A Game at Chess

A Game at Chess Irony

Ignatius Loyola

In the prologue, Ignatius Loyola has a conversation with his servant, Error, about his followers. Error assumes that Ignatius wants to see how his followers are doing because he is proud of them and wants them to succeed. Ironically, this is proven false as Ignatius declares that he is actually jealous of his followers because he wanted to rule the world himself.

The White Queen's Pawn

The White Queen's Pawn is a great source of dramatic irony in the play because of her innocence and trusting nature. She is easily duped by the Black Queen's Pawn and the Black Bishop's Pawn, while the audience is well aware that they are trying to deceive her. Ultimately, the White Queen's Pawn is acquitted and freed, but throughout the play she serves as a cautionary character who is too trusting and ignorant of political scheming.

White Knight's Victory

At the end of the play, the White Knight convinces the Black Knight that he wishes to switch allegiances and take advantage of the sexual licentiousness and ambition that the Black House has to offer. The audience knows that the White Knight is simply pretending to be interested in supporting the Black House, but the Black Knight is easily tricked, which leads to a confession of all the Black House's crimes.

Bed Trick

The play features a "bed trick," in which one character is substituted for another during a sexual act. The Black Queen's Pawn convinces the Black Bishop's Pawn that he slept with the White Queen's Pawn, but it was really the Black Queen's Pawn with whom he spent the night. This leads to the embarrassment of the Black Bishop's Pawn and catalyzes the resolution of the play in which all the black players are sent to the bag.