Stratagems

AnonymousThe Commercial Press · ChinaJun 2024

2.9

Word count: 8.4K words
Chapters: 2

Summary

The strategy of expediency, the method of seizing the opportune. Expediency is profit, strategy is wisdom; statecraft and strategy are thus the method of profit and wisdom.

Editor's review

This short volume, Quanmou, is brief in length but plain in its thesis: expediency is profit, strategy is wisdom, and statecraft-strategy is "the method of profit and wisdom." It does not deal in abstract moral philosophy but presents expediency and timely adaptation as a skill to be pondered, in compressed language with the flavor of old policy essays and aphorisms. Because the author is unknown, readers cannot seek interpretation through biographical background and must return all the more to the text itself, chewing over sentence by sentence its weighing of advantage and harm, timing and means. This facsimile is based on the original Republican-era Commercial Press edition, preserving the old version's appearance, and is suited to being dipped into and savored repeatedly as a slim volume. Note that the expediency discussed here is a technique of adaptation in a particular context; read with a critical eye, taking its intellectual ingenuity rather than applying it crudely to real interpersonal affairs.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in ancient Chinese thought on expediency and short treatises on strategy
Readers who enjoy aphoristic, short-phrase texts and are willing to chew over them repeatedly
Edition enthusiasts studying Republican-era rare-book printings and the Commercial Press's publishing appearance

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting systematic strategic theory and a complete case system
Readers sensitive to the term "expediency" and averse to utilitarian discussions of adaptation

Reading tips

Do not aim to finish in one sitting; read three to five entries at a time and consider their limits of applicability in light of your own experience.
As you read, distinguish how "profit" and "wisdom" are weighed in specific entries, and make brief annotations.
Compare with works such as Quanshu on warfare and governance to see how different authors regard expediency.
The facsimile has no modern annotation; note puzzling passages first and return to them after reading the whole.

About the publisher

The Commercial Press China · Founded in 1897

"Republic-era Commercial Press Original Editions" refers to original books printed by The Commercial Press during the Republican period, not a separate publishing house. Judging from the 300 titles held in the collection, its publishing focus centers on classical poetry and lyrics, literary appreciation, classic works, military texts, prose and miscellaneous writings, and Eastern philosophy. Representative titles include Wang Guowei's Renjian Cihua, Zhong Rong's Shipin, the lyric collections of Xin Qiji and Liu Yong, Sun Wu's The Art of War, and Lü Buwei's Xianshi Lan. Its author resources are mainly classical writers, together with modern scholars such as Li Jingbang and Guo Huaruo, whose collations and annotations are also represented, giving the list a character centered on original texts while attending to annotation and appreciation. Public information on the precise Republican-era catalog and printings is limited; this overview is based only on the titles held in the collection.

版权信息
卷十三权谋

FAQ

Who is the author of Quanmou, and why is it attributed to an anonymous author?

The author is no longer identifiable; the material gives only "anonymous." Readers therefore cannot infer intent from the author's life or historical background and can only understand its discussion of expediency and timely adaptation from the text itself.

What exactly does "quanmou" in the title mean?

As summarized in the book's opening, expediency is profit, strategy is wisdom, and quanmou is "the method of profit and wisdom"—that is, seeking method between judging advantage and harm and resourceful adaptation. It leans toward the art of timely expediency rather than modern management or negotiation techniques.

Is this book suitable as a guide to conduct?

It should not be copied wholesale. What is discussed are methods of expediency in a particular context, lacking the support of modern ethics and institutions. It is better read critically as a text of thought, appreciating its mode of reflection rather than treating it as a manual for real interpersonal dealings.

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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.