work, then
locked the door behind him, one-two-three clicks.
At the end of our two-block alley was a small sandlot playground with
swings and slides well-shined down the middle with use. The play area was
bordered by wood-slat benches where old-country people sat cracking roasted
watermelon seeds with their golden teeth and scattering the husks to an
impatient gathering of gurgling pigeons. The best playground, however, was
30 the dark alley itself. It was crammed with daily mysteries and adventures. My
brothers and I would peer into the medicinal herb shop, watching old Li3 dole
out onto a stiff sheet of white paper the right amount of insect shells, saffron-
colored seeds, and pungent leaves for his ailing customers. It was said that pungent (pOnPjEnt) adj.
he once cured a woman dying of an ancestral curse that had eluded the best sharp or intense
of American doctors. Next to the pharmacy was a printer who specialized in
gold-embossed wedding invitations and festive red banners. b b VISUALIZE
Farther down the street was Ping Yuen4 Fish Market. The front window Reread lines 25–36.
What words help
displayed a tank crowded with doomed fish and turtles struggling to gain
you picture the
footing on the slimy green-tiled sides. A hand-written sign informed tourists, neighborhood?
40 “Within this store, is all for food, not for pet.” Inside, the butchers with their
bloodstained white smocks deftly gutted the fish while customers cried out
their orders and shouted, “Give me your freshest,” to which the butchers always
protested, “All are freshest.” On less crowded market days, we would inspect
the crates of live frogs and crabs which we were warned not to poke, boxes of
dried cuttlefish, and row upon row of iced prawns, squid, and slippery fish.
The sanddabs made me shiver each time; their eyes lay on one flattened side
and reminded me of my mother’s story of a careless girl who ran into a crowded
street and was crushed by a cab. “Was smash flat,” reported my mother.
At the corner of the alley was Hong Sing’s, a four-table café with a recessed
50 stairwell in front that led to a door marked “Tradesmen.” My brothers and I
believed the bad people emerged from this door at night. Tourists never went
to Hong Sing’s, since the menu was printed only in Chinese. A Caucasian man
with a big camera once posed me and my playmates in front of the restaurant.
He had us move to the side of the picture window so the photo would capture
the roasted duck with its head dangling from a juice-covered rope. After he took
the picture, I told him he should go into Hong Sing’s and eat dinner. When he c POINT OF VIEW
smiled and asked me what they served, I shouted, “Guts and duck’s feet and Reread lines 49–60.
What do the narrator’s
octopus gizzards!” Then I ran off with my friends, shrieking with laughter as we words and actions tell
scampered across the alley and hid in the entryway grotto5 of the China Gem you about her attitude
60 Company, my heart pounding with hope that he would chase us. c toward taking risks?

3. Li (lC).
4. Ping Yuen (bGng yüPDn).
5. grotto (grJtPI): an artificial structure made to resemble a cave or cavern.

226 unit 2: char acter and point of view

 M y mother named me after the street that we lived on: Waverly Place
Jong, my official name for important American documents. But
my family called me Meimei,6 “Little Sister.” I was the youngest, the only
ANALYZE VISUALS
This photograph shows
a Chinese market in San
Francisco. How would
daughter. Each morning before school, my mother would twist and yank on you describe the setting?
my thick black hair until she had formed two tightly wound pigtails. One day,
as she struggled to weave a hard-toothed comb through my disobedient hair,
I had a sly thought.
I asked her, “Ma, what is Chinese torture?” My mother shook her head.
A bobby pin was wedged between her lips. She wetted her palm and smoothed
70 the hair above my ear, then pushed the pin in so that it nicked sharply against
my scalp.
“Who say this word?” she asked without a trace of knowing how wicked
I was being. I shrugged my shoulders and said, “Some boy in my class said
Chinese people do Chinese torture.”
“Chinese people do many things,” she said simply. “Chinese people do
business, do medicine, do painting. Not lazy like American people. We do
torture. Best torture.” d d DRAW CONCLUSIONS
My older brother Vincent was the one who actually got the chess set. How does Waverly feel
about her mother fixing
We had gone to the annual Christmas party held at the First Chinese Baptist
her hair?
80 Church at the end of the alley. The missionary ladies had put together a Santa
bag of gifts donated by members of another church. None of the gifts had
names on them. There were separate sacks for boys and girls of different ages.

