The Art of War

Categories: Chinese classic texts | Military books | War

This article is about the Chinese military book. For the military book by Niccolò Machiavelli, see The Art of War (Machiavelli), for the movie, see The Art of War (film), and for the album, see The Art of War (album).

The Art of War (Chinese: 孫子兵法; pinyin: sūn zĭ bīng fǎ; literally "Sun Tzu's Military Strategy") is a Chinese military treatise written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu. Composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare, it has long been praised as the definitive work on military strategies and tactics. It is one of the most famous studies of strategy and has had a huge influence on both military planning and beyond. First translated two hundred years ago by a French missionary, The Art of War has been credited with influencing Napoleon, the German General Staff, and even the planning of Operation Desert Storm. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong and Giap have claimed to have drawn inspiration from the work.

Contents

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The 13 chapters

Chapter titles from Lionel Giles' 1910 translation

  • I. Laying Plans
  • II. Waging War
  • III. Attack by Stratagem
  • IV. Tactical Dispositions
  • V. Energy
  • VI. Weak Points and Strong
  • VII. Maneuvering
  • VIII. Variation in Tactics
  • IX. The Army On The March
  • X. Terrain
  • XI. The Nine Situations
  • XII. The Attack By Fire
  • XIII. The Use of Spies
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Quotations

Verses from the book occur in modern daily Chinese idioms and phrases, such as the last verse of Chapter 3:

故曰：知彼知己，百戰不殆；不知彼而知己，一勝一負；不知彼，不知己，每戰必敗
So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle.

This has been more tersely interpreted and condensed into the modern proverb:

知己知彼, 百戰百勝
If you know yourself as well as your enemy, you will come out of one hundred battles with one hundred victories.

It has also been interpreted and condensed -- in a manner construing skillfulness as victory "without fighting" (perhaps meaning "without traditional fighting", see Aikido) -- into the modern saying:

One hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the most skillful. Seizing the enemy without fighting is the most skillful.
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Military applications

In many East Asian countries, The Art of War was part of the syllabus for potential candidates of military service examinations. Various translations are available and were used by some European military institutions, for instance, in Germany before World War I. In the United States Marine Corps, it is reportedly required reading for intelligence personnel and recommended for all Marines.

During Sengoku Jidai in Japan, a Samurai named Takeda Shingen became almost invincible in all battles without relying on guns, because he studied The Art of War. The book even gave him the inspiration for his famous battle standard "Furinkazan" (Wind, Forest, Fire and Mountain). Japanese historians say that had Shingen not died from illness, he would have become the Shogun of Japan.

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Applicability outside the military

Some have suggested or implied that The Art of War is applicable to more than just military endeavors. Much of the text is about how to fight wars without actually having to do battle. It gives tips for how to outsmart one's opponent so that physical battle is not necessary. In more recent times it has been used as a training guide to prepare one for "office politics" and corporate culture, and the books have most prominently appeared in the business sections of bookstores in the West. Some sports such as rugby have even reputedly used the book to develop strategy.

Many Japanese companies make this book required reading for their key executives. In recent times the book has gained widespread popularity among Western business management, who are turning to this book for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations. It has also crept its way into sport, with Australian cricket coach John Buchanan handing out excerpts from the book to his players before a match against England in 2001, along with the book allegedly being a favorite of University of South Carolina football head coach Steve Spurrier. At the same time this use has been criticized by many scholars of Chinese history for using The Art of War as a source of fortune cookie-like proverbs and not seeing the general coherence of the text.

Republican election strategist Lee Atwater often used The Art of War. [1]

Some have also interpreted The Art of War as providing methods for developing social strategies, such as developing relationships in social or working circles. It stresses subtlety and always making it appear like one is trying to achieve something away from the actual intention.

The text of The Art of War is also very useful in war games ranging from board games like Go, Risk to computer games like StarCraft and Natural Selection.

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Depiction in media

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Film

  • In the 1987 film Wall Street, the main antagonist, Gordon Gekko says: "I don't throw darts at a board. I bet on sure things. Read Sun-tzu, The Art of War. Every battle is won before it is ever fought."
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Television

  • The Art of War was recently made into a Chinese television series of the same name.
  • In The Sopranos, Tony Soprano takes the advice of his therapist and reads The Art of War to aid him in managing his expanding empire of organized crime.
  • In Family Guy (episode 105 - "A Hero Sits Next Door"), Stewie Griffin appears reading a book whose cover says: "Machiavelli The Prince"; he then throws down his book and says: "Machiavelli! You've told me nothing I don't already know. Ah- Sun Tzu's The Art of War."
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Games

  • In the fictional BattleTech universe, The Art of War is mentioned several times throughout the novels, and the Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation, Sun Tzu Liao, is named for the author.
  • It also makes a few brief appearances in "Deus Ex: The Conspiracy", in which the player is able to read a few chapters.
  • In Sid Meier's "Civilization" computer game series, "Sun Tsu's Art of War" or "War Academy" is one of the fictional World Wonders that can be created, giving the owner several temporary military advantages.
  • Empress Lei-Qo of Battalion Wars uses proverbs from The Art Of War with wild abandon, changing the gender whenever she refers to herself.
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Translations

  • {{{Author|{{{Last|}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{First}}}}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| (2001)}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}}}}}}}|.}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| "{{{Chapter}}}" in}} }|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|{{{Editor}}} }}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=[{{{URL}}}|3=}} The Art of War: the Denma translation}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=]|3=}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Others}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Pages}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, Shambhala Classics}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|. ISBN 1-570-62904-8}}
  • {{{Author|{{{Last|}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{First}}}}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| (2002)}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}}}}}}}|.}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| "{{{Chapter}}}" in}} }|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|{{{Editor}}} }}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=[{{{URL}}}|3=}} The Art of War}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=]|3=}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Others}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Pages}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, Deodand Publishing}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|. ISBN 0-957-88687-X}} Text link (reprint; Giles translated the book in 1910)
  • {{{Author|{{{Last|}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{First}}}}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| (1993)}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}}}}}}}|.}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| "{{{Chapter}}}" in}} }|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|{{{Editor}}} }}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=[{{{URL}}}|3=}} The Art of Warfare}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=]|3=}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Others}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Pages}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, Random House}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|. ISBN 0-345-36239-X}}, includes the Yin-ch'ueh-shan (Silver Sparrow Mountain) texts
  • {{{Author|{{{Last|}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{First}}}}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| (1983)}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}}}}}}}|.}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}| "{{{Chapter}}}" in}} }|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|{{{Editor}}} }}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=[{{{URL}}}|3=}} The Art of War}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|2=]|3=}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Others}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, {{{Pages}}}}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|, Delacorte Press}}}|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}}|. ISBN 0-385-29216-3}} This edition was published as a tie-in with Clavell's Asian Saga
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Related topics

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External links

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es:El arte de la guerra fr:L'Art de la guerre nl:De kunst van het oorlogvoeren ka:ომის ხელოვნება ja:孫子 (書物) pt:A arte da guerra zh:孙子兵法