Aristophanes is always a hoot, and different translators stretch his references by varying degrees to substitute culturally relevant references -- this one used "Salvation Army" in lieu of some Athenian religious/charitable activity, and it worked! As usual, Cleon gets insulted 19 ways, and there are the usual rustic/urban shticks, and Socrates gets slammed (unfairly, but very funny) and -- what can I say, ya hadda be there in 5th Century Athens (at least in your head during collegiate delusions) to get the full ride from this. Luckily, I had a prof who helped me get there.

This translation has to be the best among the dozens I've encountered over the past few weeks of systematic exploration into Aristophanes' great works. Meineck's translation was exceptionally down-to-earth and comedic, though sometimes seemed a bit incongruous with the plays' historical background. The skilful manipulation of contemporary references and modern slangs results in a translation that is highly relatable to modern readers while also preserving an original taste of classical humours. I highly recommend this book to readers new to Aristophanes.

The three plays in the book are inarguably the best representations of the theatrical achievements of Aristophanes. Clouds has been his most well-known work for millennia, until probably the end of last century when Lysistrata became equally famous. From personal reading experience I'd say there's no doubt that Clouds stands out in many ways as the single best play by comical standards. Satirically speaking the play was also among the most debated plays in history, mainly over whom the playwright was satirizing and what the motivations were. The sheer amount of derivative works on Clouds is enough to prove the lasting values of the work, if not further embellishing it. Wasps on the other hand, was less dramatic and comedic in comparison to Clouds; this was partially due to the topic which it concerned, as the play was among the most politically satirical works of Aristophanes. Yet on the other side, this fusion between politics and drama presented Wasps as a good specimen for studying contemporary Athenian politics and, in particular, its judiciary system. Accompanied by informative annotations from MacDowell, Wasps became the most information-intensive play of all three. The last play, Birds, was often compared to Frogs, in a sense that they both involved large amounts of interactions between the mortals and the divines, and in both cases, absurdity arisen as a result of this interaction. Speaking about absurdity, it is worth mentioning that several of Aristophanes' plays had recurrent theme of absurdity, usually in the form of straightforward contradiction with the reality. While I certainly don't possess the wit to analyze this theme detailedly, I believe it is an element important to the playwright's comedies. In addition,
Birds's best known for the phrase "cloud cuckoo land" which was in some ways interchangeable with "utopia".

Aside from all the literariness, what Aristophanes' plays impressed me the most was its unaffected embrace of humanism, even the gods and goddesses were portrayed with excessive human sensitivities. Considering that most of Aristophanes' works came out during the tumultuous years of the Peloponnesian War, it is truly amazing to picture such an image:

With hordes of Spartan heavy infantries stationed outside of the defensive walls of Athens, the smell of war diffused into every corner of the city and the fear of uncertainty spread through the air, yet the Athenians could not be troubled by the immense pressure from Spartans, nor would they be bothered by insidious political struggles and sporadic breakout of plagues, for they spent the most prime of their time enjoying poems, songs, plays, and dramas. People gathered at Dionysia and Lenaia to celebrate the latest dramatic achievements from all of Hellas while indulging themselves with revels and carnivals. What kind of preposterous image must that be! I couldn't help but wonder whether the Athenians were choked with despise of war or were simply dreaded with years of violence and defeat. Either way, it must be an absurd world in which Aristophanes composed his works and present to his audiences -- or is it? I always thought I knew much about ancient Athenian life until I started reading primary sources from contemporary Athenians, and the more I read, the more strange and foreign ancient Athens becomes. I hope reading what the ancients read and imagining what they imagined is a good way for me to kickstart my voyage of diving deeper into understanding the psychological life of ancient Greeks.

Last but not least, for those of you who want nothing but an hour-long LOL spree, this book is also strongly recommended thanks to Meineck's brilliantly hilarious translation.

Holy shit this book is actually so good it’s so funny I love it so much Aristophanes is by far my favorite classic author this man can WRITE this book has so many good jokes I highly recommend anyone read it