Historical Figures Codexery

Sun Tzu

Master Sun: legendary strategist of ancient China

Sun Tzu

Unknown authorUnknown author · via Wikipedia: Sun Tzu · Public domain

The name "Sun Tzu" is an honorific meaning "Master Sun".[1] During the Eastern Zhou period (771–256 BC), a Chinese individual known as Sun Tzu was a military general, strategist, philosopher, and writer.[2] The Warring States period Classical Chinese text on military strategy called The Art of War is traditionally attributed to Sun Tzu.[2]

Quick Facts

Birth name
Sun Wu
Born
544 BC (traditional)
Died
496 BC (traditional; aged 47–48)
Place of death
Gusu, Wu State
Language
Chinese
Occupation
  • Military general
  • strategist
  • philosopher
  • writer
Subject
Military strategy
Notable works
The Art of War

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Sima Qian placed Sun Tzu as a minister to King Helü of Wu and dated his lifetime to 544–496 BC.[1] The Shiji biography describes Sun Tzu training the king's harem of 180 concubines into soldiers.[3] Sun Tzu had two favored concubines executed when they ignored his orders, after which the rest obeyed.[3] The name "Sun Wu" does not appear in any text prior to the Records of the Grand Historian.[4]

The earliest parts of The Art of War probably date to at least a century after Sun Tzu.[5] Sima Qian's Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), composed around 97 BC, provides the earliest surviving biography of Sun Tzu.[6] After Sun Wu executed two of the king's concubines during a training demonstration, the king appointed him as a general; subsequently, Sun Wu led Wu to victory over Chu at the Battle of Boju in 506 BC.[3] By the 12th century, scholars such as Ye Shi (1150–1223) had begun to question whether Sun Tzu ever existed.[7]

The Art of War contains anachronistic references, such as crossbows and other military technology, that were not available during Sun Wu's supposed lifetime.[5]

What the cited sources add

Sydney Wen-Jang Chu notes that the honorific "Master Sun" can refer to either Sun Wu or his descendant Sun Bin, causing confusion.[8] Chu states that Sun Tzu and Sun Bin are both recognized for their intellectual and philosophical approach to warfare.[8] Chu explains that Sun Bin's work was rediscovered in a 1972 archaeological excavation after being lost for almost 2000 years.[8] In an interview with Sonshi.com, Dr. William Duiker says Ho Chi Minh rarely wrote about Sun Tzu but was always laudatory when he did.[9]

Duiker states that Sun Tzu's ideas had a profound effect on Ho Chi Minh, who sought to defeat the French and Americans without recourse to violence.[9] Duiker adds that Võ Nguyên Giáp applied many of Sun Tzu's ideas in seeking out weak elements in enemy defenses.[9]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "孙子 – 国学网", guoxue.com, 14 May 2015 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lewis 1999, p. 604 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mair 2007, p. 135 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mair 2007, p. 135; Xu Shen's annotation: on Liu An (compiler), Huainanzi ( ), "Survey Obscurities" (覽㝠訓); Siku Quanshu version. Main text: ; English translation from John S. Major; Mair 2007, p. 135 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lewis 1999, p. 604; Yang, Sang. The Art of War. Wordsworth Editions Ltd (1999). pp. 14–15.; Szczepanski, Kallie, "Sun Tzu and the Art of War", Asian History; Szczepanski, Kallie, "Sun Tzu and the Art of War", Asian History; Gawlikowski Loewe 1993, p. 447; Morrow, Nicholas, "Sun Tzu, The Art of War (c. 500–300 B.C.)", Classics of Strategy, 4 February 2015; "Yinqueshan Han Bamboo Slips", Shandong Provincial Museum, 24 April 2008; Clements, "The Art of War: A New Translation", Constable & Robinson Ltd, 2012, p. 77–78; Gawlikowski Loewe 1993, p. 44 en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mair 2007, p. 135; Mair 2007, p. 135; Mair 2007, p. 135 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Sun Tzu" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gawlikowski Loewe 1993, p. 447 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Sydney Wen-Jang Chu, "Just another Masterpiece: the Differences between Sun Tzu's the Art of War and Sun Bin's the Art of War", 健行學報, 16 January 2013. facts only, no text reused. airitilibrary.com
  9. "Interview with Dr. William Duiker", Sonshi. facts only, no text reused. sonshi.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Sun Tzu (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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