Discretion

The chapters "Attack by Stratagem" and "Energy" explore aspects of war that are not directly related to the fighting itself. As I learned, many of the greatest battles are won without fighting. Deceit and cunning are important aspects of war that are often overlooked both in peaceful and belligerent confrontations. Tzu specifically warns against a siege which will result in a general losing a third of his men "while the town still remains untaken," in most cases. This is due to the mentallity of a general while overseeing a prolonged siege. He will likely be "unable to control his irritation," and act "recklessly," a fatal fault that a commander can exhibit. At the end of "Attack by Stratagem," Tzu summarizes his aforementioned strategies in a list of five essentials for victory, which includes a commander's relationship to a "sovereign," which in today's world would just be a leader of a country (later in the book Tzu even mentions times in which a commander MUST disobey a sovereign in order to achieve victory. This brings up questions about whether he was censored in ancient China). "Energy" deals with the motivation that an army needs in order for it to be successful in battle. Tzu employs analogy to convey his message. "There are not more than five musical notes (there are actually 12 but traditional Chinese music usually only used 5), yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard" compares music to non-combat related tactics. Although there is a small number of essential/ fundamental tactics, one can mix and match them so that there are virtually an infinite number of paths to follow in fighting a war. The simile "your army may be like a grindstone dashed against an egg" uses an everyday image to make a connection. The overall message of the chapter is to describe how the collective energy of a fighting force is achieved and maintained. Tzu's final simile and metaphor effectively conveys these messages. When a commander "utilizes combined energy, his fighting men become as it were like unto rolling logs." A rolling log picks up momentum as it rolls down a hill until it becomes an unstoppable force with energy thousands of times greater than that when it started. .