By Andrew Nickerson
In the field of military tactics/strategy, one name has long stood above the rest: Sun Tzu, ancient philosopher/general/strategist. This ancient genius’ masterpiece, The Art of War, is one of the most venerated of all time, a gem touching on nearly every element of conflict, and all for one unique goal: winning. Its depth and all-encompassing approach has proven so effective and universally applicable that all manner of famous names, from athletes to businessmen to politicians, have relied on it to achieve their goals. After all, as expert after expert has famously said, if you follow Sun Tzu, you’ll win; if not, you’ll lose.
However, there’s one medium that hasn’t truly been tapped: pop culture plotlines. If he’s universally applicable, why not here too? To demonstrate this, let’s analyze one of Hollywood’s most famous plot arcs: Jaws’ Orca1 ordeal. More specifically, we’ll be looking at it through the following Sun Tzu principles: morality, terrain, leadership, prep, improv, baiting, foreknowledge, recklessness, delicacy of honor, seizing an opening, and underestimation.
Here’s the background: Amity Island, a peaceful summer resort, is rocked when a murderous great white shark (Jaws from now on) kills a young woman named Chrissy one night. When her remains are found the next morning, new Police Chief Martin Brody (Brody from now on), upon learning the suspected cause of death is a shark attack, tries to close the beaches to protect locals/tourists, a wonderful use of two of Sun Tzu’s Essential Victory Factors, morality and leadership2. Unfortunately, when Amity’s Mayor, Larry Vaughn (Vaughn from now on), learns of this, he goes to Brody and arrogantly lectures him about the need for summer dollars; worse, he has the medical examiner change the cause of death to a boat accident to stop bad press. It’s a disturbing violation of multiple Sun Tzu rules, including morality, leadership, two of his Five Fatal Failings of Leadership, recklessness and delicacy of honor3 (DOH from now on), and never underestimate a foe4.
Sadly, Amity pays for these mistakes a bit later, when Jaws kills local boy Alex Kintner, prompting his mom to offer a $3,000 reward for killing the monster. It leads to a town meeting where Brody tries to assuage the people by telling them shark spotters are being placed on the beaches and experts have been requested from the mainland, a wonderful showing of another Essential Victory Factor, preparation5, and the vital principle, “What enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men is foreknowledge.”6 Unfortunately, the locals are only concerned about the beaches’ closing, and the fuss they kick up prompts Vaughn to violate recklessness again by only closing them for 24 hours. Yet, the biggest impact of the meeting comes when local character Quint exerts a caveat of leadership, enforcing discipline7, by using his nails on a chalkboard to quiet everyone. He then uses another principle, if an opening comes to seize victory, take it8, by making his own announcement: as a shark hunter he’d like to handle Jaws, but wants $10,000. Ultimately, Vaughn tables the matter and the meeting ends.
Things only get worse when fortune hunters arrive to vie for the reward, along with the promised oceanographic expert, Matt Hooper (Hooper from now on). The latter makes a huge impact when he examines Chrissy’s remains and declares her death was a shark attack, an exceptional use of foreknowledge, but then word arrives that a shark has been killed. Everyone’s thrilled…until Hooper reveals the animal’s bite radius doesn’t match Chrissy’s wounds, whereupon he recommends conducting an autopsy, a wonderful use of foreknowledge and the key principle, “be flexible; according as circumstances are favorable, one should modify one’s plans”9, or improv. Yet, Vaughn again violates recklessness by refusing to do so, and then Alex’s mom appears and slaps Brody, blaming him for Alec’s death because she’s learned of Chrissy’s fate and its cover-up. Her words refocus Brody, and that night he and Hooper follow an important caveat of leadership, some commands must not be obeyed10, by conducting said autopsy and finding nothing. Worse, they go out on Hooper’s boat to check for Jaws, only to discover their foe has claimed another victim: local fisherman Ben Gardner.
The situation gets even more terrifying when Brody and Hooper bring their findings to Vaughn, who promptly violates DOH and seizes an opening by dismissing them both. Brody makes one final appeal, saying they might be able to salvage August, a wonderful use of morality and improv, but Vaughn arrogantly declares the beaches will be open for July 4th the next day, although he expects the pair to make them safe. It’s a stunning violation of recklessness, DOH, and underestimation, but especially of another Essential Victory Factor, terrain11, for such a task is impossible with what’s available. Despite this, Hooper and Brody make a heroic effort, a grand showing of prep and improv, including bringing in a chopper and enlisting numerous boats with guns/nets. Yet, it’s all for naught as Vaughn’s poor judgment comes back to haunt him on the 4th, starting when two kids, in a shocking violation of morality, pull a prank with a cardboard fin, causing a mad scramble as people flee. The boats move in and catch the boys, but doing so deprives the coast of cover, enabling Jaws, in a bold use of terrain and seizing an opening, to swim into a coastal inlet and claim another victim (and leave Brody’s son Michael in shock) before escaping again.
