One of the more puzzling aspects of the dialogue is Socrates' silence. "Clitophon" seems to be an attack on him and yet there is no rebuttal of Clitophon's remarks. What meaning, if anything, does his silence impart on the dialogue? Hayden Ausland indicates that his silence may be just a characteristic of the protreptic genre. This silence leaves the dialogue open-ended to elicit the reader to think what may have happened and reflect on what was just said. Another belief is that Socrates' silence is a pause in thinking, which continues into his speeches in "Republic".