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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 658
EAN num: 9780595224722
ISBN number: 0595224725
Label: iUniverse Star
Manufacturer: iUniverse Star
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 179
Printing Date: April 19, 2002
Publishing house: iUniverse Star
Release Date: April 19, 2002
Sale Popularity Level: 102543
Studio: iUniverse Star
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Product Description:
Book One of The Warrior Series
Sun Tzu and Sun Pin's timeless strategic masterpieces are constantly analyzed and interpreted by leaders worldwide. For the very first time ever, author D.E. Tarver explains the classic texts, The Art of War by Sun Tzu and The Art of Warfare by Sun Pin, in plain English.
War is the perfect training ground for teaching Sun Tzu's ancient philosophies to attaining victory over an opponent. The Art of War outlines the steps for outwitting the enemy, be it an army of 10,000 or an unresponsive client.
The Art of War teaches leaders strategies to attain victory Author name:- Knowing when to stand up to an opponent, and when to back down.
- How to be confident without being overly confident.
- Considering the cost of the campaign before launching an attack.
- Avoiding an opponent's strengths and striking his weaknesses.
'The one who is very first to the field of battle has time to rest, while his opponent rushes into the conflict weary and confused. The very first will be fresh and alert. The second will waste most of his energy trying to catch up.' Be the very first to the battlefield with The Art of War.
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Rated by buyers 
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This really isn't the "Art of War" as written by Sun Tzu but it is Tarver's interpretation of that work. Having read several translations of the Art of War, this version is more easily read but the use of colloquial English is a little jarring and leaves you questioning the accuracy of the translation. But to give the devil his due, this is more easily understood.
To read this as a primer on warfare is probably a waste of time because the content is self-evident to any student of military history or even the most junior of officers today. This is essentially a book of infantry tactics used by troops with limited communications. It doesn't address artillery (I am a former Artillery Officer)or cavalry. Warfare yesterday is much more complex and occurs in all four dimensions, something very foreign to Sun Tzu. It has more applicability in business if you perceive the internal scheming and machinations among executives to be the core of business. In that light Sun Tzu has something to offer, but if you are interested in the Art of War then there are much better books. One I highly recommend is "War Made New".
One of the reveiwers called this book "dumb". That is probably a little harsh but Tarver's command of the English Language is poor, which undoubtedly makes some of his comments appear to be "dumb". I gave this book four stars because it is easily understood, but as a book on warfare it has very limited value.
Rated by buyers 
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The Art of War is, in essence, a book of how to obtain the most results with the least effort. Before writing this review I read some of the others and I was quite surprised at some of the misrepresentation of this work. The language is not dumb nor does it lack the appropriate prose for a succinct poetic feel.
I was a little perplexed by Mr. Anderson's review which sounded so indignant that it caused me to go back and compare several of the translations. Starting out with "derrrrr" as though this particular translation was so far beneath him, and written in such elementary language that it is an insult to the very title and original author. Anyone who thinks that Sun Tzu wrote his work with "Artful expression" as his "Ultimate intention" is necessarily so full of self importance and pseudo intellectual theory that they have lost any practical relevance to the real subject - WAR.
As an example let's take the derrrrr test. Below is the very first line from the Art of War from seven different translations. Read each one carefully and pick the one that the reviewer was talking about, it must be easy considering how dumb the language is...
"Warfare is the greatest affair of state, the basis of life and death, the Tao to survival or extinction. It must be thoroughly pondered and analyzed."
"The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected."
"Conflict is essential to the development of a person, or a people. In its borders you will find life and death, sucess and destruction. You face conflict in everything you do. You must understand it. You must study it thoroughly."
"War is a matter of vital importance to the state; a matter of life and death, the road to either survival or to ruin. Hence, it is imperative that it be thoroughly studied."
"War is a vital matter of state. It is the field on which life or death is determined and the road that leads to either survival or ruin, and must be examined with the greatest care."
"The military is a great matter of the state. It is the ground of death and life, the Tao of survival or extinction. One cannot but examine it."
"This is war. It is the most important skill of the nation. It is the basis of life and death. It is the philosophy of survival or destruction. You must know it well."
There did you get it? Can you pick the translation that was "Sacrificed upon the altar of clumsiness"? Read it again; pick the one you like the best and the one you find unbearably plane. Certainly you must have been able to pick out the translation in its "sublime" form.
I read this book and found it very well written and completely accessible with many very memorable quotes - actually more than most others. I have read several other translations and they all have something to offer. I suggest you read them all if you are determined to follow Sun Tzu, but if you just want to learn his teaching and apply it to your life or business this is a great version for you.
It is in no way a how to book, though I would be interested to read one translated from Sun Tzu. It is a straight forward translation of a great book. I find it hard to believe that the reviewer in question even read this book. By the way the third one is from this translation and contrary to the reviewer it is a very well written statement which is far weightier and thought provoking and less pragmatic than most of the other six.
Might I suggest Dr. Seuss to Mr. Anderson? Certainly The Cat in the Hat will offer many phrases of poetic beauty for pondering the nights away. For anyone who wishes to read Sun Tzu this book is a great choice that you will find enjoyable, well written with a clear prose and thought provoking language.
The Art of War is winning at War, not contemplating The Road Not Taken.
