J. Gillies' The History of Ancient Greece and W. Mitford's History of Greece in 18 and 19 centuries evidently describe a politician Cleon as a demagogue and the Athenian democracy an ochlocracy. The federalists' papers in the American founding era also describe the Athenian democracy as a government by the emotional mass. On the other hand, though Gillies and Mitford read Thucydidean history as a major source, it doesn't seem to describe Cleon as the very demagogue. As we know, Cleon was attacked by Aristophanes' comedies which almost all modern historians read. I think, therefore, that the image of Cleon the demagogue in the books of Gillies and Mitford was made by influential comedies of Aristophanes.
The comedies of Aristophanes, however, seem to be hard to be viewed as showing who Cleon, unlike Socrates who Platon defended, really was. I think that historians should see the real image of Cleon not in his comedies but in Thucydidean history and Gillies and Mitford did not do so. I think, therefore, that the image of Cleon the demagogue in the books of Gillies and Mitford is misleading.