6. Meimei (mAPmA).

rules of the game 227

 One of the Chinese parishioners had donned a Santa Claus costume and a
stiff paper beard with cotton balls glued to it. I think the only children who
thought he was the real thing were too young to know that Santa Claus was not
Chinese. When my turn came up, the Santa man asked me how old I was. I
thought it was a trick question; I was seven according to the American formula
and eight by the Chinese calendar. I said I was born on March 17, 1951. That
seemed to satisfy him. He then solemnly asked if I had been a very, very good
90 girl this year and did I believe in Jesus Christ and obey my parents. I knew the
only answer to that. I nodded back with equal solemnity.
Having watched the other children opening their gifts, I already knew that
the big gifts were not necessarily the nicest ones. One girl my age got a large
coloring book of biblical characters, while a less greedy girl who selected a
smaller box received a glass vial of lavender toilet water. The sound of the box
was also important. A ten-year-old boy had chosen a box that jangled when
he shook it. It was a tin globe of the world with a slit for inserting money. He
must have thought it was full of dimes and nickels, because when he saw that
it had just ten pennies, his face fell with such undisguised disappointment that
100 his mother slapped the side of his head and led him out of the church hall,
apologizing to the crowd for her son who had such bad manners he couldn’t
appreciate such a fine gift.
As I peered into the sack, I quickly fingered the remaining presents, testing
their weight, imagining what they contained. I chose a heavy, compact one
that was wrapped in shiny silver foil and a red satin ribbon. It was a twelve-
pack of Life Savers and I spent the rest of the party arranging and rearranging
the candy tubes in the order of my favorites. My brother Winston chose
wisely as well. His present turned out to be a box of intricate plastic parts; the
instructions on the box proclaimed that when they were properly assembled he
110 would have an authentic miniature replica of a World War II submarine.
Vincent got the chess set, which would have been a very decent present
to get at a church Christmas party, except it was obviously used and, as we
discovered later, it was missing a black pawn and a white knight. My mother
graciously thanked the unknown benefactor, saying, “Too good. Cost too benefactor
much.” At which point, an old lady with fine white, wispy hair nodded toward (bDnPE-fBkQtEr) n. a person
who gives monetary or
our family and said with a whistling whisper, “Merry, merry Christmas.”
other aid
When we got home, my mother told Vincent to throw the chess set away.
“She not want it. We not want it,” she said, tossing her head stiffly to the side
with a tight, proud smile. My brothers had deaf ears. They were already lining
120 up the chess pieces and reading from the dog-eared instruction book. e e DRAW CONCLUSIONS
I watched Vincent and Winston play during Christmas week. The Why does Mrs. Jong want
Vincent to throw away his
chessboard seemed to hold elaborate secrets waiting to be untangled. The
chess set?
chessmen were more powerful than Old Li’s magic herbs that cured ancestral
curses. And my brothers wore such serious faces that I was sure something was
at stake that was greater than avoiding the tradesmen’s door to Hong Sing’s.
“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

228 unit 2: char acter and point of view

 to let go of the outcome. Vincent at first refused to let me play, but when I
offered my Life Savers as replacements for the buttons that filled in for the
130 missing pieces, he relented. He chose the flavors: wild cherry for the black
pawn and peppermint for the white knight. Winner could eat both.
As our mother sprinkled flour and rolled out small doughy circles for the
steamed dumplings that would be our dinner that night, Vincent explained
the rules, pointing to each piece. “You have sixteen pieces and so do I. One
king and queen, two bishops, two knights, two castles, and eight pawns. The
pawns can only move forward one step, except on the first move. Then they
can move two. But they can only take men by moving crossways like this,
except in the beginning, when you can move ahead and take another pawn.”
“Why?” I asked as I moved my pawn. “Why can’t they move more steps?”
140 “Because they’re pawns,” he said.
“But why do they go crossways to take other men? Why aren’t there any
women and children?”
“Why is the sky blue? Why must you always ask stupid questions?” asked
Vincent. “This is a game. These are the rules. I didn’t make them up. See. Here. SOCIAL STUDIES
In the book.” He jabbed a page with a pawn in his hand. “Pawn. P-A-W-N. CONNECTION
Pawn. Read it yourself.” Waverly’s mother might
be suggesting something
My mother patted the flour off her hands. “Let me see book,” she said larger about American
quietly. She scanned the pages quickly, not reading the foreign English rules. Between the years
symbols, seeming to search deliberately for nothing in particular. 1882 and 1965, Chinese
150 “This American rules,” she concluded at last. “Every time people come out immigration to the U.S.
from foreign country, must know rules. You not know, judge say, Too bad, go was restricted. Those
who were let into the
back. They not telling you why so you can use their way go forward. They say, country were not granted
Don’t know why, you find out yourself. But they knowing all the time. Better you the same rights as other
take it, find out why yourself.” She tossed her head back with a satisfied smile. Americans.

I found out about all the whys later. I read the rules and looked up all the
big words in a dictionary. I borrowed books from the Chinatown library.
I studied each chess piece, trying to absorb the power each contained. tactic (tBkPtGk) n.
a maneuver to achieve
I learned about opening moves and why it’s important to control the center a goal
early on; the shortest distance between two points is straight down the middle.
160 I learned about the middle game and why tactics between two adversaries adversary (BdPvEr-sDrQC)
are like clashing ideas; the one who plays better has the clearest plans for both n. an opponent
attacking and getting out of traps. I learned why it is essential in the endgame
to have foresight, a mathematical understanding of all possible moves, and foresight (fôrPsFt) n.
patience; all weaknesses and advantages become evident to a strong adversary perception of the
significance of events
and are obscured to a tiring opponent. I discovered that for the whole game one
before they have
must gather invisible strengths and see the endgame before the game begins. occurred
I also found out why I should never reveal “why” to others. A little knowledge
withheld is a great advantage one should store for future use. That is the power of
chess. It is a game of secrets in which one must show and never tell.
170 I loved the secrets I found within the sixty-four black and white squares.
I carefully drew a handmade chessboard and pinned it to the wall next to my

rules of the game 229

 bed, where at night I would stare for hours at imaginary battles. Soon I no
longer lost any games or Life Savers, but I lost my adversaries. Winston and
Vincent decided they were more interested in roaming the streets after school
in their Hopalong Cassidy cowboy hats. f f POINT OF VIEW
On a cold spring afternoon, while walking home from school, I detoured What do Waverly’s
descriptions of her
through the playground at the end of our alley. I saw a group of old men,
thoughts and actions
two seated across a folding table playing a game of chess, others smoking reveal about her?
pipes, eating peanuts, and watching. I ran home and grabbed Vincent’s
180 chess set, which was bound in a cardboard box with rubber bands. I also
carefully selected two prized rolls of Life Savers. I came back to the park
and approached a man who was observing the game.
“Want to play?” I asked him. His face widened with surprise and he
grinned as he looked at the box under my arm.
“Little sister, been a long time since I play with dolls,” he said, smiling
benevolently. I quickly put the box down next to him on the bench and
displayed my retort. retort (rG-tôrtP) n. a quick,
Lau Po,7 as he allowed me to call him, turned out to be a much better player sharp, witty reply
than my brothers. I lost many games and many Life Savers. But over the
190 weeks, with each diminishing roll of candies, I added new secrets. Lau Po gave
me the names. The Double Attack from the East and West Shores. Throwing
Stones on the Drowning Man. The Sudden Meeting of the Clan. The Surprise
from the Sleeping Guard. The Humble Servant Who Kills the King. Sand in
the Eyes of Advancing Forces. A Double Killing Without Blood.

7. Lau Po (lou bI).

ANALYZE VISUALS
How does the angle at
which this photograph
was taken affect what
you first notice in the
picture?

230 unit 2: char acter and point of view

 There were also the fine points of chess etiquette. Keep captured men in
neat rows, as well-tended prisoners. Never announce “Check”8 with vanity,
lest someone with an unseen sword slit your throat. Never hurl pieces into
the sandbox after you have lost a game, because then you must find them
again, by yourself, after apologizing to all around you. By the end of the
200 summer, Lau Po had taught me all he knew, and I had become a better
chess player.
A small weekend crowd of Chinese people and tourists would gather as
I played and defeated my opponents one by one. My mother would join the
crowds during these outdoor exhibition games.9 She sat proudly on the bench,
telling my admirers with proper Chinese humility, “Is luck.” g g DRAW CONCLUSIONS
A man who watched me play in the park suggested that my mother allow Why does Waverly start
winning more chess
me to play in local chess tournaments. My mother smiled graciously, an answer
games?
that meant nothing. I desperately wanted to go, but I bit back my tongue.
I knew she would not let me play among strangers. So as we walked home I
210 said in a small voice that I didn’t want to play in the local tournament. They
would have American rules. If I lost, I would bring shame on my family. h h POINT OF VIEW
“Is shame you fall down nobody push you,” said my mother. Reread lines 208–211.
How are Waverly’s
During my first tournament, my mother sat with me in the front row as
thoughts and words
I waited for my turn. I frequently bounced my legs to unstick them from the different from each
cold metal seat of the folding chair. When my name was called, I leapt up. My other? What does this
mother unwrapped something in her lap. It was her chang, a small tablet of red tell you about her?
jade which held the sun’s fire. “Is luck,” she whispered, and tucked it into my
dress pocket. I turned to my opponent, a fifteen-year-old boy from Oakland.
He looked at me, wrinkling his nose.
220 As I began to play, the boy disappeared, the color ran out of the room, and
I saw only my white pieces and his black ones waiting on the other side. A light
wind began blowing past my ears. It whispered secrets only I could hear.
“Blow from the South,” it murmured. “The wind leaves no trail.” I saw
a clear path, the traps to avoid. The crowd rustled. “Shhh! Shhh!” said the
corners of the room. The wind blew stronger. “Throw sand from the East
to distract him.” The knight came forward ready for the sacrifice. The wind
hissed, louder and louder. “Blow, blow, blow. He cannot see. He is blind now.
Make him lean away from the wind so he is easier to knock down.”
“Check,” I said, as the wind roared with laughter. The wind died down to
230 little puffs, my own breath.
My mother placed my first trophy next to a new plastic chess set that the
neighborhood Tao society had given to me. As she wiped each piece with a soft
cloth, she said, “Next time win more, lose less.”
“Ma, it’s not how many pieces you lose,” I said. “Sometimes you need to lose
pieces to get ahead.”

8. check: a move in chess that places an opponent’s king under direct attack.
9. exhibition games: public showings or demonstrations.

