Troilus and Cressida: Act 5, Scene 5

tragedy

Another part of the plains.

Scene Summary

Diomedes sends the horse he has taken from Troilus to Cressida as a gift. Reports arrive of heavy losses among the Greeks; Patroclus has been killed. Achilles, hearing of his companion's death, erupts from his long inaction and arms. Ajax also arms.

Enter DIOMEDES and a Servant

DIOMEDES

Go, go, my servant, take thou Troilus' horse;

Present the fair steed to my lady Cressid:

Fellow, commend my service to her beauty;

Tell her I have chastised the amorous Trojan,

And am her knight by proof.

Servant

I go, my lord.

Exit

Enter AGAMEMNON

AGAMEMNON

Renew, renew! The fierce Polydamas

Hath beat down Menon: bastard Margarelon

Hath Doreus prisoner,

And stands colossus-wise, waving his beam,

Upon the pashed corses of the kings

Epistrophus and Cedius: Polyxenes is slain,

Amphimachus and Thoas deadly hurt,

Patroclus ta'en or slain, and Palamedes

Sore hurt and bruised: the dreadful Sagittary

Appals our numbers: haste we, Diomed,

To reinforcement, or we perish all.

Enter NESTOR

NESTOR

Go, bear Patroclus' body to Achilles;

And bid the snail-paced Ajax arm for shame.

There is a thousand Hectors in the field:

Now here he fights on Galathe his horse,

And there lacks work; anon he's there afoot,

And there they fly or die, like scaled sculls

Before the belching whale; then is he yonder,

And there the strawy Greeks, ripe for his edge,

Fall down before him, like the mower's swath:

Here, there, and every where, he leaves and takes,

Dexterity so obeying appetite

That what he will he does, and does so much

That proof is call'd impossibility.

Enter ULYSSES

ULYSSES

O, courage, courage, princes! great Achilles

Is arming, weeping, cursing, vowing vengeance:

Patroclus' wounds have roused his drowsy blood,

Together with his mangled Myrmidons,

That noseless, handless, hack'd and chipp'd, come to him,

Crying on Hector. Ajax hath lost a friend

And foams at mouth, and he is arm'd and at it,

Roaring for Troilus, who hath done to-day

Mad and fantastic execution,

Engaging and redeeming of himself

With such a careless force and forceless care

As if that luck, in very spite of cunning,

Bade him win all.

Enter AJAX

AJAX

Troilus! thou coward Troilus!

Exit

DIOMEDES

Ay, there, there.

NESTOR

So, so, we draw together.

Enter ACHILLES

ACHILLES

Where is this Hector?

Come, come, thou boy-queller, show thy face;

Know what it is to meet Achilles angry:

Hector? where's Hector? I will none but Hector.

Exeunt