Sun Tzu incorporated in the "Art of War". According to Steven C. Combs in "Sun-zi and the "Art of War": The Rhetoric of Parsimony", warfare is "used as a metaphor for rhetoric, and that both are philosophically based arts." Combs writes "Warfare is analogous to persuasion, as a battle for hearts and minds." The application of "The Art of War" strategies throughout history is attributed to its philosophical rhetoric. Daoism is the central principle in the "Art of War". Combs compares ancient Daoist Chinese to traditional Aristotelian rhetoric, notably for the differences in persuasion. Daoist rhetoric in the art of war warfare
Leadership trust results in folly. Dependence on the strength of courage results in violence. Excessive discipline and sternness in command result in cruelty. When one has all five virtues together, each appropriate to its function, then one can be a leader. — Sun Tzu Machiavelli's "The Prince", written in the early 16th century, provided a manual for rulers ("princes" or "tyrants" in Machiavelli's terminology) to gain and keep power.In the 19th century the elaboration of anarchist thought called the whole concept of leadership into question. (Note that the "Oxford English Dictionary" traces the word "leadership" in English only as far back