He shoots a love arrow in Troilus s heart So inside the Temple of Palladion he sees Criseyde and falls in love She is a young widow In Troilus s eyes Criseyde is now So aungellyk was hir natyf beautee Her natural beauty was so angel-like His proud heart becomes weak in love Chaucer shows that love can suddenly change a man s life Troilus s pride turns to pain His passion begins his tragedy Pandarus's Role Pandarus is Criseyde s uncle He tries to help Troilus He becomes the messenger of love He plans secret meetings and letters He wants to unite the lovers At first Criseyde is hesitant but eventually she is moved by Troilus's genuine love She decides to give him a chance Their love blossoms and they spend a happy and secret night together But Pandarus s plan becomes the hand of fate His worldly wisdom cannot save Troilus Chaucer s tragic view is that human tricks cannot fight destiny Criseyde s Weakness and Betrayal Criseyde is gentle kind and fearful When her father Calkas flees to the Greek camp she stays in Troy under Hector s protection Later she loves Troilus truly But when she is exchanged to the Greek camp her heart changes Though she promises to return to Troilus she never returns to Troy Troilus becomes anxious He writes letters to Criseyde but her replies become less frequent and affectionate His heart is broken when he gets the brooch he gave Criseyde as a token of his love in Diomedes' coat Chaucer remarks And eek a broche and that was litel nede That Troilus was she yaf this Diomedes And also a brooch though there was little need she gave to Diomede the same brooch that once belonged to Troilus So Troilus laments at the end O lady myn Criseyde Wher is your love wher is your trouthe O my lady Criseyde where is your love now Where is your faith and truth that you promised me Her weakness becomes the cause of tragedy Love in Chaucer s view is unstable The Role of Fate Chaucer shows that no one can control fortune The Wheel of Fortune turns high and low Troilus reaches the height of love then falls into misery Fortune separates lovers It makes joy short and sorrow long The fall of Troy and the parting of lovers are both ruled by destiny The End- From Earthly Love to Heavenly Vision At the end Troilus dies in battle at the hand of Achilles His soul rises above the stars He looks down on the world and laughs at vain human desires Chaucer writes that Troilus smiles at worldly sorrow Here love turns from human pain to divine peace Chaucer s tragic philosophy ends with a lesson earthly love is changeable but heavenly love is eternal Chaucer s Troilus and Criseyde ends in deep sorrow Love begins in joy but ends in loss Troilus s pure heart Criseyde s frailty and Fortune s cruelty show that love is both a blessing and a wound Chaucer s tragic vision is clear earthly love fades but true love rises beyond death