Troilus and Cressida
Shakespeare took the Trojan War and stripped away all its heroism, leaving a bitter, satirical play about how war makes fools of everyone.
“Time hath, my lord, a wallet at his back, wherein he puts alms for oblivion.”
Why It Matters
Shakespeare took the Trojan War and stripped away all its heroism, leaving a bitter, satirical play about how war makes fools of everyone. It defies genre — too cynical for comedy, too absurd for tragedy — and its disillusioned view of heroism and love feels more modern than anything else he wrote. The play was ignored for centuries but has become one of his most performed in the 21st century.
The 
Take
Personal reviewQuality Shakespeare weaving in a tragic dark love story within the story of the Iliad, pretty fun, not amazing
Notable Quotes
“Lechery, lechery! Still wars and lechery! Nothing else holds fashion.”
“The end crowns all, and that old common arbitrator, Time, will one day end it.”