louds. Aristophanes caricature of the venerable thinker remained a lasting perception of Socrates for years to come. It was even asserted by Plato that Clouds played an integral role in the execution of Socrates some years later, as the charges against him read like a summary of the play.Aristophanes penchant for ridicule embroiled him in a four-year battle with the most influential political leader in Athens, Cleon. After being satirized in the play Babylonians at the Dionysian festival in 426, Cleon leveled charges of slander against the playwright for his depiction of magistrates, councillors, and Athenians. Aristophanes responded with another unabashed attack of Cleon and his political career with his play Knights. Aristophanes was also known for his blatant use of profanity and humor about bodily functions and sex. Athenians at the time were not offended by his coarse dialogue and themes, but staging of many of his plays were not possible until the twentieth century. Athenians thick skin may have come from the ancient Greek ritual of cursing and hurling invectives as a means of thwarting evil spirits. Thematically, Aristophanes dealt with the foibles of the common man. His comedic protagonists were usually common men, with common vices, who had extraordinary ideas that made the impossible possible. The plots were fantastic in origin. He depicted the conflicts between generations, sexes, and classes. He derided the oppressors, and revealed hypocrisy for what it was.Aristophanes practiced Old Comedy, which were satires of politics and society. Over the tense political situation of constant warring with the Spartans and the Peloponnesian War, the terse criticism of Old Comedy did not survive and it gave way to comedies of manners. Structurally, the comedies of Aristophanes were noteworthy in that the chorus was reduced to twenty-four members, and spoke directly to the audience in the parabasis. The main conflict of the play was debate...
