7 h 39 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 188 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 188 pagesAbout this book
What if love finds you in a city under siege, where even your private happiness depends on war?
In Geoffrey Chaucer’s narrative poem, Troilus and Criseyde, a young Trojan prince mocks love until he falls under its spell. Criseyde is a wary widow whose father has joined the Greeks. As the siege of Troy continues, her uncle Pandarus uses wit, schemes and persuasion to draw them together.
Troilus longs to be faithful and honourable. Criseyde weighs desire against her need for safety. Between secret meetings and long conversations, Chaucer explores the hopes and doubts that make love feel both precious and dangerous. Beyond their private world, the war threatens to place their happiness in other people’s hands.
What you’ll discover
- A proud heart unsettled Watch a brave prince discover feelings he once thought himself too proud to share.
- Criseyde’s difficult choices Enter the thoughts of a clever widow balancing the promise of love against personal danger.
- A meddler at work Follow Pandarus through jokes, persuasion and a staged illness designed to bring the lovers together.
- Love shaped by verse Discover Chaucer’s seven-line rhyme royal stanzas, carrying a patient story of longing, talk and doubt.
- Fate meets free choice Consider how much freedom lovers have when war and political decisions press upon their lives.
Is it for you?
This poem suits readers who like psychological stories, medieval literature, and tales of love that do not run smooth. It also rewards anyone curious about Chaucer beyond the Canterbury Tales. Those who want a fast plot may find its patient pace and long speeches slow.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A proud prince scorns the god of love
- Pandarus draws out the lovesick secret
- Criseyde weighs safety against desire
- A staged dinner and a feigned illness
- One stormy night brings the lovers together
- Happiness proves to rest on Fortune's wheel
- The Greeks demand an exchange of prisoners
- What the poem says about love, fate and trust
- How Chaucer shapes the telling
Who’s who
- TroilusA young Trojan prince and brave warrior who mocks love, then is struck by it and longs to be a faithful, honourable lover.
- CriseydeA widow in Troy whose father has gone to the Greeks, she is wary and clever, and wants safety as much as love.
- PandarusCriseyde's witty uncle and Troilus's friend, who schemes to bring the two together and enjoys his own cleverness.
- CalchasCriseyde's father, a Trojan seer who foresees the fall of Troy and leaves to join the Greek side.
- HectorTroilus's elder brother and the chief Trojan champion, who has pity for Criseyde and offers her his protection.
- AntenorA Trojan captain captured by the Greeks, whose return the Trojans want enough to bargain for him.
- DeiphebusAnother brother of Troilus, whose house hosts the dinner where Pandarus arranges the first private meeting.
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- Audiobook
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- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in, 188 pages: 8,95 USD when you start free, 15,95 USD on its own.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in, 188 pages: 15,95 USD when you start free, 22,95 USD on its own.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Troilus and Criseyde
by Geoffrey Chaucer· 1385
Two lovers face separation during the siege of Troy.
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Language: Italiano
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 9
A proud prince scorns the god of love
The poem opens by saying it will tell of the double sorrow of Troilus, son of King Priam. He will fall from joy into misery, and the narrator warns us of this from the start. He asks the lovers in his audience to pray for those in love, and to pity those who suffer from it. He calls himself a servant of the servants of love, a humble helper and not a man who has lived the thing himself.
The scene is Troy under siege. Calchas, a Trojan priest who can read the future, has seen that the city will fall. He slips away to the Greek camp and leaves his daughter Criseyde behind. The Trojans are furious and think her tainted by her father's treason. Criseyde is a widow, alone and afraid, and she begs for the protection of Hector, the greatest Trojan fighter. Hector gives it kindly, and she can stay.
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The author
Geoffrey Chaucer
1343–1400 · Medieval English poet
Geoffrey Chaucer was an English poet born in London around 1343. He lived in England and travelled abroad on royal business. He worked as a diplomat and government official. He wrote Troilus and Criseyde in the 1380s and The Canterbury Tales in the late fourteenth century. He died in London in 1400.
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What is Troilus and Criseyde about?
It is a long poem about a Trojan prince who falls in love with a widow named Criseyde during the siege of Troy. Her uncle Pandarus helps them, and the war then threatens their happiness.
Is Troilus and Criseyde based on a true story?
No. It is a medieval retelling of a tale from the legends of Troy. Chaucer wrote it in the 1380s, mainly after Boccaccio's Italian poem Il Filostrato, and added much of his own.
Who is Pandarus in Troilus and Criseyde?
Pandarus is Criseyde's uncle and a close friend of Troilus. He is witty and practical, and he arranges the meetings between the lovers. His name later gave English the word pander.
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