The Art Of War - Sun Tzu

Finished: 2023-07-15

Rating: 4.0/5

Review:

This book provides solid insight into the controlling of a difficult situation. The information is presented with a heavy military background but can easily be applied to your interpersonal life and living. There is quite a lot to learn from the book even though it is quite short, roughly 90 pages of material in my copy of the book.

1. Chapter One
• Fundamental factors of war.
1. Moral influence.
2. Weather.
3. Terrain.
4. Command.
5. Doctrine.
2. Chapter Two
• Speed and decisiveness ensure victory.
• Proper planning and organization is required for concise execution.
• Complex calculations must be made in order to make adequate decisions.
• Do these things with haste and conviction.
3. Chapter Three
• Control impatient actions in a siege situation.
• "He who excels at resolving difficulties does so before they arise."
4. Chapter Four
• Offensive and defensive tactics, the general must focus on what he himself can control.
• "The experts in defense conceal themselves, those skilled in attack move from above, thus they are capable of protecting and gaining victory."
5. Chapter Five
• Molding soldiers into cohesive units and managing them such that a loosely managed opponent is incapable of victory.
• Clear organizational structure must be set into place, to create order.
6. Chapter Six
• Successful generals act in such a fashion that the enemy is forced to engage.
• Creating a veil of illusion such that your enemy can not predict the attack vector causes the enemy to spread resources thin.
7. Chapter Seven
• "Nothing is more difficult than the art of maneuver."
• An army should only split up when absolutely necessary.
• Having the troops arrive at the battlefield more or less in good condition and at the same time is of great importance.
8. Chapter Eight
• Five foundational principles
1. Low-ground, an army shall not camp.
2. Communication, allies may force multiply.
3. Desolate, to be moved through as quickly as possible.
4. Enclosed, requires resourceful solutions to re-position.
5. Death, fighting is the only option.
9. Chapter Nine
• Positional arrangement yields very clear advantages.
• Generals must gather information from spies to assess enemy disposition.
10. Chapter Ten
• Six different types of terrain on which battles are fought.
1. Accessible, freely traversed.
2. Entrapping, can be abandoned but is difficult to re-occupy.
3. Indecisive, neither side will gain by making the first move.
4. Constricted, if occupied first make your garrison strong.
5. Preciptous, if you are first to occupy the position wait for the enemy to come.
6. Distant, fighting will be disadvantageous in these situations.
11. Chapter Eleven
• Nine varieties of ground.
1. Dispersive, contained territory in your command.
2. Frontier, new territory which you are taking.
3. Key, neutral or mutually advantageous.
4. Communicating, fortified positions where you may freely speak.
5. Focal, opportunistic allowing for gaining allies.
6. Serious, deep incursion made in enemy territory.
7. Difficult, mountain forests, rugged steeps, marshes and fens.
8. Encircled, pressure from both terrain and enemy troops.
9. Death, fighting must occur in order to survive there is no other option.
12. Chapter Twelve
• Five methods of attacking with fire.
1. Burn soldiers in their camps.
2. Burn the stores.
3. Burn the baggage trains.
4. Burn the arsenals and magazines.
5. Hurl fire dropping fire amongst the enemies.
13. Chapter Thirteen
• The use of spies.
1. Local spies, employ the services of the inhabitants.
2. Inward spies, officials of the enemy.
3. Converted spies, enemy spies turned against their own "double agents".
4. Doomed spies, perform actions only for deception, our spies know of them and report to them to the enemy.
5. Surviving spies, those who bring back news from enemy camps.