The Rise of China vs. the Logic of Strategy

Like Clausewitz and Machiavelli, Sun Tsu crafted his writings to describe and prescribe action regarding conditions in a certain time and geographical place. Like both, Sun Tsu has had his theories translated into maxims that have been badly misapplied in situations far different from what he was describing. Sun Tsu was writing about political-military power struggles among various factions vying for rule of the Han Empire at a time when Europe was wallowing in the feudal filth of the Dark Ages.

Writing for and about wars between Han elites, Sun Tsu wove a strategic theory based on ruse and deception. Luttwak argues that this internal belief in the logic of the strategies of its ancients has served China poorly when confronted with outside adversaries who take the application of raw military power seriously. In other words, too often, the Han Chinese brought a strategic stiletto to a tactical gunfight and lost badly.

The Han were conquered repeatedly by more adept militaries. Although the foreign conquerors eventually were assimilated and absorbed by Han culture, the humiliations inflicted by these defeats tend to exacerbate Chinese xenophobia and strategic autism. Luttwak also argues that another Han legacy dogs the Chinese government today: This gives the United States, with its Asia-Pacific web of bilateral and mutually beneficial alliances, an advantage in the region because the Han tributary legacy makes the Chinese appear to be cynical and predatory. Consequently, the shortsighted Chinese tendency to overreact to perceived slights by neighbors appears to be driving them into an eventual alliance of Chinese containment.

Luttwak specifically cites instances in which Mongolia, Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia have been angered unnecessarily by Chinese overreaction to incidents that the Americans would shrug off without much thought. This view is not unique to Mr. This is true even when that strategy runs contrary to its diplomatic and economic self-interest.

BOOK REVIEW: ‘The Rise of China vs. the Logic of Strategy’

As he points out, the misapplication of the strategic theories of Clausewitz in the late 19th and early 20th centuries led Germany into an unnecessary and disastrous war. This book is not for the casual reader. It is serious and weighty. My theory about the unpopularity of Mr. It will be interesting to see whether the book is read with interest or banned once it is translated and made available on the Chinese mainland.

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It is a cautionary tale that deserves Chinese attention. Gary Anderson Washington Times [ Luttwak 's] thesis is sensible and not to be discounted lightly. The Economist blog Edward Luttwak 's book on the limitations of China's ascent to power blends careful observation of recent events with an understanding of its past The explanatory innovation that lifts Luttwak's book above the ruck of recent books on China's rise is his use of geo-economics--an expression he coined in to explain global resistance to Beijing's march.

He argues that countries across the world, without explicit coordination, will resist China's export-oriented strategy to generate wealth and military power. This "invisible hand" explanation is in refreshing contrast to the usual containment and other political explanations about what may happen in East China in the coming years. Siddharth Singh Mint Would you like to tell us about a lower price? If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?

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Customers who bought this item also bought. Page 1 of 1 Start over Page 1 of 1. A Practical Handbook, Revised Edition. The Return of Marco Polo's World: The Revenge of Geography: Here's how restrictions apply. Review National security strategist Edward Luttwak's provocative and insightful analysis of the 'logic of strategy' provides a well-documented, contrarian assessment of whether China's 'rise' will be peaceful or polarizing. Start reading The Rise of China vs. Don't have a Kindle? Try the Kindle edition and experience these great reading features: Share your thoughts with other customers.

Write a customer review. Read reviews that mention logic of strategy rise of china china rise edward luttwak economic growth military strength military power china luttwak analysis of china china logic luttwak china chinese policy global neighbors future japan leaders nation brilliant.

The Rise of China vs. the Logic of Strategy

Showing of 27 reviews. Top Reviews Most recent Top Reviews. There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. Is it possible to understand the work of writers like Focault, Lacan, and Derrida simply by watching movies? In this book, Edward Tomarken takes a swing at showing you how to do just that and the movies in question are largely popular ones.

Using "The Devil Wears Prada", "Slumdog Millionaire", and other recent box-office hits, Tomarken attempts to draw parallels between their plotlines and a variety of philosophical positions.

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Most readers will be familiar with most of the movies cited; I'd missed seeing a few of them but in each case Tomarken's recounting of the basic plot was sufficient for me to get the point. If you're twenty-five years or older, chances are you've also seen most of them. As in his other, more recherche works, Tomarken tends to gloss over some of the structure or post-structure of each philosopher's ideas in other to focus more clearly on the ethical end of each philosophy.

Although the book was designed to make his curriculum more accessible to his students, Tomarken's "Filmspeak" is possibly even more useful to film buffs who are looking for a critical perspective that exists outside the hall-of-mirrors world of film writing. There are a hundred thousand people writing about Quentin Tarantino's references to other movies, but only Tomarken takes the time to open the theater's exit door and let a little light shine in from the outside world.

For those of us looking to ground the world of film criticism firmly in the context of real life, "Filmspeak" is a thoroughly valuable book. Kindle Edition Verified Purchase.

Luttwak explains that the "highest echelon" of the U. Treasury "is staffed almost entirely by former or future employees of the leading financial firms" that are sensitive to Chinese enterprises as future clients, for example Timothy Franz Geithner. According to Luttwak, these financial power elites have no responsibility for or indeed any intellectual interest in the condition of the U.

Every American should read this book! This man is brilliant and he knows what most do not or will not say. We have much to learn.

I think it is good. This remarkable book is yet another in the long series of studies on strategy by the author. It should be read by military leaders, economic strategists, politicians, historians, and anyone interested in the rise of China and its opportunities and threats for the West and for its neighbors and East Asia. One of the most enduring and interesting ideas in this book concerns the logic of strategy and the amazing paradoxes that it reveals. This is a very interesting short book which erases many myths about China's certain path to the coveted position of the top global superpower status.

It's the author's view that "because of China's inherent magnitude, quite independently of its conduct on the regional and international scene, the very rapid growth in its economic capacity and military investment must evoke adversarial reactions, in accordance with the logic of strategy. Other things being equal, when a state of China's magnitude pursues rapid military growth, unless the resulting shift in the power-balance passes the culminating point of resistance inducing the acceptance of some form of subjection, it causes a general realignment of forces against it, as former allies retreat into a watchful neutrality, former neutrals become adversaries, and adversaries old and new coalesce in formal or infornal alliances against the excessively risen power".

This is a main theme of the book and very well presented with historical examples, numbers and facts. I really enjoyed also three other points: An excellent book that demistfy many topical aspects of the rise of China. As Luttwak shows, things are much more complex that they appear. Reads well and the argument is