The Art of War · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for The Art of War by Sun Tzu.
Chapter 1
Dedication
The translator dedicates this work to his brother, Captain Valentine Giles, expressing the hope that a text over two millennia old may still offer valuable lessons for the modern soldier.
Chapter 2
Preface by Lionel Giles
Lionel Giles introduces his translation of Sun Tzǔ's The Art of War, criticizing previous translations by Père Amiot and Capt. E. F. Calthrop for inaccuracies and omissions. He explains his methodology, including paragraph division, selective commentary, and textual references, aiming to provide a more faithful and scholarly edition.
Chapter 3
Sun Wu and His Book
This chapter provides a biography of Sun Wu (Sun Tzǔ) as recorded by Ssǔ-ma Chʽien, detailing his test with King Ho Lu's concubines, his appointment as general, and his military successes. It also discusses scholarly debates about the authenticity of Sun Wu's existence and the origins of his work, The Art of War, including references to later commentators and textual history.
Chapter 4
The Text of Sun Tzǔ
This chapter traces the textual history of Sun Tzǔ's Art of War, from its early circulation in the Han dynasty through the discovery of Chi Tʽien-pao's lost edition by Sun Hsing-yen in the 18th century. It details the challenges of textual corruption, the role of early encyclopedias like the Tʽung Tien and Tʽai Pʽing Yü Lan in preserving fragments, and the scholarly efforts to reconstruct a reliable standard text.
Chapter 5
The Commentators
This chapter provides a detailed historical overview of the many commentators who have annotated Sun Tzǔ's 'The Art of War', from Tsʽao Kung in the 2nd century AD through the Sung dynasty. It discusses the contributions, styles, and reputations of key figures such as Tu Mu, Chʽên Hao, Mei Yao-chʽên, and Chang Yü, as well as lesser-known commentators, and notes the circumstances that led to a flourishing of commentary during the Sung period.
Chapter 6
Appreciations of Sun Tzǔ
This chapter collects tributes to Sun Tzǔ from both military and literary figures in Chinese history, highlighting the profound influence of his work. It notes famous generals like Han Hsin, Fêng I, Lü Mêng, and Yo Fei who studied his pages, and literary men such as Su Hsün and Chêng Hou who praised his terse yet profound style. The chapter also records Ts'ao Kung's high opinion and Chu Hsi's cautious criticism of comparing Sun Tzǔ to classical texts.
Chapter 7
Apologies for War
This chapter presents a defense of the study and practice of military science, arguing that war is a legitimate function of government and that great sages like Confucius were not ignorant of military matters. It includes passages from Ssǔ-ma Ch'ien and Tu Mu that justify warfare as a means of punishment and order, and critiques those who dismiss military theory as immoral or useless.
Chapter 8
Bibliography
This chapter lists and annotates the oldest Chinese treatises on war after Sun Tzǔ, drawing from the Ssǔ kʽu chʽüan shu chien ming mu lu. It discusses the authenticity, style, and historical context of works such as the Wu Tzǔ, Ssǔ-ma Fa, Liu Tʽao, Wei Liao Tzǔ, San Lüeh, Li Wei Kung Wên Tui, Li Ching Ping Fa, Wu Chʽi Ching, and several attributed to Chu-ko Liang. It also provides references to major Chinese encyclopedias and historical bibliographic sections.
Chapter 9
The Art of War
This foundational chapter introduces Sun Tzǔ's treatise on military strategy, emphasizing the critical importance of planning, deception, and understanding the five constant factors (Moral Law, Heaven, Earth, the Commander, and Method and Discipline) for success in warfare. It establishes the principle that all warfare is based on deception and that a wise commander calculates and prepares before engaging in battle.
Chapter 10
Laying Plans
Sun Tzǔ establishes the art of war as vital to the state, governed by five constant factors (Moral Law, Heaven, Earth, Commander, Method and discipline) and seven considerations for comparing adversaries. He emphasizes the importance of careful planning, deception, and adaptability in achieving victory.
Chapter 11
II: Waging War
Sun Tzǔ outlines the immense costs of war—financial, material, and human—and argues that protracted campaigns drain the state, dull the army's edge, and invite opportunists. He advocates for swift victory, foraging on the enemy, and using captured resources and soldiers to augment one's own strength. The general is portrayed as the arbiter of the nation's fate, whose decisions determine peace or peril.
Chapter 12
III: Attack by Stratagem
Sun Tzǔ emphasizes that the supreme excellence in war is to subdue the enemy without fighting, advocating for stratagem over direct confrontation. He outlines the hierarchy of generalship, the dangers of besieging cities, the importance of knowing when to fight, and the five essentials for victory, culminating in the famous maxim of knowing oneself and the enemy.
