Troilus and Cressida Act 5, Scene 4 Summary

Read the full text of Troilus and Cressida Act 5 Scene 4 with a side-by-side translation HERE.


  • Cut to the battlefield, where Thersites watches everything go down while offering his nasty commentary on the action.
  • Thersites tells us that Diomedes (the "whoremasterly villain") is running around the battlefield with Troilus's "sleeve" on his helmet.
  • While he's at it, he rags on Nestor, Ulysses, Ajax, and Achilles.
  • Troilus and Hector run across the stage in mid-battle.
  • Then Hector runs on stage and apparently takes a break from fighting Troilus to challenge Thersites to man-to-man combat....if Thersites thinks he's got the stones for it.
  • But, uh, nope. He doesn't, so Hector lets him live and moves on.
  • Thersites runs off to watch Troilus throw down with Diomedes.