The defense

The discovery means for Chess Grandmaster Luzhin, protagonist of this novel, the revelation of an order of impeccable harmony where to find refuge from the tribulations of his unhappy adolescence. From that moment he began his brilliant career as a champion in that game, which soon becomes an obsession that completely absorbs his life.

Comprising Luzhin, too late, that such an obsession that threatens to destroy the instrument chosen as a defense against disorder and the wrongs of the world is also a weapon that eventually turns against itself, finding the most pathetic helplessness.
All plot elements are subtly linked in a matching game and dramatic effects calculated with inimitable wisdom subject to a structure that deliberately recalls here an elegant, cunning and ruthless chess game.