Chapter 35. Troilus and Briseida in the Western literature

Abstract

This chapter analyzes the figure of Troilus and the motif of the love triangle, consisting of him, Briseis, and Diomedes from the De excidio Troiae of Dares Phrygius to contemporary literature. We focus specifically on the medieval works that influenced the representation of these three characters and their relationship. We examine their roles in Dares’ work, in the Roman de Troie of Benoît de Sainte-Maure, in Guido delle Colonne’s Historia destructionis Troiae, in two epics of the XII and XIII centuries (De bello Troiano of Joseph of Exeter and Troilus of Albert of Stade) and in three more familiar pieces, namely Boccaccio’s Il Filostrato, Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde, and Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida, to end with a quick review of the theme from that moment until the present. The representation of the characters and their triangle was formed in the Roman de Troie following Dares, and each author who developed the story used the tradition but added his own special touches.