Response to Jorden Martinez
This is an interesting post about the Art of War. Histories of many countries talk about battles with enemies, and this implies that War has been a constant feature of human societies. The Art of War as described by Di Cosmo illustrates the uniqueness of the Chinese culture in relation to War. An analysis of this book reveals that the Chinese emphasized a large army. The book refutes the perception that Confucianism led to undermining of militarism in China. On the contrary, the culture hints strategic planning encompassing economic, adherence to ethos of War was evident in China. In addition, the “Art of War” had been applied to different settings since its information on preparedness, motivating soldiers, taking early leads and use of aggression as well as non-violent tactics are strategies that can be used based on the prevailing conditions. Finally, it can be argued that people have hard wrong perceptions about Chinese military culture. Overall, it is an ideal culture that applies appropriate tactics based on the existing situation and that Confucianism did not weaken China’s military.
Response to Christopher McCloskey
The Art of War is similar to many Western works from the eighteenth and nineteenth
Indeed, the Art of War is similar to many Western Works from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. This book demonstrates that the Chinese culture on War was not only limited to peaceful strategies but utilized aggressive ones as well. Thus, the Chinese culture on War is unique in terms of preparedness and its applicability to many settings. In other words, its richness has helped it to remain relevant. This is because a third of the Chapter’s in Di Cosmo’s book was written many years before the Warring States era of ancient China as explained by Michael Loewe. The Art of War has been applied to different setting because it advocates of different military strategies. So the conditions pertaining a particular conflict will determine the strategy to use. Also, the book emphasizes on planning. Proper planning is important in achieving an advantage in warfare. Lastly, the perceptions on Chinese War-making and military have been wrong for long. Their methods have never been outdated or biased towards peaceful strategies. Instead, their strategies are adaptive.