Chapter on Authority

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

4.3

Word count: 789 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

This chapter discusses the strategies of persuasion. Master Guiguzi holds that: one who speaks steadily projects resolve and courage; one whose words are full of concern weighs pros and cons and thus inspires trust; one who speaks with calm dignity may instead win the debate. "One who would make good use of the world must measure the world's balances of power." Master Guiguzi points out: "When speaking with the clever, rely on breadth and depth; with the learned, on logical argument; with the strong logician, on concision; with the noble, on grand momentum; with the rich, on elegance; with the poor, on advantage; with those of low station, on modesty; with the brave, on resolve; with those who have erred, on striving forward." These are Guiguzi's nine principles of speech, and they still shine today. Guiguzi's disciple Zhang Yi knew what to say to whom and was famed in ancient and modern times for his cunning in speech.

Editor's review

"Quan Pian" is the chapter of Guiguzi devoted to persuasion strategy, whose core is to "measure the world's balances of power" before speaking. It links the speaker's demeanor to the effect: the steady show resolve, the anxious weigh matters well and win trust, and the calm and dignified may instead prevail in debate. More practical are the nine principles of speech it distills, differentiated by audience: with the clever rely on breadth, with the learned on argument, with the eloquent on concision, with the noble on momentum, with the rich on elegance, with the poor on advantage, with those of low station on modesty, with the brave on resolve, with those who have erred on striving forward. These principles elevate "say what suits whomever you address" from a tactic to a capacity to judge the audience's situation. This Bashu Press 2024 edition gives readers the chance to study the text directly. Its value lies not in offering all-purpose scripts but in reminding readers that effective communication begins with recognizing the other party's position and concerns. Read it alongside records of Zhang Yi and other Zongheng strategists, but do not take its principles as social techniques to be copied wholesale.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers of history and literature studying pre-Qin Zongheng thought and persuasion
Those interested in ancient rhetoric and communication strategy
PR and negotiation professionals who need to analyze persuasion scenarios

Not a good fit for

Those expecting modern scripts they can apply directly
Readers averse to machiavellian content
Beginners with no classical Chinese who are unwilling to consult annotations

Reading tips

First read through the nine principles of speech and arrange them in a comparison table by audience type.
Read alongside historical records of Zhang Yi and other strategists to observe the principles in concrete situations.
After each principle, ask whether it still holds in contemporary communication and annotate accordingly.
Do not rush; read two or three principles closely at a time and connect them to real cases.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
权篇第九

FAQ

What is "Quan Pian" mainly about?

This chapter is about persuasion strategy and holds that "one who would make good use of the world must measure the world's balances of power." It analyzes the effects of steady, anxious, and calm speech and sets out nine principles for audiences ranging from the clever and learned to the noble, rich, and poor.

Are the nine principles of speech fixed scripts?

No. They stress adjusting expression to the other party's status, situation, and psychology; the point is judging the audience, not memorizing phrasing. Applying them as fixed scripts would in fact violate the original idea of "measuring power."

What background knowledge is needed to read "Quan Pian"?

Ideally a basic understanding of Guiguzi's overall structure and of pre-Qin Zongheng activity, including Zhang Yi's persuasive missions. Readers with weak classical Chinese should read with annotations, understanding the words before interpreting.

Do the principles of speech still have reference value today?

Their approach of identifying the audience's concerns and adjusting expression remains instructive, but ancient and modern contexts differ greatly and they should not be applied directly. Readers may treat them as an ancient perspective for analyzing persuasion situations rather than an operations manual.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.