Editing Sun Tzu (section)

==Legacy==
[[File:Enchoen27n3200.jpg|thumb|right|Statue of Sun Tzu in [[Yurihama, Tottori]], in Japan]]
Sun Tzu's ''Art of War'' has influenced many notable figures. The Han dynasty historian [[Sima Qian]] recounted that China's first historical [[emperor of China|emperor]], [[state of Qin|Qin]]'s [[Qin Shi Huang|Shi Huangdi]], considered the book invaluable in ending the time of the [[Warring States period|Warring States]]. In the twentieth century, [[Mao Zedong]] partially credited his 1949 victory over [[Chiang Kai-shek]] and the [[Kuomintang]] to ''The Art of War''. The work strongly influenced writings about warfare in Mao's [[Little Red Book]], which further influenced communist insurgencies around the world.<ref name="McNeilly2"/>

''The Art of War'' was introduced into [[Nara period|Nara Japan]] in {{circa|lk=no|AD&nbsp;760}} and the book quickly became popular among Japanese military generals. Through its later influence on the [[Sengoku period]] "Great Unifiers" of Japan, [[Oda Nobunaga]], [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]], and [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]],<ref name="McNeilly2">{{harvnb|McNeilly|2001|pp=6–7}}.</ref> it significantly affected the [[Edo period|unification of Japan]] in the early modern era. After the [[Meiji Restoration]], it remained popular among the [[Imperial Japanese Army|Imperial Japanese armed forces]]. Admiral [[Tōgō Heihachirō]], who led Japan's forces to victory in the [[Russo-Japanese War]], was an avid reader of Sun Tzu.<ref>{{harvnb|Tung|2001|p=805}}.</ref>

[[Ho Chi Minh]] translated the work for his Vietnamese officers to study. His general [[Võ Nguyên Giáp]] was likewise an avid student and practitioner of Sun Tzu's ideas.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.sonshi.com/duiker.html|title=Interview with Dr. William Duiker|work=Sonshi|access-date=5 February 2011|archive-date=18 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118173816/https://www.sonshi.com/william-duiker-interview.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{citation|last=McCready|first=Douglas M.|title=Learning from Sun Tzu|date=May–June 2003|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0PBZ/is_3_83/ai_109268913/?tag=untagged|newspaper=Military Review|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120629011131/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0PBZ/is_3_83/ai_109268913/?tag=untagged|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{citation|last1=Forbes|first1=Andrew|last2=Henley|first2=David|name-list-style=amp|year=2012|title=The Illustrated Art of War: Sun Tzu|publisher=Cognoscenti |location=Chiang Mai|asin=B00B91XX8U}}</ref>

[[Taoist]] rhetoric is a component incorporated in the ''Art of War''. According to Steven C. Combs in "Sun-zi and the ''Art of War'': The Rhetoric of Parsimony",<ref name="Combs 276–294">{{cite journal|last=Combs|first=Steven C.|title=Sun-zi and the Art of War: The Rhetoric of Parsimony|journal=Quarterly Journal of Speech|date=August 2000|volume=86|issue=3|pages=276–294|doi=10.1080/00335630009384297|s2cid=145097995}}</ref> warfare is "used as a metaphor for rhetoric, and that both are philosophically based arts."<ref name="Combs 276–294" /> Combs writes: "Warfare is analogous to persuasion, as a battle for hearts and minds."<ref name="Combs 276–294" /> Combs compares Taoist and [[Aristotle|Aristotelian]] rhetoric, notably for the differences in persuasion. Daoist rhetoric in ''The Art of War'' warfare strategies is described as "peaceful and passive, favoring silence over speech".<ref name="Combs 276–294" /> This form of communication is [[parsimonious]]. Parsimonious behavior, which is highly emphasized in ''The Art of War'' as avoiding confrontation and being spiritual in nature, shapes basic principles in Taoism.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Galvany|first=Albert|title=Philosophy, biography, and Anecdote: On the Portrait of Sun Wu|journal=Philosophy East and West|date=October 2011|volume=61|issue=4|pages=630–646|doi=10.1353/pew.2011.0059|s2cid=171035936}}</ref>

In ''Sun Tzu and the Art of Modern Warfare'', Mark McNeilly writes that a modern interpretation of Sun and his importance throughout Chinese history is critical in understanding China's push to become a superpower in the twenty-first century. Modern Chinese scholars explicitly rely on historical strategic lessons and ''The Art of War'' in developing their theories, seeing a direct relationship between their modern struggles and those of China in Sun Tzu's time. There is a great perceived value in Sun Tzu's teachings and other traditional Chinese writers, which are used regularly in developing the strategies of the Chinese state and its leaders.<ref>{{harvnb|McNeilly|2001|p=7}}.</ref>

Some admirers of Sun Tzu's work claim that it has relevance in competitive endeavors across the modern world beyond military strategy and warfare, including espionage, culture, governance, business, and sports.<ref name=wp>{{citation|last= Scott|first= Wilson|title=Obama meets privately with Jewish leaders|date=7 March 2013|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-meets-privately-with-jewish-leaders/2013/03/07/dd95b4ca-8733-11e2-999e-5f8e0410cb9d_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|location=Washington, D.C.|access-date=22 May 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724060741/http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-03-07/politics/37535039_1_nuclear-weapons-jewish-leaders-president-obama|archive-date=24 July 2013}}</ref><ref name=UPI>{{citation|title=Obama to challenge Israelis on peace|work=United Press International|date=8 March 2013|url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2013/03/08/Obama-to-challenge-Israelis-on-peace/UPI-70151362729600/|access-date=22 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="Business">{{citation|last=Garner|first=Rochelle|title=Oracle's Ellison Uses 'Art of War' in Software Battle With SAP|date=16 October 2006|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aFA0SRsqGq04|work=Bloomberg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151020122222/https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aFA0SRsqGq04|url-status=dead|access-date=18 May 2013|archive-date=20 October 2015}}</ref><ref name=Football>{{citation|last=Hack|first=Damon|title=For Patriots' Coach, War Is Decided Before Game|newspaper=The New York Times|date=3 February 2005|url= https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/03/sports/football/03belichick.html|access-date = 18 May 2013}}</ref><ref>
{{cite book
 |last1                = McNeilly
 |first1               = Mark R.
 |year                 = 2015
 |title                = Sun Tzu and the Art of Modern Warfare
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=yVFjBAAAQBAJ
 |edition              = updated
 |location             = Oxford
 |publisher            = Oxford University Press
 |page                 = 301
 |isbn                 = 978-0-19-995785-9
 |access-date          = 14 December 2022
 |quote                = Sun Tzu is not talking about 'news' here but about espionage affairs, or matters or plans relating to espionage.
}}
</ref>

Sun Tzu has even been mentioned in [[popular culture|pop culture]]. For example, in the 1987 film ''[[Wall Street (1987 film)|Wall Street]]'', the protagonist [[Gordon Gekko]] frequently cites passages from ''The Art of War'' as guiding principles for his aggressive trading techniques.<ref>{{cite web |title=Oliver Stone's ''Wall Street'' and the Market for Corporate Control |work=Economics in Popular Film (course) |publisher=Mount Holyoke |date=November 21, 2001 |url=http://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/sgabriel/filmcourse/oliver_stone.html |access-date=18 February 2021 |archive-date=13 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713042945/https://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/sgabriel/filmcourse/oliver_stone.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>