The Clouds by Aristophanes, a Satire of Plato

Plato's influence on Western thought is immeasurable and undeniable. Reading The Allegory of the Cave and understanding its immense influence on Western philosophy is very interesting and worthwhile. However, I think I might not be alone in feeling that even if the Allegory and the Plato's broader theory of forms are interesting, they seem so abstract and philosophical that they are not exactly applicable to everyday life. The idea that there is some esoteric realm of ideas that exists on a higher plane is an interesting way to explain universals and ideas, but believing that this intellectual realm exists and can be reached takes on an element of spirituality. 

If anyone else can relate to the feeling that these idea's are far fetched in their abstractness, you can take solace in the fact that such criticism has been made for millennia, with the prominent contemporary example of Aristophanes, who lampooned Socrates in his comedic play The Clouds. In the play, the figure of Socrates and the academy, which is called "The Thinkery" (not exactly a term of respect) are harshly satirized. So harshly that Plato even felt that the play tarnished Socrates' reputation to the point of influencing his trial and execution. Aristophanes wrote several comedies critiquing topics like war in Lysistrata, and I think it's funny how even in contemporary Athens, some people dismissed and made fun of philosophers like Socrates and Plato for pretentiously having their heads in the clouds (though again would like to reemphasize that given the philosophical and historical influence of these thinkers, they are well worth studying regardless of how relevant the theory of Forms seems to modern life).