Socrates In Aristophanes The Cloud Of The Cloud

Not much is known about Socrates other than he was Greek philosopher who is considered, by many, to be the father of Western philosophy. Many of Socrates writings, if he ever did write anything, were never discovered. As a result, everything we do know about Socrates is solely based on the information derived from the works of his student, Plato, and his contemporary, Aristophanes. When Aristophanes and Plato’s works are compared, it is evident that they show many inconsistencies and do not accurately portray Socrates. This is because each author has a different agenda behind their works. Aristophanes, in his work, attempts to portray Socrates as a sophist with no moral center who is capable of corrupting the youth; while Plato, in his work, attempts to correct Socrates images and describes him as a …show more content…
In Aristophanes’ play, the Cloud, an old man named Strepsiades son, Pheidippides, has a lot of debt that he cannot repay. Annoyed, Strepsiades urges his son, Pheidippides, to enroll into Socrates Thinkery so that he could be taught how to logically argue his way out of his debts. However, Pheidippides refuses Strepsiades by stating “Pheidippides: Yuk! That scum! I know who you mean. The charlatans, the pasty- faces, the one who don’t wear shoes, like the miserable Socrates…” (Aristophanes 23). Aristophanes introduces the audience to a Socrates that is sloppy and a charlatan. The proposed appearance of Socrates suggests that Socrates personality is also sloppy and that he is nothing more than a charlatan, a troublemaker. In scene III of the Cloud (Aristophanes 30), Socrates is hanging the air near the clouds and Strepsiades explains his situation. “… I’ll pay it, I swear by all the gods, in cash Socrates: what do you mean, ‘the gods’? In the first place gods aren’t legal tender here”