Sunzi
Sunzi, also known as Sun Tzu, is a historical figure credited with authoring "Bingfa," commonly known as "The Art of War," around 510 B.C.E. This seminal text is one of the most esteemed works on military strategy and has influenced not only military leaders but also business executives and scholars in various fields. Sunzi is believed to have been a general for the state of Qi during the Warring States period in ancient China. His writings emphasize the importance of strategy, planning, and psychological warfare, advocating for the ability to subdue an enemy without direct conflict.
The work is characterized by its aphoristic style, making its teachings accessible and applicable to diverse life situations beyond the battlefield, including leadership and management. Sunzi's principles highlight the effectiveness of surprise, deception, and emotional intelligence in strategy, asserting that a successful commander remains calm and calculated rather than reactive or impulsive. His insights have led to a broader interpretation of "The Art of War" as a metaphor for conflict resolution and leadership, enriching its relevance in contemporary discussions on strategy.
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Sunzi
- Born: fl. c. 500 b.c.e.
- Birthplace: China
- Died: Unknown
- Place of death: Wu (State)
Also known as: Sun Tzu
Flourished: c. 500 b.c.e.; China
Military significance: Warrior-philosopher Sunzi’s work on war and military strategy became the handbook for Chinese warfare into recent history.
Very little is known about Sunzi, the warrior-philosopher who is credited with writing Bingfa (c. 510 b.c.e.; The Art of War, 1910), one of the most celebrated works on the subject of warfare and military strategy. The Communist army in China, under the leadership of Mao Zedong, is believed to have used many of the psychological-warfare tactics expounded in this book in its struggles, first against the Japanese and then against the Nationalists. According to historical references, Sunzi may have been a general who was for a time employed by the state of Qi during the reigns of Kings Wei and Xuan at the height of the Warring States era (c. 475-221 b.c.e.).
Although Sunzi’s book has been translated into English as The Art of War, the literal meaning of the Chinese title is “rules for fighting men.” The modern fascination with Sunzi’s work can be attributed in part to its elegance of style and immediacy of appeal and also to its presentation of its message through aphorisms rather than in a treatise. In addition, the book can be viewed as a work on conflict and winning and losing, rather than merely on warfare. Therefore, Sunzi’s work is studied not only at military academies throughout the world but also at many business schools and management seminars for corporate executives. Sunzi’s maxims are so generally applicable to life situations that some scholars have tended to approach the work as a study on leadership, wherein warfare is used mainly as a metaphor.
In a chapter on offensive strategy, Sunzi states that subduing the enemy without resorting to war is superior to fighting one hundred battles and winning each one. In his work, he advocates the imaginative use of spies, including double-agents and people who plant disinformation. He stresses the importance of throwing the enemy off balance and the value of the elements of surprise and speed in any offensive operation. However, Sunzi never fails to emphasize that the art of war is, in the final analysis, a meditation in psychology. He states that good commanders know how to enrage hot-tempered enemies and to pretend weakness to make their enemies arrogant. Further, good commanders are not those given to rage and impulsive behavior but rather emotionally stable people—cool, calculating planners of their actions who will never fight simply out of anger.
Bibliography
Fung, Yu-Lan. The Period of the Philosophers. Vol. 1 in A History of Chinese Philosophy. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1952.
Needham, Joseph. Science and Civilization in China. Vols. 1-7. London: Cambridge University Press, 1954–1999.
Sima, Qian. Historical Records. World’s Classics series. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.
Sun Tzu. The Art of War. Hong Kong: China Overseas Translation Press, 1995.
Twitchett, Denis, and John K. Fairbank, eds. The Ch’in and Han Empires, 221 b.c.-a.d. 220. Vol. 1 in The Cambridge History of China. London: Cambridge University Press, 1978.