Editing Lucian (section)

===Satirical dialogues===
In his ''Double Indictment'', Lucian declares that his proudest literary achievement is the invention of the "satirical dialogue",{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=42}} which was modeled on the earlier [[Platonic dialogue]], but was comedic in tone rather than philosophical.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=42}} The ''prolaliai'' to his ''[[Dialogues of the Courtesans]]'' suggests that Lucian acted out his dialogues himself as part of a comedic routine.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=275}} Lucian's ''[[Dialogues of the Dead]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Νεκρικοὶ Διάλογοι}}) is a satirical work centering around the [[Cynicism (philosophy)|Cynic]] philosophers [[Diogenes]] and his pupil [[Menippus]], who lived modestly while they were alive and are now living comfortably in the abysmal conditions of the Underworld, while those who had lived lives of luxury are in torment when faced by the same conditions.{{sfn|Macleod|1961|p={{pn|date=January 2024}}}} The dialogue draws on earlier literary precursors, including the ''[[nekyia]]'' in Book XI of Homer's ''Odyssey'',{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=43–44}} but also adds new elements not found in them.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=44}} Homer's ''nekyia'' describes transgressors against the gods being punished for their sins, but Lucian embellished this idea by having cruel and greedy persons also be punished.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=44}}

[[File:Statue Hermes Chiaramonti.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Hermes]], the messenger of the gods, is a major recurring character throughout many of Lucian's dialogues.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}}]]

In his dialogue ''[[Lover of Lies|The Lover of Lies]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Φιλοψευδὴς}}), Lucian satirizes belief in the [[supernatural]] and [[paranormal]]{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=1–3}} through a [[framing story]] in which the main narrator, a skeptic named Tychiades, goes to visit an elderly friend named Eukrates.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} At Eukrates's house, he encounters a large group of guests who have recently gathered together due to Eukrates suddenly falling ill.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} The other guests offer Eukrates a variety of [[folk remedies]] to help him recover.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} When Tychiades objects that such remedies do not work, the others all laugh at him{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} and try to persuade him to believe in the supernatural by telling him stories, which grow increasingly ridiculous as the conversation progresses.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} One of the last stories they tell is "[[The Sorcerer's Apprentice]]", which the German playwright [[Goethe]] later adapted into a famous ballad.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|page=1}}{{sfn|Luck|2001|page=141}}

Lucian frequently made fun of philosophers{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} and no school was spared from his mockery.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} In the dialogue ''Philosophies for Sale'', Lucian creates an imaginary slave market in which [[Zeus]] puts famous philosophers up for sale, including Pythagoras, Diogenes, [[Heraclitus]], [[Socrates]], [[Chrysippus]], and [[Pyrrho]],{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=314–333}} each of whom attempts to persuade the customers to buy his philosophy.{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=314–333}} In ''The Banquet, or Lapiths'', Lucian points out the hypocrisies of representatives from all the major philosophical schools.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} In ''The Fisherman, or the Dead Come to Life'', Lucian defends his other dialogues by comparing the venerable philosophers of ancient times with their unworthy contemporary followers.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Lucian was often particularly critical of people who pretended to be philosophers when they really were not{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} and his dialogue ''The Runaways'' portrays an imposter Cynic as the antithesis of true philosophy.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} His ''Symposium'' is a parody of Plato's ''[[Symposium (Plato)|Symposium]]'' in which, instead of discussing the nature of love, the philosophers get drunk, tell smutty tales, argue relentlessly over whose school is the best, and eventually break out into a full-scale brawl.{{sfn|Anderson|1976|pages=146–148}} In ''{{Interlanguage link|Icaromenippus|fi|Ikaromenippos}}'', the Cynic philosopher Menippus fashions a set of wings for himself in imitation of the mythical [[Icarus]] and flies to Heaven,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=77–79}} where he receives a guided tour from Zeus himself.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=79}} The dialogue ends with Zeus announcing his decision to destroy all philosophers, since all they do is bicker, though he agrees to grant them a temporary reprieve until spring.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=79–80}} ''Nektyomanteia'' is a dialogue written in parallel to ''Icaromenippus'' in which, rather than flying to Heaven, Menippus descends to the underworld to consult the prophet [[Tiresias]].{{sfn|Anderson|1976|pages=139–140}}

Lucian wrote numerous dialogues making fun of traditional Greek stories about the gods.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=76–77}} His ''[[Dialogues of the Gods]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Θεῶν Διάλογοι}}) consists of numerous short vignettes parodying a variety of the scenes from [[Greek mythology]].{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=76}} The dialogues portray the gods as comically weak and prone to all the foibles of human emotion.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=76–77}}{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Zeus in particular is shown to be a "feckless ruler" and a serial adulterer.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=77}} Lucian also wrote several other works in a similar vein, including ''Zeus Catechized'', ''Zeus Rants'', and ''The Parliament of the Gods''.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Throughout all his dialogues, Lucian displays a particular fascination with [[Hermes]], the messenger of the gods,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}} who frequently appears as a major character in the role of an intermediary who travels between worlds.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}} ''The Dialogues of the Courtesans'' is a collection of short dialogues involving various courtesans.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|pages=274–294}}{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=301–311}} This collection is unique as one of the only surviving works of Greek literature to mention female homosexuality.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|pages=274–275}} It is also unusual for mixing Lucian's characters from other dialogues with stock characters from [[New Comedy]];{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}} over half of the men mentioned in ''Dialogues of the Courtesans'' are also mentioned in Lucian's other dialogues,{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}} but almost all of the courtesans themselves are characters borrowed from the plays of [[Menander]] and other comedic playwrights.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}}