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Title: The Art of War: In Sun Tzu's Own Words by Sun Tzu, Gary Gagliardi ISBN: 1-929194-00-5 Publisher: Clearbridge Publishing Pub. Date: 01 October, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.36 (11 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The Chinese Makes it Better
Comment: I got this books as a gift. I'd read The Art of War before, but this book is much more interesting. The English translation is easier to understand, and "reading" the actual Chinese characters adds a lot of depth. You can see a lot more meaning in each line.
Rating: 4
Summary: Learn to use Competitive Advantage
Comment: Gary Gagliardi is considered by many to be a leading expert in understanding and using the competitive methods embodied in Sun Tzu's treatise on the Art of War. A short visit to the Clearbridge web site is all it takes to understand why. Still, I wonder what I might be missing in the translation of the book. In this particular book (the author has written several based on Sun Tzu's work), the left hand pages have each Chinese character with the translated word next to it so that you have a word for word translation. The right hand pages contain a translation of the words into everyday English.
The problem with a translation of this style is one that has plagued translators for centuries and is the reason why there are so many slightly differing translations of Sun Tzu's work. If the author sees one Chinese character and wants to indicate the English word that this character translates to then what word does he pick? After all we have a Thesaurus because there are often many words that mean the same thing or almost the same thing such that choosing one over the other automatically colors the translation. What if there is no exact word in the English language? Well, you have to choose the closest one and that affects the translation. Sometimes words, even if translated exactly, do not give the whole essence of the concept in the original language due to cultural or other differences. Translators can't even seem to agree on something as simple as Sun Tzu's name! Is it Sun Tzu or Sun Tsu? You will find it transliterated both ways. With this in mind I was glad to see that the purchase of the book gets the reader access to the Clearbridge web site where they can see much more exhaustive analysis on the treatise.
Sun Tzu's treatise on The Art of War is really a treatise on competitive advantage that applies not only to actual war but such things as getting a job, marketing, and any other competitive situation that you might come across. A deep understanding of competitive advantage, it is still the definitive text for understanding the concepts of how to come out on top in such situations. An easy book to read and understand on a basic level, it can take a lifetime to truly appreciate in on all levels and apply it to the various areas of your life. This translation still seems to be one of the best that I have seen. It is internally consistent between the translated concepts and so shows a level of knowledge and detail that is not present in some other translations. As a translator the author obviously sees the big picture.
Rating: 1
Summary: Not Recommended
Comment: This is an interpretive book, written and presented by Gary Gagliardi, loosely based on Sun Tzu's classic material.
Mr. Gagliardi attempts to apply the lessons of Sun Tzu's The Art of War to business practice and corporate thought, based on his understanding of the work, as well as his background in sales, marketing and management theory.
One of the marketing angles used in this book is a "two for one" aspect. In addition to the "hidden secrets" of Sun Tzu, the book contains what the author asserts is the most accurate translation of Sun Tzu's work ever attempted. This description of the text is highly debateable, based on the merits of the text itself. Mr. Gagliardi achieved his translation using an internet encarta program, in which you can do a simplified character search in Chinese, and see some of the interpretive meanings of each pictogram. A close review of this internet text that served as the basis for the authors translation shows that it contains some character errors. Based on Mr. Gagliardi's word choices, the author appears to have selectively chosen what he believes to be the correct English terms, and these results are often wrong. This is certainly not a definitive work.
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