Troilus and Cressida
William Shakespeare
Description
Troilus and Cressida is one of Shakespeare’s “problem plays,” characterized by its duality of tone as it jumps from bawdy comedic to dark tragedy. The plot was sourced from two epic poems: Homer’s Iliad is the source of the play’s Greek mythological references, the Trojan War, and the war’s key figures, while Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde is the source of Troilus’s love affair with a Trojan woman.
At the beginning of Troilus and Cressida, seven years have passed since the start of the Trojan war. Achilles refuses to fight due to his hurt pride, but one day, the Trojan hero Hector challenges the Greeks to one-on-one combat.
On the other side of the city walls, the Trojan Prince Troilus is madly in love with Cressida, and his heartache makes it difficult for him to fight. Pandarus, Troilus’s close friend and Cressida’s uncle, tries to bring the couple together, but Cressida’s father has plans to use her as a bargaining chip in the siege.
This Standard Ebooks edition is based on William George Clark and William Aldis Wright’s 1887 Victoria edition, which is taken from the Globe edition.
Read free
This ebook is thought to be free of copyright restrictions in the United States. It may still be under copyright in other countries. If you’re not located in the United States, you must check your local laws to verify that this ebook is free of copyright restrictions in the country you’re located in before accessing, downloading, or using it.
Download for ereaders
-
Compatible epub — All devices and apps except Kindles and Kobos.
-
azw3 — Kindle devices and apps. Also download the Kindle cover thumbnail to see the cover in your Kindle’s library. Despite what you’ve been told, Kindle does not natively support epub. You may also be interested in our Kindle FAQ.
-
kepub — Kobo devices and apps. You may also be interested in our Kobo FAQ.
-
Advanced epub — An advanced format that uses the latest technology not yet fully supported by most ereaders.
Read online
A brief history of this ebook
More details
Sources
Page scans
Other sources
Improve this ebook
Anyone can contribute to make a Standard Ebook better for everyone!
To report typos, typography errors, or other corrections, see how to report errors.
If you’re comfortable with technology and want to contribute directly, check out this ebook’s GitHub repository and our contributors section.
You can also donate to Standard Ebooks to help fund continuing improvement of this and other ebooks.