Troilus and Cressida, Act 4, Scene 5. by Shakespeare

Question

"The end crowns all,And that old common arbitrator, Time,Will one day end it."I wonder what type of deep poetic meaning this quote has because I don't read Troilus and Cressida yet but I would still like to know about this quote.

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

anonymousI wonder what type of deep poetic meaning this quote has because I ~~don't~~ haven't read Troilus and Cressida yet, but I would still like to know about this quote.

You should learn how to use Google. Here are a few explanations you can find online:

The end crowns the work.

It is only when a work has been successfully concluded that its value can be determined.

— https://books.google.com/books?id=GtBxCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA91&lpg=PA91&dq=meaning+of+%22The+end+crowns+all,+And+that+old+common+arbitrator,+Time,+Will+one+day+end+it.%22&source=bl&ots=2BjW39HgaC&sig=ACfU3U1S7ScxA8f_fr7AybXjs3it6QJ-Ig&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiJnfK7j8n2AhUtZN8KHYesAN0Q6AF6BAgVEAM#v=onepage&q=meaning%20of%20%22The%20end%20crowns%20all%2C%20And%20that%20old%20common%20arbitrator%2C%20Time%2C%20Will%20one%20day%20end%20it.%22&f=false

In Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida, the Trojan hero Hector gives an existential twist to the Latin phrase finis coronat opus: the end crowns the work. The original is a more forgiving statement; when a task is completed, the finished product justifies the effort. Hector, preparing for a fatal battle with Achilles, adds that cruelest of elements: time. Only so much of his fate rests in his own hands, for there are forces present no person can control.

— https://mgoblog.com/category/tags/shakespeare

[...] the end crowns all, And that old common arbitrator, Time, Will one day end it. (4.5.224-226)

Here, Hector drops in a famous Latin proverb: finis coronat opus, which means "the end crowns the work," but with a little twist. He says that the "end" is brought about by Time (not the gods, fate, or some other outside force)—as if they're moving toward an inevitable fate that cannot be avoided.

— https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/troilus-cressida/quotes/time

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

anonymousI wonder what type of deep poetic meaning this quote has because I don't read Troilus and Cressida yet but I would still like to know about this quote.

Shakespeare put a twist on a Latin saying, "The end crowns the work." When a work of art is finished, the result justifies the effort. In this case, The end of Troy will show mankind its worth, sort of like "you don't miss the water till the well runs dry", and it is not the Greeks that will bring about Troy's end. Time will.

Make of that what you will. You can chew Shakespeare like a stick of gum until you have gotten all the flavor out of it.

Troilus and Cressida, Act 4, Scene 5. by Shakespeare

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions