Importance of Chess

Chess symbolizes abuse and manipulation. The first appearance of this symbol occurs when the scientists are on drugs, specifically alkie sardines. The scientists gather the test animals into the blood room and force them to act as chess pieces. At another point in the novel, the chessboard reappears in the Strange Bird’s island, another symbol for the Strange Bird’s mental landscape. The chessboard’s reappearance symbolizes the Strange Bird’s captivity by the Magician.