The aftermath isn’t pretty. Michael is taken to the hospital for observation, and Vaughn is extremely apologetic, but it’s too little, too late: as Brody himself famously says, “Summer’s over. They think you’re the mayor of Shark Town.” However, Brody now uses seizing an opening and improv by getting Vaughn to sign a voucher so they can hire Quint, at which point Brody and Hooper go to the latter to inform him of such. Yet, trouble arises when Hooper requests to go along, only to have Quint test him by having him tie a sheepshank knot, after which he takes the former’s hands and comments, “You’ve spent your days counting money.” It’s a snarky violation of DOH, but thankfully Brody uses morality by calming everyone down, although Quint in turn uses leadership by pointing out he’s the captain despite the charter.
The next day, Quint and Hooper load the former’s ship, the Orca, with all manner of gear, including some elaborate equipment brought in by the latter, a nice display of prep. Brody then boards after a tearful farewell to his wife and the ship sets off, soon taking position offshore. There, they start chumming, or dropping bloody fish remains to try and lure Jaws out, a nice exhibition of another important Sun Tzu principle, “To entice a foe with bait, use only bait they are sure to take.”12 Unfortunately, a near-tragedy strikes when Brody tries to grab a marker, only to accidentally pull the wrong knot near Hooper’s gear, dislodging most of it, including several air tanks. It’s a clumsy violation of recklessness, but also provides an interesting bit of foreknowledge when Hooper angrily comments, “You screw around with these tanks and they’re going to blow up!” Thankfully, Quint defuses any further issues via leadership by telling Brody to just ask him which line to pull next time.
A while later, Quint, who’s seated behind a large fishing rod, gets a bite. He immediately uses prep by anchoring the rod, but then whatever’s hooked runs, causing him to wield improv and leadership by having Brody grab water to wet the reel and Hooper put the Orca in reverse. He tries to reel it in, only to have Hooper comment it’s not a shark that’s hooked, but a marlin or stingray; sadly, his words violate underestimation, for the line, which is piano wire, suddenly snaps, throwing him. In a quick show of leadership, Quint quickly scolds him and sends him to man the wheel again before going up in the Crow’s Nest. A while later, Quint orders Brody to chum again while Hooper starts the engine. However, Jaws suddenly appears, shocking Brody back into the cabin, where he famously tells Quint, “We’re gonna need a bigger boat.”
That comment prompts Quint to go out and check, whereupon he spots Jaws and orders Hooper to turn off the engine. At this point, all of Amity are proven to have violated underestimation, for Jaws is enormous: 25’ and weighing three tons. The monster begins circling the Orca, either out of curiosity or searching for an opening, but Quint quickly uses prep by racing into the cabin to assemble his harpoon gun. He then comes onto the bow and asserts a caveat of leadership, knowing how to use all forces13, by having Brody get behind the wheel and telling Hooper to attach the line from his harpoon to the first of a series of kegs. However, the latter instead races back to the cabin and uses prep and foreknowledge himself by grabbing/activating a transmitter, then racing back to attach it to the keg. Tragically, this move proves a fatal violation of recklessness and seizing an opening, for the best chance to kill Jaws is now, when Quint can shoot it in the head. Ultimately, Hooper finishes enough of his knot to yell “Shoot!”, but those violations prove costly, since the shot strikes Jaws’ back. Hurting, the monster flees, a good use of the leadership caveat “know when not to fight”14, while Hooper gets behind the wheel for another pass, but it’s too late, as the former vanishes with the keg. Here, Quint makes the first of three crucial mistakes: he opts to stay out until they find Jaws again, an epic violation of recklessness, leadership, and foreknowledge because the transmitter could let them track it from land.
As night settles, the trio relax aboard by joking, telling stories (including Quint’s infamous USS Indianapolis rendition), and singing. It soon proves one giant violation of underestimation, for Jaws, in a stunningly bold use of terrain and seizing an opening, rams the Orca, causing several leaks. Brody wants to call for help, but Quint quickly asserts leadership by having him extinguish a fire caused by a fallen light. Soon, the ship’s power fails, so all get on deck, where they spot the keg. Quint wields improv by firing a rifle, scaring off Jaws, but the damage is already done. The trio promptly set to work with repairs, and morning reveals the fearful toll: the leaks have been patched, but water still needs to be pumped out; the engine was damaged by salt water in the fuel, limiting their speed; and the rudder’s banged up, but functional.
