OF PLATO

Despite his great character, he did not escape the insults of the comic poets. For instance, Theopompus in his play Autochares says:

For one is not even one,
But two are scarcely one, as Plato tells it. A mockery of Plato’s complex metaphysical theories regarding the "One" and the "Many," likely referencing the Parmenidean or Pythagorean influences on his work.
And Anaxandrides in Theseus:
When he was devouring olives, just like our Plato. This refers to Plato's famously simple diet; he was known for eating olives and avoiding the rich, decadent banquets common in the city.
Timon also mocks him in this way:
How the shrewd Plato fashioned these fabricated marvels. Timon of Phlius was a skeptical poet famous for his "Silloi" (Satires), where he attacked almost every philosopher for their perceived arrogance or nonsense.
And Alexis in Meropis:
You have come just in time; for I,
Pensive, wander up and down just like Plato,
Poor me, my legs are weary from such useless labor. A joke about the "Peripatetic" nature of teaching in the Academy, where philosophers often walked while discussing abstract ideas.
And again in Ancylion:
You tell us things unknown to us, running about
Exactly like Plato, and you will learn about onions and soda. original: "cepe & litron." Natron (soda) and onions were mundane, cheap items, contrasted here with Plato’s "unknown" high-minded theories.
Amphis in Amphicrates:
But as for that "Good" which you think you can
Attain because of her, I certainly know it
Even less, master, than I know Plato’s "The Good." Plato's "Form of the Good" was notoriously abstract and difficult to define, making it a favorite target for Athenian comedians.
And in Dexidemides he says:
You can do nothing else but mourn, my Plato,
With your brow always wrinkled like a snail. Plato was often described as having a permanent scowl or furrowed brow due to his intense focus or serious demeanor.
Cratinus in The Supposititious Child:
You are surely a man, and you have a mind and senses:
According to Plato, I hardly know, but I think so.
Alexis in Olympiodorus:
Man, that which was mortal in me has passed away;
That which was not mortal has vanished into the air.
Is this not from the school of Plato? A reference to Plato's doctrine on the immortality of the soul and the separation of the soul from the body.
And in The Parasite:
Or to speak in solitude with Plato.
Anaxilas also mocks the man in Botrylion, and in Cercus, and in The Rich Women. Aristippus, in the fourth book of On Ancient Luxury, says that Plato was captured by love for a certain youth named Aster original: "Stella," the Latin word for Star., who studied astronomy with him, and also for Dion, whom we mentioned before. Some believe he also loved Phaedrus. Evidence of this love is found in the epigrams he wrote for them:
O, I wish I were the sky when you look at the stars,
My Star, so that I might gaze at you with many eyes.
Long ago you shone as the morning star among the living, but now
Having passed away, you shine as the evening star among the blessed. original: "lucifer" (Morning Star) and "Hesperus" (Evening Star). These are among the most famous poems attributed to Plato.
And for Dion, in this manner:
Tears for Hecuba and the Trojan girls
The Fates spun from the moment of their birth;
But for you, Dion, after you achieved triumphs in noble war,
The gods have poured out wide hopes, O famous Dion.
With what love do you now destroy my mind, Dion?
They say this was inscribed on his tomb in Syracuse. Furthermore, it is said he loved Alexis and Phaedrus, as we mentioned, for whom he wrote in this way:
Now since there is nothing, wherever one turns,
Except that Alexis is seen to be beautiful,
Why, my soul, do you show a bone to the dogs? Later you will grieve;
Is this not how we lost Phaedrus?
He is also said to have associated with Archeanassa of Colophon, to whom he wrote:
Archeanassa is my courtesan from Colophon, on whose...

Through these lines, he was nevertheless mocked by the comic poets themselves. Theopompus, for instance, in Autochares says as follows:

But two are scarcely one, as Plato says.
And Anaxandrides in Theseus:
When he was eating the mulberries just like Plato.
And Timon also, sketching him in this way:
As Plato fashioned it, knowing well the fabricated wonders.
Alexis in Meropis:
You have arrived in good time. For I, being at a loss,
Walk up and down, just like Plato,
And have found nothing wise, but only tired my legs.
And in Ancylion:
You speak of things you do not know, having grouped them
Like Plato, and you will recognize soda and onion.
Amphis in Amphicrates:
But what the "Good" is, which you are about to
Attain through her, I know this less,
Master, than I know the "Good" of Plato. Pay attention now.
And in Dexidemides:
--- O Plato,
How you know nothing except how to look gloomy,
Solemnly raising your eyebrows like a snail.
Cratinus in The Supposititious Child:
You are clearly a man, and you have a soul;
According to Plato I do not know, but I suspect you have.
Alexis in Olympiodorus:
The mortal part of my body has withered away.
The immortal part has been lifted to the upper air.
Is this not the school of Plato?
And in The Parasite:
Or to chatter with Plato in private.
Anaxilas also mocks him in Botrylion and Cercus and The Rich Women. Aristippus, in the fourth book of On Ancient Luxury, says that he fell in love with a youth named Aster who was practicing astronomy with him, and also with the aforementioned Dion. Some say he also loved Phaedrus. These epigrams, which he wrote for them, reveal his love:
You gaze at the stars, my Star; I wish I were
The heaven, that I might look at you with many eyes.
And another:
As the Morning Star you once shone among the living,
But now, having died, you shine as the Evening Star among the dead.
And for Dion as follows:
Tears for Hecuba and the Trojan women
The Fates once spun at their birth;
But for you, Dion, who performed deeds of noble victory,
The spirits have poured out wide-ranging hopes.
You lie in your wide-spaced homeland, honored by the citizens,
O Dion, who drove my heart mad with love.
He says this was inscribed in Syracuse upon the tomb. Moreover, they say he loved Alexis and Phaedrus, as previously stated, and he wrote in this manner:
Now, when Alexis has only said he is beautiful,
Everyone turns to look at him everywhere;
O soul, why do you show a bone to dogs? Will you not suffer
Later? Was it not thus we lost Phaedrus?
And he possessed Archeanassa, for whom he also wrote thus:
I have Archeanassa, the courtesan from Colophon,