Analysis: Excerpt from The Art of War, Chapter 1

Date: ca. 500 BCE

Geographic Region: China

Author: Sun Tzu

Translator: Lionel Giles

Summary Overview

This passage consists of the first chapter of The Art of War, a landmark work attributed to Chinese author Sun Tzu. The document, lauded by some as the oldest treatise on military strategy in the world, makes a close investigation of military tactics and conduct; the ties between the military, political policy, and leadership; and the most critical factors influencing warfare. This excerpt from the first chapter, translated as “Laying Plans” by translator Lionel Giles, introduces the text by focusing attention on the gravity of warfare and the deliberation required to successfully fight a war. It lays the groundwork for the remainder of the document. As a text representative of its era, The Art of War reflects the conflict that pervaded China during the pre-imperial centuries under the Zhou dynasty. However, the influence of the document over military and political theory has spanned millennia and guided leaders across the globe.

Defining Moment

Around 1046 BCE, the Zhou dynasty rose in China. (Some scholars suggest an earlier date of ascendancy, according to traditional accounts.) The Zhou first emerged in what would later become the province of Shaanxi in northwestern China. There, they battled off and on with their neighbors, the Shang, before defeating the Shang and establishing their rule over much of the territory around the Yellow and Yangtze rivers. The Zhou dynasty would span centuries, lasting until 256 BCE, when the Zhou gave way to a new dynasty, the Qin. However, much of their rule was fraught with conflict. The Zhou built a great kingdom and their dynasty lasted longer than any other in Chinese history, but their kingdom was feudal and left much governance to local rulers. These lords constantly vied for more power and influence.

The military treatise known as The Art of War has long been attributed to a military general, Sun Tzu, who is thought to have lived during an especially contentious time known as the Spring and Autumn Period, which lasted from 770 to 476 BCE. During this era, Zhou leadership and control over China weakened amid fighting among various feudal states, but many technological and intellectual advances were made. However, some historians believe that The Art of War was actually written later, during the even more volatile Warring States Period (475 to 221 BCE). During this time, smaller feudal states joined into several larger kingdoms and fought to displace the Zhou and establish their own dynastic rule over the region. From these wars, the Qin kingdom emerged victorious and declared the first Chinese empire.

Author Biography and Document Information

Chinese author and general Sun Tzu, also spelled as Sun Zi or Sunzi, has long been credited as the author of The Art of War, or Bingfa. Sun Tzu lived during the Spring and Autumn Period of the Zhou dynasty, and served the state of Wu, in eastern China along the East China Sea. Wu was frequently at war with its neighbors during this time, and Sun Tzu would have had ample cause for expounding on themes of war. The complete text of The Art of War comprises thirteen chapters that examine various aspects of warfare, military strategy, and leadership. However, some historians question the text's authorship and suggest that the text was written after Sun Tzu's lifetime, during the later Warring States Period. Others suggest that the historic figure Sun Tzu, as one man, did not exist and that the text evolved over several centuries from the writings of many contributors.

Modern English versions of The Art of War derive from several key translations, with the first complete translation done by British scholar Lionel Giles in 1910. Giles's father, Herbert Giles, had collaborated with British diplomat Sir Thomas Wade to develop a method of transliteration from Chinese to English known as the Wade-Giles Chinese romanization system; this was the main system in use for much of the twentieth century, before being replaced by pinyin.

A notable later translation of The Art of War was done by scholar Ralph D. Sawyer, first published in 1993.

Document Analysis

The first chapter of The Art of War consists of twenty-six points or sections meant to introduce and set the tone and purpose of the broader work. Each of the subsequent dozen chapters deals more intently with the themes introduced here. To begin, the document emphasizes the importance of its subject: “The art of war is of vital importance to the State.” The matter at hand, warfare, is not to be taken lightly, but should be approached with care and great deliberation, a concept echoed throughout the first chapter and the entire treatise.

In sections three through fifteen, Sun Tzu describes five factors to be considered before engaging in and while conducting a military engagement. These five factors—moral law, heaven, earth, commander, and method and discipline—are dealt with in the remaining sections of the chapter. Moral law suggests the rightness of bringing a people into agreement with their rulers before undertaking warfare. The people must follow if the campaign is to succeed. Heaven refers to the environmental conditions of battle, such as the seasons, the time of day, and the weather. Earth denotes the physical geography of the environment, its terrain, the distances involved, and various other hazards. The commander signifies the nature of leadership, which the author states should encompass “the virtues of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage, and strictness.” Finally, method and discipline relate specifically to military organization and behavior, including the costs of war and the structure of the forces.

Together, these five factors are described as paramount for military leaders: “He who knows them will be victorious; he who knows them not will fail.” Section thirteen, in particular, provides questions to guide one's deliberation on these factors. The author suggests that he can determine the victorious party in any given conflict by judging the combatants' advantages based on these factors. The implication is that the victor is more likely to be the group with the people's will, with the most capable leadership, with the best advantages of environment and geography, with the strongest military discipline and force, with the most training, and with the most consistent system for reward and punishment among its ranks.

The document goes on to advise that flexibility and adaptation are key attributes to success. The remaining sections detail what circumstances and approaches might prove most helpful to military generals in winning their wars. Sun Tzu emphasizes the deceptive nature of war: when possible, trick the enemy forces. Take advantage of their weaknesses and keep them confused. Do not stick to what might be considered proper rules of conduct and battle, but attack when the opportunity presents itself and when the enemy is least expecting it and least prepared. Other points of advice include riling temperamental opponents in order to compel them to make foolish decisions and movements.

The chapter closes by circling back to its original point that warfare requires planning and consideration. Ultimately, the treatise suggests that victory is most likely to go to the leaders who think and plan most effectively.

Bibliography and Additional Reading

Bauer, Susan Wise. The History of the Ancient World: From the Earliest Accounts to the Fall of Rome. London: Norton, 2007. Print.

Li Feng. Early China: A Social and Cultural History. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2014. Print.

Sawyer, Ralph D., trans. The Seven Military Classics of Ancient China. New York: Basic, 2008. Print.

Tanner, Harold Miles. China: A History, Vol. 1: From Neolithic Cultures through the Great Qing Empire 10,000 BCE–1799 CE. Indianapolis: Hackett, 2010. Print.