Sun Tzu and the Art of Modern Warfare: Updated Edition

by Mark R. McNeilly

Overview

Long acknowledged as a classic text on strategy, Sun Tzu's The Art of War has been admired by leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong and General Norman Schwartzkopf. However, having been written two thousand years ago, the book can be somewhat daunting to the modern reader. Mark McNeilly, author of Sun Tzu and the Art of Business (OUP, 2011), which made Sun Tzu accessible to the business executive, has extracted the six concepts most applicable to modern warfare, making them easy to understand and apply to military situations. Drawing on a wealth of fascinating historical examples, McNeilly shows how these six principles might be used in wars of the future---both conventional wars and terrorist conflicts---and how they can provide insight into current affairs, such as the war on terrorism and China's increasingly important strategic and military role in the world. This updated edition reflects on all that has happened in the past ten years, including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the challenge of Iran, the "Arab Spring," and the continued rise of China. Each chapter includes brand new examples to explain important concepts in The Art of War. Including the full text of The Art of War in the popular translation by Samuel Griffith, with cross-references to quotations used in the book, Sun Tzu and the Art of Modern Warfare unlocks these elusive secrets for anyone interested in strategy and warfare, whether they are professional soldiers, military history buffs, or business executives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199393817
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	10/02/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	844,396
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Mark McNeilly has appeared as a guest speaker in the History Channel special on Sun Tzu's Art of War and has spoken at the US Air Force Air Command and Staff College on Sun Tzu's principles. Mark is also the author of Sun Tzu and the Art of Business: Six Strategic Principles for Managers. A Lecturer at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and former business executive, Mark served as a reserve officer in the infantry and artillery in U.S. Army National Guard.

Table of Contents

CONTENTS Introduction: The Relevance of Sun Tzu to Modern Warfare 1. Win All Without Fighting: Achieving the Objective Without Destroying It 2. Avoid Strength, Attack Weakness: Striking Where the Enemy Is Most Vulnerable 3. Deception and Foreknowledge: Winning the Information War 4. Speed and Preparation: Moving Swiftly to Overcome Resistance 5. Shaping the Enemy: Preparing the Battlefield 6. Character-based Leadership: Leading by Example 7. The “Global War on Terror” 8. Ancient Principles for Future Battlefields Notes Original Translation of The Art of War by Samuel B. Griffith Bibliography to Sun Tzu translation Index to Sun Tzu and the Art of Ancient and Modern Warfare

Editorial Reviews

"The military writings of Sun Tzu have been evaluated and re-evaluated many times until they have become almost a cliché... One question rarely answered when applying them to their originally intended field of warfare is how to apply them usefully in the real world on an actual battlefield... This new work strives to correct that, applying Sun Tzu's writings to modern battles, including some very recent ones modern readers will find familiar." —Military Heritage

From the Publisher