The Clouds -Ricky Altahif

In the Clouds, Aristophanes presents Socrates in a very negative way. Although he is shown to be wise and insightful, he seems to flaunt his knowledge in a very arrogant manner. He is shown as to have a slight God complex and believes to be smarter than all those who surround him. When he speaks he may be perceived as wise, but after looking back it is seen that much of Socrates’ insight is an effect of constant oversight into a topic. He spends all his free time viewing clouds and questioning problems that are of little or no concern to society today, such as the distance a flea can jump or where the sound of a gnat comes from (which ends up being its anus).
Socrates’ position of being labeled as good or bad seemed to change over the course of the story. He began as calm, intellectual man who is willing to educate his students to the best of his abilities. He seems to think highly of himself, but is willing to help none the less. When faced with the task of educating Strepsiades, who seeks education in order to avoid creditors, Socrates begins to change his characteristics and slowly shift away from his prior calm standing. Due to Strepsiades ignorance, Socrates grows rather impatient and somewhat annoyed throughout the course of the story. He steals Strepsiades clothing as compensation for educating him, which doesn’t seem to be an action that would categorize his as a bad person. Also, Socrates allows Pheidippides to study in his school after Socrates rushes his father out. This shows that Socrates seems to be a rather neutral character, doing actions in favor of both the good and bad sides.
Socrates was a teacher, thus he was using his life usefully. Although some of his teachings and philosophical ponderings were seen as a bit pointless or inefficient, he is able to be a teacher at his thinkery, thus aiding the intellectual growth of the youth. Some may argue that overanalyzing the clouds or measuring the distance a flea can jump is nothing more than wasted time, and they are right. There are times when Socrates chooses to waste his time on things that are seen to be irrelevant. However, his life is teaching students, something that directly leads to a well educated future generation. In doing this he is able to spend his life on something productive rather than waste it on a useless objective.
I believe Aristophanes presents Socrates in the way that he does to portray the stereotype for Philosophers of his time. They were believed to be people who did nothing but waste their time and intellect on impractical matters, and this seemed to be magnified in this selection. They did contribute a great deal to society, but some were initially believed to be heretics, going against most of the beliefs of their time. By showing Socrates in this light, Aristophanes is able to allow the reader to see this from his perspective, with a sense of humor in the background.