Unfortunately, the keg pops up dead astern, so Quint and Hooper quickly use improv by snagging its attached line with a hook to try and reel it in. Yet, Jaws interrupts them by lunging, a nice use of seizing an opening that forces back the pair. This prompts Brody to use improv too by heading to the cabin to send a mayday, a wise move given the Orca’s condition and Jaws’ scale. Tragically, this proves a violation of underestimation and another leadership caveat, “We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors,”15 courtesy of Quint’s making the second of his three critical mistakes: he grabs a club and smashes the radio, a horrifying violation of recklessness and DOH that sets off Brody’s temper.
Thankfully, Hooper’s yelling that Jaws has reappeared defuses the situation, and Quint quickly uses improv by having the latter hook another keg while he heads to the bow. Once in place, he harpoons Jaws a second time, causing it to try and flee again, the Orca in hot pursuit. Here, Quint violates recklessness again by ordering full throttle, but thankfully Hooper uses foreknowledge by refusing, instead choosing to slowly run down the keg and then swing wide, allowing the former to harpoon Jaws a third time. Desperate, the latter tries to swim to the side, only to have Brody use improv again by drawing his police revolver and emptying it into Jaws, but it’s still not enough to stop it. A moment later, the two attached kegs pop up again, this time at a healthy distance, a wise use of terrain by Jaws as it mulls its next move.
Quint now makes a bold call. In a great use of improv, he brings the Orca near the kegs, has Hooper and Brody snag their lines with hooks, and tie them to the stern cleats; a brief violation of recklessness ensues when the latter doesn’t watch the lines, causing them to snare Hooper’s leg, but he’s soon freed. Jaws tries to pull away, knocking the Orca sideways, but then Quint hits the throttle, his intent being to drag/drown their foe. Sadly, he’s badly violated underestimation and foreknowledge, for their foe’s weight and struggles strain the cleats, causing Hooper to tell Quint to stop. Worse, Jaws now uses improv to free itself by attempting to eat through the attached lines and work up to the Orca, only to violate underestimation in turn when the latter hits it with a fourth harpoon, this time in its mouth. Driven below by pain (and bringing a third keg with it), Jaws starts thrashing, prompting Quint to order Hooper and Brody to untie the lines, a move that proves a hapless violation of underestimation due to the sheer pressure being exerted. Thrashing like mad, Jaws drags the Orca backward, water flooding in all the way, so Quint uses improv by grabbing a butcher’s blade to sever the lines, only to have Jaws pull the cleats off and vanish.
A brief period of quiet comes, but then the three kegs reemerge, a sight that finally knocks some sense into Quint, who swiftly uses leadership by ordering Brody to get out/start using a pump while Hooper starts the engine. Meanwhile, the kegs charge the Orca, causing Quint to declare Jaws can’t go down with three of said items attached…only to violate underestimation yet again when they do, ultimately reemerging on the boat’s other side. Unnerved, Quint wisely begins heading back toward shore, declaring he’ll draw Jaws into the shallows and drown it, a good use of improv, baiting, and terrain; the latter quickly obliges by hotly pursuing them. However, Quint makes his third critical mistake: in an insane violation of recklessness and foreknowledge, he hits full throttle, straining the engine; worse, when Hooper tries to stop him, he violates morality and DOH by shouting the latter down. Ultimately, the pressure’s too much for the engine, which soon burns out, leading to an explosion that bursts several patches and causes a fire. Quint quickly wields improv by using an extinguisher on the blaze, and the sound of the blast temporarily frightens off Jaws, but this gaffe has left the trio in dire straits: the radio’s dead, so they can’t call for help; the engine’s gone, so they can’t move; and worse, the ship is slowly sinking. Then again, it’s also enacted a very important caveat of terrain: Death Ground16, a place where there’s no surrender or retreat, hence troops must fight or die, thus forcing them to fight with all they’ve got.
