One will sometimes find the claim that Socrates described himself as the "gadfly" of Athens which, like a sluggish horse, needed to be aroused by his "stinging". In the Greek text of his defense given by Plato, Socrates never actually uses that term (viz., "gadfly" "oîstros") to describe himself. Rather, his reference is merely allusive, as he (literally) says only that he has attached himself to the City ("proskeimenon tē polei") in order to sting it. Nevertheless, he does make the bold claim that he is a god's gift to the Athenians.