The Birds
Aristophanes414 BCE
Aristophanes imagined two Athenians building a city in the sky to escape the corruption of both human politics and the gods.
comedyAncient Greekmoderateshort · ~1.5h
Influence
4.5/10
Popularity
3.0/10
“By the gods, I've never seen a more magnificent plan! Let's build our city in the clouds!”
Why It Matters
Aristophanes imagined two Athenians building a city in the sky to escape the corruption of both human politics and the gods. It is the earliest utopian fantasy in Western literature and one of the funniest explorations of what happens when idealists try to build a perfect society. The play's absurdist inventiveness still holds up.
The 
Take
Personal reviewFound this one overrated. Kinda a fun fantastical idea, but wasn’t that funny. I liked the vulture joke and everyone dressed as birds. But didn’t find it that good