Rated by buyers 
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Two stars is the equivalent of a D in school. D is for dumb, as in the language used in this translation. However, before it sounds like a personal insult to anyone, the author explains that a more simplistic and less poetic style is what he intended. and besides, the guy reads chinese. he clearly isn't dumb. Nevertheless, i like the poetic style that other translators have used. Sun Tzu's concepts are timeless, and they could hardly be seriously damaged by an unorthodox translation, but i personally find the poetic style more accessible. the primary reason for this is its beauty. beauty is more easily recalled than blandness. it is easier for me, and many others i suspect as well, to remember beautiful language. the purpose of beautiful language is to express the ultimately inexpressible. simple "how to" language fails to do this because it lacks beauty and is utterly pragmatic...that is to say, it lacks a personality and is usually forgetable. Sun Tzu's work, as my reading of it goes, is less of a 'how to fight a war' as it is 'artful expression of power-relationships'. the title says it all: "the ART of war" not "war for dummies" (though, come to think of it, that would make a catchy bumper sticker). Artful expression was sun tzu's ultimate intention, and the spirit i believe he held when compiling this work. "plain english" does a disservice to this spirit of artful expression. Societies have always suffered when the sublime is sacrificed upon the altar of clumsiness. Go for the poetry instead.
Rated by buyers 
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This is a legendary book and has gotten a lot of play these days, from Wall St. to Hollywood types--including such notables as writer James Clavell. While I respect Clavell and am very familiar with the book, frankly, I don't see what all the commotion is about. The supposedly profound psychological principles that can be used to outwit your opponent, among many other strategems discussed, I found to be pretty elementary and not particularly astute. Perhaps for it's time this qualified as state of the art, but not anymore. Most of them are, or should be, pretty obvious.
Sun Tzu's observations about military strategy also seemed of limited applicability yesterday since they pertain to ground wars with very primitive weapons. For example, his point that one should obtain the superior vantage point and position from which to attack, while valid, would be understood yesterday by the greenest officer just out of his military strategy and tactics course at the academy. There are some occasionally useful tidbits here, but overall, I suspect anybody trying to use these tactics in exactly the same way yesterday in a confrontation with modern ground weapons wouldn't be a happy camper.
To give just a couple of examples of this, in John Keegan's excellent book on the history of warfare, The Face of Battle, he points out that in the Battle of the Somme in World War I artillery accounted for 90 per cent of the casualties--not the infantry. The importance of artillery has continued to this day, something which didn't exist at all in Sun Tzu's time.
As Keegan has pointed out, the very first "modern" battle in the sense that it was the artillery that carried the day was in the 12th century Battle of Agincourt, where the much smaller English army using longbowmen decisively defeated a much larger French army, inflicting heavy casualties on the other side.
Secondly, the greater speed, destructive power, and maneuverability of modern armies, especially in the case of mechanized armor, dictates that the overall strategy and details of ground engagements will be substantially different from those in Sun Tzu's time. (I could cite other examples, since we haven't even considered the advent of air power, but I'll leave it at that).
The best way to appreciate this book is in the context of a classic that represented a high point in the military thinking of its time, but which has since been superceded. Basically this amounts to saying the work has historical value, and there is nothing wrong with that, but I wouldn't go too much further than that.
Also (assuming the story is true), anybody who would behead two of the Emperor's most beautiful concubines because they giggled during a marching exercise for the Emperor is a real jerk and should apply for membership in the Nazi Hall of Fame (more like Hall of Shame).
Finally, (and as seen from many of the reviews here) westerners continually misinterpret Oriental classics like this and apply them to situations where they are not applicable (and where even the Chinese wouldn't think of using them). This is a book about war, and has very little relevance to business.
You'd think people would have taken a clue from the title, "The Art of War." It's doesn't say, "The Art of Business." What part of the title didn't they understand?
For example, another reviewer very perceptively pointed out what is probably the worst problem with interpreting Sun Tzu's work in the light of business strategy, which is that the best strategy in business is a win/win situation: if I win and you lose, you will never do business with me again. I would certainly agree with this and again would reiterate that this is a book about war, not about business strategy.
In fairness, I would sum up by saying Sun Tzu's book represents an important historical contribution, but it has been over- hyped far beyond its real worth to the modern reader, and inappropriately applied in other areas, such as business, where it has very little, if any, real relevance or value. (However, I give the book 3 stars for effort, since anybody who was as busy as Sun Tzu was who also managed to ride a book deserves some respect).
(Brief postscript: Perhaps I would find B. H. Liddell-Hart's or Camille Clauswitz's books more profound as classics on war, as I did Kegan's books? I may try reading them and see if I find them more interesting and valuable than the Art of War. I have read articles about both books over the years, and they do seem more impressive, but I haven't actually read the originals yet. If I do, I will post a review on them on Amazon, as with the Sun Tzu book. Hopefully, I will have something more positive to say on these two also venerable classics.)
Rated by buyers -
Said an other eastern philospher, which seems to sum up Sun's thesis that true leadership is achieveing your nation's goals without resorting to war. what is fansinating in this work though is the degree that western and eastern armies differ. While many eastern armies were crushed by the abstract and seemingly faceless beast of the western style (Rome's legions, the British empire, ect.) the West has had trobule countering both the stuborn and flexable nature of Eastern fighting "an army is like a snake, attack its head and the tail will strike you. attack its tail and its head will strike. attack the center and both the head and the tail will strike" (the Persians learned that the hard way at Marthon). The crux of Tzu is that of understanding human nature and how it effects an army. Like general Shermen, he believed that an army has a "soul" and that it is not the death of men or lose of men that win or lose wars, but rather the presivation or devestation of this "soul".
Another point he hits on is the use of unconventinal tatics. Intreastingly, I very first came across his work in Once an Eagle, where Sam (the hero) goes to China (in the 40's) and sees very first hand the extent that Tzu is revlent in today's world.
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