Troilus and Cressida

The theme of Disillusionment With Romantic and Heroic Ideals is particularly enhanced in the last two acts of the play, with most major characters shown in an unflattering light. In the first scene of Act IV, Diomedes speaks unkind words about Helen in the presence of Paris. He describes Helen as the “lees and dregs of a flat tamed piece” (Act IV, Scene 1, Line 63), or someone else’s leftovers, and her body as “contaminated carrion” (Act IV, Scene 1, Line 72). 

The sexist descriptions overturn the image of Helen as an ethereal beauty. Her much-desired body is deliberately called rotten flesh, her blood “bawdy” (Act IV, Scene 1, Line 70), and her love for Paris equated to the basest lust. Thus, seen through Diomedes’s eyes, Helen is stripped of her status as a romantic heroine. Helen is reserved for particular condemnation because she is a woman, but Diomedes also terms Paris a lecher, undercutting the idea of Paris as a hero. Ironically, Diomedes foreshadows his own lechery through the speech, since by the next act, he will be lusting after Cressida. All heroes, warriors, and heroines in the play are thus shown to have feet of clay.

Paris’s quick decision to exchange Cressida is a stark example of his double standards. In Act II, he had firmly opposed giving back Helen because she was worth fighting the world over. However, in Act IV, he turns from impassioned lover to pragmatic strategist, saying Cressida’s exchange is unavoidable, as that is the need of the hour. This hypocrisy shows he values the mythos of the Helen-Paris love story far more than the Troilus-Cressida romance. In contrast, Troilus had stood up for Paris in Act II. 

Amplifying the theme of The Pervasive Futility and Corruption of War, the bedchamber where Troilus and Cressida made love becomes a public thoroughfare. The sanctuary is first disturbed by Pandarus, who again introduces a note of lewdness into the proceedings, drawing attention to the carnal aspects of Troilus and Cressida’s relationship. He meets the couple in the morning and pretends not to recognize Cressida, as she has “lost” her virginity. Illustrating the motif of trade, bargains, and exchange value (See: Symbols & Motifs), he asks “how go maidenheads” (4.2.30) or the price at which virginity was bought.

The inconsistent treatment of Cressida’s character in Act IV is one of the reasons why Troilus and Cressida is described as a “problem play” (See: Background), with her arc drawing upon The Divided Self and Its Performance. In Act IV, Scenes 2 and 4, Cressida is depicted as an idealistic, lovelorn young woman, her heart breaking at the prospect of leaving Troilus. When Pandarus accompanies Cressida for her send-off, he urges her to be moderate in expressing her emotions before the Greeks. An angry Cressida retorts that she will not moderate her emotions, as the violence of her grief suits its cause. Further, when she parts from Troilus, she promises to be true to him and is alarmed every time he harps on the need for her to be virtuous. Her words and actions suggest a deep love for Troilus and a stable nature. 

However, in the next scene, when she enters the Greek camp, Cressida is passed around to be kissed by the Greek warriors. She is shown as coquettish in this sequence, which is at odds with her previous portrayal. The discordant portrayal of Cressida creates a problem, and the source of the problem is that Shakespeare has to retrofit his Cressida into the mold of the adulterous Cressida of Chaucer’s story. Thus, she has to appear a romantic heroine at times, and at others, a wanton woman.

The portrayal of Cressida is problematic at many levels, with Troilus and the text foreshadowing her infidelity on multiple instances. Troilus tells Cressida he worries she will stray because the Greek youths are educated and well-spoken, implying Cressida has a wanton nature that is impressed by superficial qualities. However, when Cressida wonders if Troilus will be true to her, he appears flabbergasted at the question. His fidelity is a given, he tells her, because he is inherently honest and moralistic. His reaction shows the societal double standard towards men and women: Even Troilus cannot escape the ingrained bias that women are untrustworthy. 

Double-meaning dialogue abounds in the last two scenes of the act, with Cressida’s infidelity heavily foreshadowed. When Troilus asks Diomedes to treat Cressida well, he replies she will be his “mistress,” playing on the two meanings of the word: master and lover. Diomedes also declares that he will act on his “lust” regarding Cressida: Lust has a double meaning as well, implying both free will and desire. Further, Ulysses’s lines about Cressida in Scene 5 underline his bleak attitude towards women. It is Ulysses himself who suggests that everyone kiss Cressida, but watching her kiss the Greek commanders, he judges her for her wanton body language. He does not stop to consider the fact that Cressida—a woman in an enemy camp—has little option but to comply with the unreasonable demand of bestowing kisses on everyone. 

Ulysses’s words reflect the problematic ideas about women, infidelity, and chastity in Shakespeare’s times. Infidelity is an important motif in the play (See: Symbols & Motifs), which is tied into the larger theme of shifting loyalties and disorder. Just like Cressida betrays Troilus, Achilles betrays heroism, symbolizing the nihilistic, meaningless nature of existence.