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to give up disproven beliefs and embrace the truth.

      William W. Young III

      Summary

      Though Trey Parker and Matt Stone haven't been killed for it (they did receive death threats after their 200th episode) the creators of South Park have faced accusations much like those that led to Socrates's execution: the corruption of youth and the teaching of vulgar, irreligious behavior. A closer examination, however, reveals that South Park is very much within the Platonic tradition, as Kyle and Stan engage in questioning and dialogue in order to “learn something today.” Moreover, the mob mentality of the parents, along with the malicious yet mimetic evil of Cartman, demonstrates how evil emerges from thoughtlessness: a failure to ask if one can live with oneself, and a failure to out oneself in the place of others. Through its different characters, and even its apparently mindless vulgarity, South Park shows the need for engaging in dialogue and thinking from others' perspectives, in order to pursue wisdom, examine life, and make it worth living.

      In Plato's (428–348 BCE) Apology, Socrates defends himself against two charges: (i) impiety (false teachings about the gods, possibly that they don't exist) and (ii) corrupting the youth of Athens. In reality, Socrates probably had as much chance of winning his case as Chef did against Johnny Cochran's “Chewbacca” defense! What is most important about Socrates's defense, however, is not so much what he says as how he says it. He defends himself by questioning his accuser, Meletus, leading him through a process of reasoning. For example, Socrates refutes the charge of corrupting the youth as follows:

      Through the analogy with horse training, Socrates shows how illogical the accusations against him really are. Just as a majority of people would injure horses by training them, and only a few good trainers improve them, so too it is likely that a few teachers improve the virtue of the youth, while many others corrupt them. Socrates argues, further, that he is in fact the one who is teaching Athens' youth what virtue involves, while many others – including the idiots sitting before him – corrupt them. (As you can imagine, this did not go over well with the jury.)

      In the town of South Park, people in positions of power believe they are teaching the children wisdom and virtue. However, as in Athens, the many people of South Park seem to make the children worse, not better. For example, Mr. Garrison “teaches” the children creationism before switching to an absolutist Darwinism, Mrs. Broflovski always goes to crazy extremes with her “moral” outrage, Uncle Jim and Ned teach the boys to kill harmless bunnies and squirrels in “self‐defense,” and the mayor panders shamelessly to voters. None of the townsfolk really talk to the children, except Chef (R.I.P.), who taught the art of making sweet, sweet love to a woman. Blindly following the crowd, from protesting Terrance and Philip to boycotting Harbucks, to – yes – burying their heads in the sand to avoid watching Family Guy, the parents of South Park corrupt the children far more than a television show ever could. As in “Something Wal‐Mart This Way Comes,” their mindless consumption leads to an unrestrained cycle of economic and mob destruction. Like the Athenians, the adults don't know as much as they believe they know. Ultimately, if television does corrupt the children, it does so because they are left to it by their parents, with no one to educate them about what they are seeing. Of course, there are also cases where parents and people in powerful positions do try to discuss issues and ideas with the children. These discussions, though, support the same point, as the adult usually sounds like a bumbling idiot.

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