Genius and the Power of Mental Visualization

For the first time in my life, I played not merely with my hands, but with my mind.
— Dr. B., Chess Novella

In Stefan Zweig’s Chess Novella, the reigning world chess champion, Czentovic, is on board a ship from New York to Buenos Aires, and is challenged to a game by a group of passengers. The passengers, realizing they are outmatched, seek assistance from another passenger, Dr. B., who, to everyone’s surprise, manages to draw the game against Czentovic. Dr. B. later reveals his story: he was imprisoned by the Nazis and kept in solitary confinement. To…