With time slipping, Quint asks what Hooper’s gear is capable of, ultimately leading to a bold plan: assemble an anti-shark cage and send the latter down with a strychnine-filled spear, hoping Jaws will come close enough to get him in the mouth. It’s a wonderful use of prep, improv, and baiting, and virtually their last viable move, so they swiftly assemble and deploy the cage. Once Hooper’s under, he gets a shocking glimpse of Jaws as it appears to take the bait, only to swim off. Readying the spear, he aims it in the direction the latter went, only to violate underestimation when, in a brilliant use of terrain, improv, and the baiting caveat “do not swallow bait offered by the enemy”17, Jaws suddenly rams the cage from the opposite direction, causing him to drop the spear. Worse, Jaws, in a brutal use of seizing an opening, mercilessly assaults the cage. Hooper desperately dodges multiple hits, ultimately resorting to improv and terrain himself by forcing open the cage’s roof and swimming down to the ocean floor, where he hides in the rocks.
Back on the Orca, Quint and Brody, reacting to the thrashing of the cage, try and pull Hooper up, but the violence of Jaws’ assault is so great it pulls down the beam the cage is rigged to. Mercifully, Jaws backs off, and Quint quickly uses seizing an opening and improv by rigging the cage’s mechanism to the mast, allowing him to retrieve it…only to discover empty remnants. The trio have violated underestimation again, and the depth of that failure becomes violently clear when Jaws, in a stunning use of terrain, improv, and seizing an opening, leaps out of the water and drops onto the Orca’s stern, shoving it under. The movement catches both men off-guard, and ultimately causes Quint to slide down the hull to his death. Terrified, Brody quickly uses terrain and improv by backing into the flooded cabin, only to violate underestimation again when Jaws, in another bold use of improv, smashes through a weakened wall to finish him off. Then again, the latter’s move proves a foolish violation of recklessness and underestimation, courtesy of Brody—in a grand use of improv—grabbing one of Hooper’s tanks and throwing it into Jaws’ mouth, choking it and forcing it back.
Using improv again, Brody climbs through a window and scans the surrounding area, a good use of foreknowledge and terrain…and spots Jaws nearby. The benefits of Death Ground now come into play as he quickly uses improv, terrain, and prep by grabbing Quint’s rifle and a boathook before climbing the mast, the highest viable point. This pays off when Jaws attacks again, a foolish violation of recklessness and underestimation because it can’t reach him. Grabbing the boathook, he begins stabbing Jaws, only to lose his grip when the monster breaks off again. Now it’s down to the wire, but Brody, in a wonderful use of foreknowledge, improv, and seizing an opening, takes aim with the rifle. Hooper’s earlier claim is the basis for the move, since the latter is currently violating recklessness and underestimation by charging, chomping on the tank in its mouth. Brody’s plan is simple: detonate the tank in Jaws’ mouth. He immediately begins firing, ultimately succeeding with his sixth shot, which blows the tank and finally killing the monster. Moments later, Hooper pops up, reunites with Brody, and the pair employ improv one final time by using a pair of kegs to swim to shore.
This was a fierce bout, but throughout this nightmare Sun Tzu’s mind was ever-present. In the end, good triumphed over evil, a classic Hollywood ending…and it’s all thanks to Sun Tzu, who’s proven yet again that, if you listen to him, you’ll win; if you ignore him, you’ll lose.
Footnotes:
1: Jaws: Anniversary Collectors Edition, dir. Steven Spielberg (2000)
2: Giles, The Art of War, 3.
3: Giles, The Art of War, 28.
4: Giles, The Art of War, 33.
5: Giles, The Art of War, 3.
6: Giles, The Art of War, 50.
7: Giles, The Art of War, 4.
8: Giles, The Art of War, 46.
9: Giles, The Art of War, 4.
10: Giles, The Art of War, 27.
11: Giles, The Art of War, 3.
12: Art of War, dir. David W. Padrush (2009).
13: Giles, The Art of War, 11.
14: Giles, The Art of War, 11.
15: Giles, The Art of War, 24.
16: Giles, The Art of War, 41.
17: Giles, The Art of War, 26.
Bibliography
Padrush, David W., director. The Art of War. 2009; A&E Television Networks, 2009. 94 min. DVD.
Spielberg, Steven, director. Jaws: Anniversary Collectors Edition. 1975; Universal Studios, 2000. 124 min. DVD.
Sun Tzu. The Art of War. Translated by Lionel Giles. New York: Fall River Press, 2011.
Andrew Nickerson’s originally from Massachusetts, and has studied military history/tactics/strategy for almost 30 years. He has a BA in History (English minor) from UMASS Lowell and JD from Mass. School of Law. He can be found on Twitter (@AndrewNickers19) daily, analyzing characters via Sun Tzu.
Academy of the Heart And Mind 