Chapter 13
IV: Tactical Dispositions
Sun Tzǔ explains that true mastery in warfare lies in first securing oneself against defeat, then waiting for the enemy to provide an opportunity for victory. He distinguishes between defensive and offensive tactics, emphasizing that the skilled fighter wins with ease by making no mistakes, and that victory is determined before battle through careful measurement, estimation, calculation, and balancing of chances.
Chapter 14
Energy
Sun Tzǔ explains the principles of controlling large forces through division, signals, and the interplay of direct and indirect tactics. He emphasizes the inexhaustible combinations of these methods, the importance of simulated disorder, and the use of combined energy to achieve overwhelming momentum, likening a skilled commander's force to a round stone rolling down a mountain.
Chapter 15
VI: Weak Points and Strong
This chapter focuses on the strategic art of imposing one's will on the enemy, concealing one's own dispositions, and exploiting the enemy's weaknesses. Sun Tzǔ emphasizes the importance of forcing the enemy to reveal his vulnerable spots, dividing his forces, and concentrating one's own strength to achieve numerical superiority at the decisive point. The chapter uses the metaphor of water to illustrate the need for adaptability and the avoidance of fixed tactics, advocating for striking where the enemy is weak rather than strong.
Chapter 16
VII: Manoeuvring
Sun Tzǔ discusses the complexities of tactical manoeuvring, emphasizing the difficulty of turning the devious into the direct and misfortune into gain. He warns against forced marches for advantage, which can lead to loss of troops and supplies, and stresses the importance of local guides, dissimulation, and adapting to circumstances. The chapter also covers the use of gongs, drums, banners, and flags to unify the army, and the art of studying moods, self-possession, and circumstances to avoid engaging the enemy at a disadvantage.
Chapter 17
VIII: Variation of Tactics
Sun Tzǔ discusses the importance of adapting tactics to varying circumstances, including terrain, alliances, and desperate situations. He emphasizes that a general must understand when to disobey sovereign commands, blend considerations of advantage and disadvantage, and avoid five dangerous faults: recklessness, cowardice, hasty temper, sensitivity to shame, and over-solicitude for men.
Chapter 18
IX: The Army on the March
Sun Tzǔ discusses the principles of encamping an army and observing signs of the enemy. He covers tactics for different terrains: mountains, rivers, salt-marshes, and flat country. He emphasizes the importance of choosing high, sunny, and hard ground for camps to prevent disease and ensure victory. The chapter also details how to interpret enemy movements, sounds, dust, and behavior to anticipate their intentions, and stresses the need for humane treatment combined with iron discipline to maintain an effective army.
Chapter 19
X: Terrain
Sun Tzǔ classifies six types of terrain—accessible, entangling, temporizing, narrow passes, precipitous heights, and distant positions—and explains how to handle each. He then lists six calamities arising from a general's faults: flight, insubordination, collapse, ruin, disorganization, and rout. The chapter emphasizes knowing the enemy, oneself, and the ground to achieve complete victory, and stresses the general's duty to fight only when victory is certain, regardless of the ruler's orders.
Chapter 20
XI: The Nine Situations
Sun Tzǔ classifies nine varieties of ground and prescribes specific tactical responses for each, emphasizing the psychological impact of desperate circumstances on soldiers, the importance of secrecy, rapid movement, and the strategic use of terrain to achieve victory.
Chapter 21
XII: The Attack by Fire
Sun Tzǔ outlines five methods of attacking with fire, emphasizing the importance of timing, weather, and wind direction. He details five possible developments when using fire and contrasts fire with water as tactical aids. The chapter concludes with a warning against acting out of anger or pique, stressing that a ruler and general must be cautious and only act when advantage is clear, as a destroyed kingdom cannot be restored and the dead cannot be brought back.
Chapter 22
XIII: The Use of Spies
Sun Tzǔ emphasizes the critical importance of foreknowledge in warfare, arguing that the cost of maintaining spies is negligible compared to the waste of prolonged conflict. He outlines five types of spies—local, inward, converted, doomed, and surviving—and explains how they must be employed with secrecy, liberality, and subtlety. The chapter concludes with historical examples of dynastic rises enabled by spies and declares that spies are essential for an army's ability to act.
Chapter 23
Endnotes
The endnotes provide extensive commentary, textual clarifications, historical anecdotes, and cross-references to earlier chapters of Sun Tzǔ's work. They include discussions on military discipline, the importance of terrain, the role of the general, and the balance between severity and humanity in leadership. The notes also cite various commentators and historical figures, such as Chang Yü, Tu Mu, Li Chʽüan, and Han Hsin, and reference events like the battle at the Wei River and Lü Mêng's execution of a soldier for theft.