rules of the game 231

 “Better to lose less, see if you really need.”
At the next tournament, I won again, but it was my mother who wore the
triumphant grin.
“Lost eight pieces this time. Last time was eleven. What I tell you? Better
240 off lose less!” I was annoyed, but I couldn’t say anything. i i DRAW CONCLUSIONS
I attended more tournaments, each one farther away from home. I won all Why does Waverly feel
she can’t correct her
games, in all divisions. The Chinese bakery downstairs from our flat displayed my
mother?
growing collection of trophies in its window, amidst the dust-covered cakes that
were never picked up. The day after I won an important regional tournament, the
window encased a fresh sheet cake with whipped-cream frosting and red script
saying, “Congratulations, Waverly Jong, Chinatown Chess Champion.” Soon
after that, a flower shop, headstone engraver, and funeral parlor offered to sponsor
me in national tournaments. That’s when my mother decided I no longer had to
do the dishes. Winston and Vincent had to do my chores.
250 “Why does she get to play and we do all the work?” complained Vincent.
“Is new American rules,” said my mother. “Meimei play, squeeze all her
brains out for win chess. You play, worth squeeze towel.”
By my ninth birthday, I was a national chess champion. I was still some 429
points away from grand-master status, but I was touted as the Great American
Hope, a child prodigy and a girl to boot. They ran a photo of me in Life
magazine next to a quote in which Bobby Fischer10 said, “There will never be a
woman grand master.” “Your move, Bobby,” said the caption.
The day they took the magazine picture I wore neatly plaited braids clipped
with plastic barrettes trimmed with rhinestones. I was playing in a large high
260 school auditorium that echoed with phlegmy coughs and the squeaky rubber
knobs of chair legs sliding across freshly waxed wooden floors. Seated across
from me was an American man, about the same age as Lau Po, maybe fifty.
I remember that his sweaty brow seemed to weep at my every move. He wore
a dark, malodorous suit. One of his pockets was stuffed with a great white malodorous
kerchief on which he wiped his palm before sweeping his hand over the chosen (mBl-IPdEr-Es) adj.
having a bad odor
chess piece with great flourish.
In my crisp pink-and-white dress with scratchy lace at the neck, one of two
my mother had sewn for these special occasions, I would clasp my hands under
my chin, the delicate points of my elbows poised lightly on the table in the
270 manner my mother had shown me for posing for the press. I would swing my
patent leather shoes back and forth like an impatient child riding on a school
bus. Then I would pause, suck in my lips, twirl my chosen piece in midair
as if undecided, and then firmly plant it in its new threatening place, with a
triumphant smile thrown back at my opponent for good measure.

I no longer played in the alley of Waverly Place. I never visited the playground
where the pigeons and old men gathered. I went to school, then directly home
to learn new chess secrets, cleverly concealed advantages, more escape routes.

10. Bobby Fischer: a well-known chess player who, at 15, was the world’s youngest grand master.

232 unit 2: char acter and point of view

 But I found it difficult to concentrate at home. My mother had a habit of
standing over me while I plotted out my games. I think she thought of herself
280 as my protective ally. Her lips would be sealed tight, and after each move I
made, a soft “Hmmmmph” would escape from her nose. j POINT OF VIEW
“Ma, I can’t practice when you stand there like that,” I said one day. She Reread lines 278–285.
How does knowing only
retreated to the kitchen and made loud noises with the pots and pans. When the Waverly’s point of view
crashing stopped, I could see out of the corner of my eye that she was standing in affect your impression of
the doorway. “Hmmmph!” Only this one came out of her tight throat. j her mother?
My parents made many concessions to allow me to practice. One time
I complained that the bedroom I shared was so noisy that I couldn’t think. concession (kEn-sDshPEn)
n. the act of yielding or
Thereafter, my brothers slept in a bed in the living room facing the street. conceding
I said I couldn’t finish my rice; my head didn’t work right when my stomach
290 was too full. I left the table with half-finished bowls and nobody complained.
But there was one duty I couldn’t avoid. I had to accompany my mother on
Saturday market days when I had no tournament to play. My mother would
proudly walk with me, visiting many shops, buying very little. “This my
daughter Wave-ly Jong,” she said to whoever looked her way.
One day, after we left a shop I said under my breath, “I wish you wouldn’t
do that, telling everybody I’m your daughter.” My mother stopped walking.
Crowds of people with heavy bags pushed past us on the sidewalk, bumping
into first one shoulder, then another.
“Aiii-ya. So shame be with mother?” She grasped my hand even tighter as
300 she glared at me.
I looked down. “It’s not that, it’s just so obvious. It’s just so embarrassing.”
“Embarrass you be my daughter?” Her voice was cracking with anger.
“That’s not what I meant. That’s not what I said.”
“What you say?”
I knew it was a mistake to say anything more, but I heard my voice
speaking. “Why do you have to use me to show off? If you want to show off,
then why don’t you learn to play chess.” k k DRAW CONCLUSIONS
My mother’s eyes turned into dangerous black slits. She had no words for Why is Waverly
embarrassed by her
me, just sharp silence.
mother’s behavior?
310 I felt the wind rushing around my hot ears. I jerked my hand out of my
mother’s tight grasp and spun around, knocking into an old woman. Her bag
of groceries spilled to the ground.
“Aii-ya! Stupid girl!” my mother and the woman cried. Oranges and tin
cans careened down the sidewalk. As my mother stooped to help the old
woman pick up the escaping food, I took off.
I raced down the street, dashing between people, not looking back as my
mother screamed shrilly, “Meimei! Meimei!” I fled down an alley, past dark
curtained shops and merchants washing the grime off their windows. I sped
into the sunlight, into a large street crowded with tourists examining trinkets
320 and souvenirs. I ducked into another dark alley, down another street, up
another alley. I ran until it hurt and I realized I had nowhere to go, that I was
not running from anything. The alleys contained no escape routes.

