The Strangeness of Troilus and Cressida

Shakespeare: Troilus and Cressida

In this course, Professor Cedric Watts (University of Sussex) explores Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida. We begin by thinking about the strangeness of the play: is it a history, a comedy, or a tragedy? was it performed in Shakespeare's lifetime? if so, where? After that, we move on to think specifically about its status as a 'problem play' – a slippery term in Shakespearean scholarship if ever there was one – before thinking about the staging of the play and its burgeoning appeal and success in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In the final two modules, we explore some of the key themes in the play: first, the connected themes of war and appetite, both alimentary and sexual; second, true and false valuation.

The Strangeness of Troilus and Cressida

In this module, we consider the strangeness of Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida. The quarto version refers to it as a History, but in the First Folio it is listed as a Tragedy – so which genre is it? Was it ever performed? If so, where? Why doesn't Shakespeare tell us what happens to Troilus and Cressida?