Through his thirteen chapters of the Art of War, Sun Tzu provides the blueprint for successful conquest for any leader in metaphorically any field. While Sun Tzu's Art of War may only refer to the setting of a real battlefield, there are several “battlefields” in life that people must overcome as leaders. A parallel example to this treatise could be the story “Benito Cereno” written by Herman Melville. From Captain Delano's perspective, Babo seemed like a helpful and obedient slave. Although Babo's intelligence and ruthlessness were clearly noticed by the audience, the tale does not show the audience his other qualities: manipulative and evil but at the same time strategic. He was critically aware and socially responsible, especially towards the slaves of San Dominick. Babo uses the Art of War effectively by carefully varying tactics, outlining his plans and breaking larger tasks into smaller ones, and attacking with fire. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Babo's leadership was needed to spark the slave revolt. Having been a slave in the Spanish colonies for several years, he had carefully planned his slave revolt. His effectiveness as a leader and his social competence are tested when Captain Delano boards the slave ship. Delano saw how dilapidated the San Dominick was and wanted to check the ship. Babo subverts racial politics by forming racial stereotypes that see blacks as obedient but unintelligent beings. He pretends to be Cereno's servant and manages to provide a false explanation for the San Domenico's battered appearance. Babo's goal was to appear as a humble and congenial assistant, more companion than servant. Babo's performance as Cereno's servant is so convincing that Delano admires him on several occasions for his loyalty to his master. This highlights Babo's strategic thinking, as Babo knows that he must instill terror in the sailors to prevent them from rebelling against him, tricking Delano into telling him that he was an obedient servant. For example, during the shaving scene, Babo accidentally cuts Cereno's cheeks with a razor. (Melville 39) This scene represents the tension that exists between the two characters, as Babo could have easily used the razor to cut anywhere on Cereno's face. In this case, Babo looked weak when he was actually strong, as Babo cut himself across the face as if Cereno had done it. However, to Captain Delano, Babo seemed weak as he was simply a servant helping his master shave his face. This directly parallels Chapter 8: Varying Tactics. Tzu states: “The art of war teaches us to rely not on the probability that the enemy will not arrive, but on our willingness to welcome him; not on the possibility of him attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable.” In this, Tzu explains that one must be able to adapt to any conditions one may encounter. While one must react to unique situations with creativity, the response must not be ignorant. Babo did not know that Saint Dominick would meet Captain Delano, but in the end he almost fooled him by having a quick mind on how to interpret the fake scenario. Having a successful slave revolt requires strategic planning. At the end of the story, Delano prepares to lower a small boat into the water to return to his ship. However, Cereno also suddenly jumped into the boat, followed by Babo, who tried tostab him. As the small boat moved away from the San Dominick, a canvas fell from the figurehead. There hung a skeleton with the words “Seguid vuestro jefe,” which means “Follow your leader.” It was then that readers learned that Cereno was not the leader. Babo was. It turns out that the ship has suffered a slave revolt, led by Babo and Atufal. Benito was supposed to head towards Senegal, but Captain Delano accidentally met them along the way. Babo forced Benito to pretend that everything was normal, as if Babo was his slave. Babo not only fooled Delano, but also the readers. This strategic planning parallels Sun Tzu's Art of War: Laying Plans. Strategic planning is essential in any aspect. Without a solid foundation the structure will collapse. Without a concise structure of a plan, it is easy for a leader to lose grip in a situation. One could say that the same situation above could fit Sun Tzu's rule of “Divide large tasks into smaller tasks. At first, as soon as Delano got on the ship, Babo could have killed him. However, he didn't. He ordered his men on the ship to all do their part so that Delano would not become suspicious. According to Sun Tzu, if you group together a few hundred or even thousands of men and treat them as if they were one. Suddenly, instead of having to direct a hundred thousand men individually, you can control them by directing groups. Essentially, you break a large task into many smaller tasks to make them more manageable. Killing Delano himself might be overwhelming at first, but Babo persevered by planning strategically and not impulsively. After Babo places Alexandro Aranda's skeleton on the ship, he warns the Spaniards on the ship not to rebel and cause trouble, threatening to otherwise "follow their leader", meaning they will all share Aranda's cruel ending. Cereno and the other sailors were threatened with death if they revealed anything. However, in the end, when Delano returns to his ship, Benito Cereno desperately jumps onto Delano's ship. His rush to freedom was soon followed by Babo's dagger, with which he attempted to kill Cereno for “betraying” him. This represents Sun Tzu's chapter: Attacking with Fire. Sun Tzu states: "Fire attacks are the framework for discussing both the use and survival of destructive moves of an opponent." Although Tzu suggests that this method should not be used, Babo felt the need to get rid of Cereno. Sun Tzu's Art of War is not only suitable for literal battlefield settings, but also for settings that they do not imply any violence. For example, today the market is also known as the “corporate battlefield”. Successful companies apply Art of War tactics to defeat their competitors. He guides his readers that instead of competing on aspects in which a competitor is superior, they first conduct research and find out what a company can do better than that competitor and focus on that particular strength. For example, this often happens in the Fundamentals of Management and Entrepreneurship (FME) class. A video was shown regarding the invention, iSlide, which are customizable sliding sandals. The company had to compete with major brands such as Adidas and Nike. However, the company did not care about reputation and branding. They instead focused on the customizable aspect of the sandals, which are not present in the top brand companies. iSlide was ultimately successful because their target market was attracted to the fact that they could customize their slipper sandals. iSlide has focused on the strength of its versatility and creativity and this is what it is,.