'As true as Troilus' shall crown up the verse, And sanctify the numbers.
The phrase 'As true as Troilus' will seal the verse, And make the words sacred.
Troilus · Act 3, Scene 2
Troilus prophesies that his name will become synonymous with absolute fidelity—even as the audience knows he is speaking a future that will betray him. The line is darkly powerful because Troilus is speaking his own fate while believing he controls it. It shows the play's central uncanniness: characters who are already legendary, already written into proverbs, acting as though they are free to choose differently.
I am giddy; expectation whirls me round.
I'm dizzy; my mind is spinning.
Troilus · Act 3, Scene 2
Moments before Troilus and Cressida sleep together, Troilus is overcome with desire and anticipation so intense it physically disorients him. The line is unforgettable because it captures the dizzying power of desire—and because it comes just before the happiest moment of his life, which will collapse within hours. It shows the moment when Troilus is still whole, still capable of joy, still innocent of what Cressida will become.
If I be false, or swerve a hair from truth, When time is old and hath forgot itself, When waterdrops have worn the stones of Troy, And blind oblivion swallow'd cities up, And mighty states characterless are grated To dusty nothing, yet let memory, From false to false, among false maids in love, Upbraid my falsehood! when they've said 'as false As air, as water, wind, or sandy earth, As fox to lamb, as wolf to heifer's calf, Pard to the hind, or stepdame to her son,' 'Yea,' let them say, to stick the heart of falsehood, 'As false as Cressid.'
If I am unfaithful, or stray even a little from the truth, When I'm old and forget myself, When water has worn away the stones of Troy, And total forgetfulness has swallowed up cities, And great empires have crumbled to nothing, Let my memory still be cursed, If I'm false, among all the false women in love, Let them call me a liar! When they say, "She's as false As the air, as the water, the wind, or the sand, As a fox to a lamb, as a wolf to a calf, A leopard to a deer, or a stepmother to her son," "Yes," let them say, to truly mark my dishonesty, "She's as false as Cressid."
Cressida · Act 3, Scene 2
Cressida swears eternal fidelity with language so elaborate and cosmic that it seems impossible she could ever break it. The passage is unforgettable because it is her own curse spoken in advance—she is literally asking to be immortalized as the symbol of falsehood if she betrays Troilus. The irony is that she does exactly what she swears against, and her name becomes precisely what she dreaded, making her a prisoner of her own prophecy.