rules of the game 233

 My breath came out like angry smoke. It was
cold. I sat down on an upturned plastic pail next
to a stack of empty boxes, cupping my chin with
my hands, thinking hard. I imagined my mother,
first walking briskly down one street or another
looking for me, then giving up and returning
home to await my arrival. After two hours, I stood
330 up on creaking legs and slowly walked home.
The alley was quiet and I could see the yellow
lights shining from our flat like two tiger’s eyes in
the night. I climbed the sixteen steps to the door,
advancing quietly up each so as not to make any
warning sounds. I turned the knob; the door was
locked. I heard a chair moving, quick steps, the
locks turning—click! click! click!—and then the
door opened. l
“About time you got home,” said Vincent.
340 “Boy, are you in trouble.”
He slid back to the dinner table. On a platter
were the remains of a large fish, its fleshy head
still connected to bones swimming upstream in vain escape. Standing there ANALYZE VISUALS
waiting for my punishment, I heard my mother speak in a dry voice. What is the mood of this
photograph?
“We not concerning this girl. This girl not have concerning
for us.” l VISUALIZE
Nobody looked at me. Bone chopsticks clinked against the insides of bowls Reread lines 331–338.
being emptied into hungry mouths. What images help
I walked into my room, closed the door, and lay down on my bed. The you picture Waverly’s
walk home?
350 room was dark, the ceiling filled with shadows from the dinnertime lights of
neighboring flats.
In my head, I saw a chessboard with sixty-four black and white squares.
Opposite me was my opponent, two angry black slits. She wore a triumphant
smile. “Strongest wind cannot be seen,” she said.
Her black men advanced across the plane, slowly marching to each
successive level as a single unit. My white pieces screamed as they scurried and
fell off the board one by one. As her men drew closer to my edge, I felt myself
growing light. I rose up into the air and flew out the window. Higher and
higher, above the alley, over the tops of tiled roofs, where I was gathered up
360 by the wind and pushed up toward the night sky until everything below me
disappeared and I was alone. ponder (pJnPdEr) v. to
I closed my eyes and pondered my next move.  think or consider carefully

234 unit 2: char acter and point of view

After Reading

Comprehension
1. Recall How does Waverly’s family get a chess set?
2. Clarify What does Waverly learn from the old man in the park?
3. Clarify What events cause Waverly to run away from her mother
at the market?

Literary Analysis
4. Visualize What scene in this story can you picture most vividly? Reread that
part of the selection, noting at least three words or phrases that help you
visualize the people, places, or events.
5. Compare and Contrast Use a Venn diagram like the one shown to Before Chess After Chess
compare and contrast Waverly before she learns chess and after she
learns chess. How does she change? How does she stay the same?
plays with
6. Analyze First-Person Point of View How would “Rules of the friends
Game” be different if you knew what Waverly’s mother was
thinking?
7. Draw Conclusions Review the chart you made as you read. Why
does Waverly view her mother as her opponent? Use evidence from
the story and your own ideas to support your conclusion.
8. Evaluate Conflict Give one or two reasons why Waverly and her mother
might be in conflict with each other. Do you think they treat each other
fairly? Explain.

