Troilus and Cressida
'Troilus and Cressida appeals to the iconoclastic and sceptical temperament of the contemporary era. Its anxieties about the problems of locating stable values and meanings, and its distrust of the claims of military and political authority, have obvious applications to the personal and public crises of today.' Discuss this statement in relation to Shakespeare's play.Troilus and Cressida was probably written around 1602, although scholars are not entirely sure of the exact date. Around the time of its creation, the play was not widely performed, and was not rediscovered until the beginnings of the 20th century. In modern times, however, it has received more critical attention and more performances than in all of its previous history. This could be, as the statement stresses, due to the fact that many parallels can be drawn between the concerns raised by Shakespeare and issues raised by modern social commentators and the media. Indeed, in his own time Shakespeare communicated concerns about the rapid change of his own era through what is described by R.A. Foakes as the 'parody of the grand Homeric legend of the Trojan War'. Critics have generally labelled Troilus and Cressida as one of the 'problem comedies', or 'dar
Troilus thinks that this should be done, because Helen 'is a theme of honour and renown'. Firstly the 'problems of locating stable values and meanings' shall be dealt with. Here, Shakespeare removes all kind of dignity from these stock characters, placing them in a futile war in a valueless world. Pandarus acts as little more than a pimp in setting the two up, and his bawdy use of language reinforces this. 193)In short, Troilus and Cressida has a much greater story to tell than a romance and comedy. Indeed, he is only roused into action when Ulysses reminds him of what the consequences could be for his reputation. Once again, this can be easily applied to 'crises' of today, with concern over the delicate balance of global markets, the loss of stable values in favour of the acquisition of hard currency. The majority of the males in the play are shown to be chivalric only in their extravagant language, while in action they are anything but. There are countless examples of actions such as these throughout the play. 185)So, Hector is portrayed as a godlike figure on the battlefield. This idea has great relevance to modern times, where the media and social commentators have long bemoaned the instability of traditional values and morality. We should also note that he deals in life rather than death.
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