What do you think about Troillo and Cresida written by William Shakespeare?
I have to say, my dear friend, that it is thanks to you that I bought a physical copy of it today on impulse at my afternoon walk (since I hadn't read Shakespeare in such a long time) and I read it almost in one go and oh my god I was laughing for real!
Like the humor of Shakespeare is always top tier, no surprise there, but I think he ate and left no crumbs with this and it is such a shame, even if not surprising I am afraid, that this is one of his most underrated works at least theater-wise.
Now by no means is it an actual part of Epic Cycle but it feels almost like a satire of the Iliad and of course shows Shakespeare's scoptic nature and his mocking of war and vain masculinity that is based only on fake acts of bravery or at the other side of those being all lovey-dovey without a point or on women that flank their passions etc. Obviously the whole piece is a huge criticism of the poet for society's overly puffed up stereotypes or empty values of his time. In my opinion, without a shred of doubt the true protagonists of his play are Thersites and Pandarus rather than Troilus and Cresida. These two shine as the absolute critical characters; one acting as a softer comical relief and the other as a character made to be a caricature that would make Moliere laugh all the way through his grave and be proud.
We also see the dramatic essences of it, of course through the faces of Andromache or Cassandra who are truly trying to prevent heroes from getting hurt or Troilus's sadness which is also why we do not get to have a perfect categorization of the play (I prefer to think of it as a melancholic satire or tragi-comedy)
We do see certain elements that seem to be changed solely for the sakes of dramatics for example make Ajax take Teucer's place and be shown to be Hesione's son in order to give more essence to his duel with Hector but all in all it is one of the most enjoyable and easier read plays I have read.
The characters, minus some hyperbole, are amazingly portrayed for this comedic-tragic environment. And honestly as an Odysseus fan I was DELIGHTED with how Odysseus is being portrayed in this play; he is cunning, logical, scoptic and sneaky bastard that he deserves without making him cartoonishly evil or a monster. In fact he was one of the sympathetic characters of the play but with some bastard aura about him! (I honestly lost it when he started critisizing Achilles in the first scene he appears but particularly how he said that Ajax should be the one to face Hector because if Achilles faced him it would be catastrophic; either he won and his ego inflated even further or he lost and their honor would be hurt irreparably. Honestly I loved that part!)
He is also one of the characters that plays the part of criticism to war and thoughtless youth etc and he speaks in a more serious manner as opposed to Thersites who is a boorish man that speaks vulgarities. (by the way interesting how Shakespere toned down the bad blood between Thersites and Achilles lol)
Honestly I think that the scenes that involve the trio Thersites-Achilles and Patroclus were my favorites! I honestly cannot see Patroclus be so mocking of everything because he does seem to have wisdom but I have to confess the image of him making charades of others and Achilles laughing his ass off and commanding him to do more is just to tickling! Hahahaha
Which reminds me I was rolling with laughter every time that Thersites was roasting Patroclus even at the presence of Achilles (who was having the time of his life with it), basically calling him "Achilles's bitch" or a "buffoon" and much more but also the tenderness between Achilles and Patroclus being eternal here. I also love that this poem actually respects Patroclus's anger issues hahaha as he is ready to strangle Thersites too at some point hahaha
Cresida's vulgar speech was also delightful honestly! When her uncle was trying to pass Troilus on her (gosh her comments on men like Achilles had me rolling honestly!) while Troilus is more like the silly romantic guy here, another example to avoid but also to sympathize in my opinion based on how Shakespeare portrays him!
The scene where Ajax chasing Thersites about the place just to hit him is pure slapstick comedy material that deserves more attention!
The ending was so chaotic and I know that it was supposed to be a mix of dramatic and comedic but I was laughing the whole time with heroes coming in and out of stage as if they are in some Scooby Doo or Looney Toones Cartoon the way one was coming in and out. Even the death of Hector was just lost in that chaos as if it was unimportant compared to the rest of it, unlike the Iliad that focuses on it, Shakespeare seems to just hop over it and Thersites just randomly roams about the battle being the comedic relief of it
Even Troilis's bitterness for Cresida's betrayal (whether that is true or not is never resolved, whether she truly flirted with Diomedes or not which makes the whole concept even more delicious) is lost within the chaotic plot which was supposed to be about them two hahaha Honestly I expected to see Porcky Pig coming out of the frame say "That's all folks" given how the scene closes without resolve with everyone fighting and no result in the air
All in all I feel this play would be marvelous as a looney toones cartoon seriously hahahaha It is so deliciously bizarre and at the same time amazing to criticize the passions and war and violence (which is again why I almost see it as a satire of the Iliad) given that it doesn't exactly follow Homer but steps over some of the scenes and seems to just dissolve them and re-create them. Honestly I would watch that play! I definitely would pay and go and watch and enjoy it. Too bad it is not transferred to theater as often as other Shakesperean works.
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Took my cress out to a drifting event yesterday and car show today, met a bunch of people who thought it was really cool. Finally getting hyped again to keep going on my motor swap. And decided to get my second x8 running and driving after three people offered to buy it.
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Natalie Dormer Tells VH1 What To Expect From Cresida In Mockingjay!
On playing Cressida
“I get to wear pants and flat shoes!” she laughed. “No, it’s just fun to be, you know, she’s a serious professional whose joined the rebellion cause. Cressida is meant to be an incredibly talented documentary film director who was following Katniss around. I’m just really excited about her professional skill; she’s joined the rebellion out of a place called conviction, which is very interesting to me.”
On Cressida’s shaved head with green vines tattoos
“I haven’t shaved off all my head of hair off, no.” However, before fans get in a tizzy, she did remark that her look is “definitely an interesting interpretation of the reference in the book. I would like to think that people won’t be disappointed with the choices that we made.”
