Sun Tzu's art of war
by General Tao Hanzhang, Tao Hanzhang · first published 2007
22% recommend78% neutral
Why HN recommends it
A short classic of strategy, its ideas apply to business, leadership and everyday decisions. It serves as a general primer on positioning and conflict, accessible to readers with or without a military background.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
A classic! Find inspiration in some of history's great military victories as others have for over 2,400 years. Sun Tzu was the most famous military scientist, and one of the ablest commanders, in ancient China. Asian warlords, and modern leaders as dissimilar as Mao Tse-tung and General Eisenhower, have used his principles to change the shape of the world. Interpreted here by General Tao Hanzhang, one of the architects of the Communist Revolution, Tzu's advice on timing, maneuvering, flexibility, and knowledge of the enemy's leaders, strengths, and weaknesses is as powerful today as when it wa
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
Waiting for Godot
Samuel Beckett
Recommended by 10 · mentioned by 3110 recommend · 31 mention10 recommend · 3110 recommend
2007–2026The Art of War
孙武 (Sun Tzu)
Recommended by 57 · mentioned by 18057 recommend · 180 mention57 recommend · 18057 recommend
2007–2025The mysterious island
Jules Verne
Recommended by 32 · mentioned by 5132 recommend · 51 mention32 recommend · 5132 recommend
2009–2026Candide
Voltaire
Recommended by 28 · mentioned by 8028 recommend · 80 mention28 recommend · 8028 recommend
2008–2026Flowers for Algernon
Daniel Keyes
Recommended by 63 · mentioned by 12063 recommend · 120 mention63 recommend · 12063 recommend
2007–2026Nineteen Eighty-Four
George Orwell
Recommended by 53 · mentioned by 28353 recommend · 283 mention53 recommend · 28353 recommend
2007–2026Think and Grow Rich
Napoleon Hill
Recommended by 81 · mentioned by 14581 recommend · 145 mention81 recommend · 14581 recommend
2007–2026The Fountainhead
Ayn Rand
Recommended by 64 · mentioned by 14364 recommend · 143 mention64 recommend · 14364 recommend
On my personal bookshelf, next to my Bible, are: Sun Tzu's "Art of War" - a fundamental philosophical work for life management Stephen Covey's "7 Habits of Highly Effective People" - well-known, enough said. Felix Dennis' "How to Get Rich" - the best book that I have ever…
on “Ask HN: what non technical books changed your life ?” ↗Why not? They’re called classics for a reason. Should read at least some of them. Reading the best of a genre is also worth doing, along with autobiographies of people you admire. Read Sun Tzu’s Art of War before you need to.
on “Why Read the Classics? (1986)” ↗Thoughts in Prose and Sun Tzu's Art of War are great. To tell you the truth, I rarely read much these days, but back in my prime I would literally stay up for days on end and go years with my nose stuck in a book at every possible chance.
on “Ask HN: Please name two of your most favorite books.” ↗I've re-read some of the humanities material from college and now realize how much it has influenced my day-to-day thinking. For example, while re-reading Sun Tzu's 'Art of War,' I realized how often I apply his strategies.
on “A Faustian bargain at SUNY Albany” ↗…reading a diverse set of perspectives is valuable, and a surprising number of leadership lessons translate between technical domains. This strives to contribute to the body of learning represented by Sun Tzu's Art of War and Marcus Aurelius's Meditations (also excellent reads).
on “US Army Field Manual 3-0: Operations (2008)” ↗…selective honesty and generosity to disarm your victim. This is mostly used in adversarial situations, more like a law of war rather than law of life. But again, "crush your enemy totally" is preached in Sun Tzu's Art of War, but the book is still a classic. Law 13: When asking for help, appeal to people's self-interest, never to their mercy or gratitude. This is one of the tenet in Dale Carnegie's "How to win friends and…
on “The Lost Chapter” ↗I have no military background, but I like Sun Tzu's Art of War for some ideas about one's stance when engaging in "battle": I know it is more of a poetic liking than actual military advice.
on “Notes from a Sun Tzu Skeptic (2019)” ↗…of the fans have become conditioned to expect entertainment, drama and bold moves in sports like we see in overly dramatic movies. But historically, if you consider generals or even have a look into Sun Tzu's art of war, the strategists and generals that were most regarded were the ones who were able to win in a manner that it seemed easy, unimpressive, without drama or heavy losses or huge risks involved. That's what…
on “Magnus Carlsen Beats Fabiano Caruana to Win World Chess Championship” ↗…(b) scream and yell hoping to attract attention (c) give up some money to live another day? Sometimes stupidly standing on principle or not taking your counter party seriously can be very costly. In Sun Tzu's art of war where does it say to become so immersed in your own propaganda that you ignore reality?
…But is it not also possible that the TSA is purposefully putting on the guise of an incompetent governmental entity? That would seem like an excellent strategy to take, as it follows the principles in Sun Tzu's Art of War to the letter. If you are strong, appear weak, if you are weak, appear strong, etc. If these terrorists think they can easily game the system, it will likely lead them to be less cautious, exactly as…
on “Matt Blaze: How unpredictable screening helps terrorists” ↗Yep, from Sun Tzu's Art of War: "When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard." -- http://classics.mit.edu/Tzu/artwar.html I think this is also the first time I've heard it quoted in an…
on ““Dear subscriber, you are registered as a participant in a mass disturbance.”” ↗…Samsung. So Apple will probably refuse, then Samsung has an arrow to fire at Apple if they claim Samsung copied their hardware. Some of the lawyers from Samsung have been reading a little too deeply into sun tzu's art of war and Robert Green's 48 laws of power.
on “Samsung’s lawyers demand to see the iPhone 5 and iPad 3” ↗…the utility of writing in developing military tactics is that Western Europe doesn't have a tradition of discussing military tactics in written texts until the Early Modern period. There's nothing like Sun Tzu's Art of War that keeps getting passed down and talked about; any transmission of tactics is going to happen via practical experience in a kind of apprenticeship--which is exactly the same method of transmission an…
on “Evidence for European presence in the Americas in AD 1021” ↗This reminds me of Sun Tzu's Art of War. His writing certainly is a kind of poetry, but the lines and stanzas are broken down not only by semantics, as done by Buckminster Fuller, but also by concept. Ventilated prose isn't only useful for…
on “Ventilated Prose (2009)” ↗…along with providing a dvorak keyboard will probably be enough motivation. There are probably other ways, and I am sure there are folks out there creative enough to find them. There is something from Sun Tzu's Art of War, along the lines that one can defend against attacks by drawing a line in a sand, or crack any fortress by threatening that which the defenders are obligated to come out to defend. Any determined actor…
on “Hit me with a wrench all you want, I can’t tell you my password” ↗