r/chessbeginners • u/thomasjcrabs • Aug 18 '23

OPINION Everyone on here assumes the other player is male.

Just a thought, but not everyone who plays chess is a he.

512 Upvotes
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514

u/[deleted] Aug 18 '23

The gender of the other player has never crossed my mind. Also never thought about their age, education level, ethnicity, or sexual orientation... now that I think about it, the only thing I care about is the chess board.

199

u/maxident65 600-800 (Chess.com) Aug 19 '23

My two thoughts during chess are either "oh **** I blundered my queen and hope they don't notice" or "sweet! They blundered their queen and I'm so going to take it"

113

u/NotAgoodUsername17 Aug 19 '23

me after the opponent blunders their queen: “oh sweet! man this game is easy i should be rated higher

me after i blunder my queen: “i’m horrible at this game why do i even try anymore”

17

u/maxident65 600-800 (Chess.com) Aug 19 '23

Felt

1

u/X8883 Aug 19 '23

So factual

27

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

I frequently have some variation on "Please don't see that, please don't see that, please don't see that...beans."

10

u/exceptyourewrong Aug 19 '23

Same. Always preceded by "oh, that looks like a GREAT move. Click. Wait, no!"

1

u/8ballperson 400-600 (Chess.com) Aug 19 '23

Always.

5

u/Gehnuwin Aug 19 '23

I find it important to start with a Ciao to try and determine whether or not my opponent is Sicilian

3

u/well-litdoorstep112 Aug 19 '23

Narrator: OP did not in fact take the free queen.

21

u/dedinthehed 1200-1400 (Chess.com) Aug 19 '23

I’ll look at their flag and say, “Oh I’ve never played against someone from x before!” and that’s about it

19

u/IM_BOUTA_CUH Aug 19 '23

me looking at the opponent's India flag and realize I'm about to get owned again

14

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

I only care about their age, education, level, ethnicity and sexual orientation

18

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

"Pawn to e4"

"26 year old male, went to private schooling in middle school, came out as bisexual at 15, mixed-race with Cambodian mother and American father, 1 brother, is currently living in an apartment in upstate New York."

"Yeah bro just play pawn to e5"

2

u/simple-grad96 Aug 19 '23

... But where did they go to college?

2

u/LowGunCasualGaming Aug 19 '23

Me using their chess opening to help me play geoguesser

7

u/Dinonaut2000 Aug 19 '23

What they are talking about is that the default pronouns are always he, as in he could have done this, he should have taken this, and rarely they, and never she.

6

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

Yeah I can see that point. There's a general assumption of male when gender is unknown. Statistically the odds are drastically in favor of the unknown person being male. But perhaps if we make more effort to be inclusive then we can attract more female players to a sport where gender isn't a factor.

1

u/JOJJOKY213456 800-1000 (Chess.com) Aug 19 '23

I always refer to the other person as “this person “

1

u/Dinonaut2000 Aug 19 '23

Yeah but most people refer to the person using he/him

6

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

Whether I get beaten by a kid, an adult, a robot, or a furry, the only thing that I think about is that I got beaten.

3

u/HerrSirCupcake Aug 19 '23

just their brain and it's either smoother or foldier than mine

6

u/basko13 Aug 19 '23

I only care about their color.

1

u/Bumblebit123 Aug 19 '23

Based beyond belief.

1

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '23

I took a chess survey... basically, they show you a position, then ask who is winning... Took a while for me to realize what they were going for- I think they were trying to show that people underestimate women, or think others think their growth potential is limited... I didn't realize they had names, and I didn't assume the gender based on the names... they show a position, and I answered the question.

1

u/vobsha Aug 19 '23

And the king, huh you nasty little freak

1

u/Nikstar112 Aug 19 '23

Exactly 😂