“Rules of the Game” operates around the central metaphor of chess. Of course, the game of chess is literal in this story, as Waverly does learn to play and eventually becomes a prodigy and champion of the game. However, chess comes to represent much more, particularly in terms of Waverly and Lindo’s relationship. The connection is made by the narrator herself in the first paragraph of the story when she recounts her mother teaching her “invisible strength” without knowing it would later be applied to chess. The lesson that “Strongest wind cannot be seen” will return both in Waverly’s growth as a chess player and in the increasing tension in her relationship with Lindo.

When Waverly’s brother gets the chess set from the church’s Christmas toy donations, Waverly is not allowed to play but is immediately intrigued by the “elaborate secrets” the board seems to promise. Chess is a game of strategy, as is “the art of invisible strength,” and strategy is exactly what Waverly uses to insert herself into a chess game with Vincent. She makes a deal for a couple Life Savers that were her own Christmas gift, and Vincent agrees. Waverly annoys her brother by asking constant questions, wanting to understand every facet of chess, to dig into the “why” of every move and rule. After looking at the rule book when Vincent is at a loss to further answer Waverly’s questions, Lindo advises Waverly to “find out why yourself.”

Waverly’s initial curiosity deepens, and her knowledge grows. She is introduced to “opening moves,” “the middle game and why tactics between two adversaries are like clashing ideas,” and “the endgame,” which requires “foresight.” This terminology appeals to Waverly’s analytical side, and she takes pleasure in thinking through imaginary matches and playing out potential moves in her mind. She actively applies her mother’s lessons, relating that throughout a chess match, “one must gather invisible strengths and see the endgame before the game begins.” She will later find that this strategy that is successful in chess is not as reliable in her relationship with her mother.

As Waverly continues to defeat opponents in the neighborhood and takes lessons from Lau Po, Lindo attributes her daughter’s wins to “luck,” something Waverly terms her mother’s “proper Chinese humility.” Her mother also gives her a good luck charm of sorts, “her chang, a small tablet of red jade.” Despite these protestations about luck, Waverly’s accomplishments are certainly a result of her skill and preparation. As she plays her first match, however, she hears an otherworldly voice whispering to her about winds, reminiscent of her mother’s insistence that “Strongest wind cannot be seen.” In other words, Waverly relies on her practice, her own capabilities, her mother’s influence and lessons, and maybe even a bit of luck.

This first match is only the beginning of Waverly’s childhood chess prodigy career, and as a result of her victories, she earns special treatment at home. The extra time to study and practice is not all positive, though, as Waverly ironically begins to see her mother as her opponent, whereas Lindo considers herself Waverly’s “protective ally.” Her mother’s constant attention becomes suffocating; Waverly begins to search for an “escape route,” a term that applies both to the chessboard and to her relationship with Lindo. Even though she will later see Lindo as her antagonist, Waverly cannot deny her mother’s impact on her thinking.

At the story’s climax, Waverly lashes out at her mother for bragging about her in public and seemingly taking credit for Waverly’s success. She storms off as her mother yells after her, running through the alleys. However, she discovers quickly that “The alleys contained no escape routes.” She has “nowhere to go” and is “not running from anything.” Waverly begins to understand that dealing with Lindo will not be as comparatively simple or predictable as a chess game. She returns home to no fanfare, as her family has decided, at Lindo’s behest, to ignore her.

In the last three paragraphs of the story, the chess metaphor and its application to the relationship between Waverly and Lindo takes center stage. When Waverly imagines a chessboard, she sees her “opponent, two angry black slits. She wore a triumphant smile. ‘Strongest wind cannot be seen,’ she said.” We know this is Lindo, who has worn that same smile twice in the story and who spoke the line about the wind on the first page. While attempting to play against Lindo, Waverly finds herself overwhelmed. She says, “My white pieces screamed as they scurried and fell off the board one by one” in reaction to her opponent’s men “marching” toward them. Her chess pieces express their fear and intimidation in the face of the opponent’s, which correlates with Waverly’s feeling that her mother holds all of the power in their relationship.

Following this line, however, Tan incorporates some ambiguous imagery, in which Waverly “grow[s] light,” floats up into the air and “fl[ies] out the window.” She is “gathered up by the wind” and “alone.” Usually, a feeling of lightness could be associated with joy or a sense of being carefree; however, here, it seems to indicate that she is blown away by the power of her mother’s metaphorical wind. This makes Waverly feel isolated; however, she is not ready to forfeit the game, either. By the end of the chapter, it seems, Waverly’s relationship with Lindo is in “the middle game,” which Waverly earlier referred to as a time when “tactics between two adversaries are like clashing ideas.” Mother and daughter have conflicting plans for Waverly’s future, for who Waverly is going to be as a person separate from Lindo, and this is a conflict that is definitely not all the way played out yet. Waverly concludes her narrative by saying she “pondered [her] next move.” She will continue to strategize, to try to navigate her relationship with Lindo. She now realizes that it will take skills she has not learned through her mastery of chess.