Think Tank
9. Literary Criticism Amy Tan once mentioned in an interview that even though “Rules of
the Game” is fiction and she never played chess, it is the closest she has come to
describing her own life with her mother. She spoke of the “invisible force” her mother
taught her. Tan uses the image of the wind throughout the story to represent this
invisible force. Look for specific passages in the story in which Tan writes about the
wind. Write about the wind’s effect on Waverly and her chess game.
10. Show how well you know the characters in “Rules of the Game” by responding to the
following prompt. (100-150 words)

rules of the game 235

Vocabulary in Context
vocabulary practice
Answer each question to show your understanding of the adversary malodorous
vocabulary words.
benefactor ponder
1. Is a retort a high-pitched sound or a sharp reply?
2. When you ponder, do you think carefully or wander around concession
pungent
a pond? foresight
retort
3. Which is an adversary—an opponent or an advisor?
4. Would a tactic help you more in playing sports or watching impart tactic
a movie?
5. Is a pungent smell faint or sharp?
6. If a person has foresight, is she likely to make a mistake
or avoid one?
7. Is a concession more like giving in or letting loose?
8. When you impart something, do you hide it or reveal it?
9. What is more likely to be malodorous—flowers or garbage?
10. Is a benefactor someone who gives money or takes it away?

vocabulary in writing
Write a paragraph summarizing what happened to Waverly in this story.
Use at least three vocabulary words. You could start like this.

example sentence

At first, Waverly’s brothers did not want to impart their knowledge

of chess to her.

vocabulary strategy: the prefixes fore- and mal-

The prefixes fore- and mal- are used in the vocabulary words foresight and
malodorous. The prefix fore- means “in front” or “before,” and the prefix mal-
means “bad” or “badly.”

PRACTICE Decide which prefix, fore- or mal-, should be added to each word
to make it match the definition provided.
1. ____ cast: to predict the weather conditions in advance
2. ____ content: dissatisfied with existing conditions
3. ____ function: to function improperly
4. ____ arm: part of the arm between the wrist and elbow
5. ____ word: a preface or introductory note in a book
6. ____ practice: improper treatment of a patient

236 unit 2: character and point of view

Write an Essay
In Rules of the Game, Waverly Jong struggles to balance her personal ambitions with her mother’s expectations.
Think about a time in your own life when you faced a similar situation—where you
had to balance your personal goals with the expectations of someone important to you (a parent, teacher, or
mentor). How did this experience shape your relationship with that person, and what did you learn from it? (250-
350 words)

Essay Structure Instructions:

Introduction
 Briefly introduce "Rules of the Game" and its central theme of balancing personal ambitions with family
expectations.
 Provide a brief overview of Waverly’s conflict with her mother and its impact on her life in one or two
sentences.
 State the main idea: Explain how this theme relates to your personal experience of balancing your own
goals and the expectations of someone important to you.

Body
Paragraph 1:
 Describe the specific situation in your life where you faced a conflict between your personal ambitions and
someone else’s expectations.
 Explain the context and what was at stake for you.
Paragraph 2:
 Analyze how this experience affected your relationship with the person involved.
 What were the challenges or tensions you faced, and how did they shape your connection with that person?
Paragraph 3:
 Reflect on what you learned from this experience.
 How did it change the way you approach your goals or relationships? What lessons did you take away that
might help you in the future?

Conclusion
 Summarize the key points from the body paragraphs, focusing on how your personal experience mirrors
Waverly’s struggle.
 Reflect on the broader significance of balancing personal goals with external expectations—why is this a
common challenge for many people?
 End with a thought-provoking statement about how this experience has influenced your personal growth
or perspective on relationships.