Archedemus in Aristophanes’ Frogs: Overlooked allusions
Keywords:
Aristophanes, Frogs, ancient comedy, Athens, Peloponnesian war, sea battle, islands of Arginusae, Erasinides, ArchedemusAbstract
This article examines allusions to the Athenian political figure Archedemus in Aristophanes’ Frogs. In Frogs Archedemus receives only two mentions by name (Ran. 416–421, 588). In the first, the chorus urges Dionysus and Xanthias to have a good, joint laugh at Archedemus. The second mention occurs in the oath of Dionysus: “May I myself, my wife, my children perish, and bleary Archedemus, all together!” The basis for my argument that Archedemus is actually ridiculed twice more in Frogs is his nickname mentioned in verse 588 — γλάμων. The first unnoticed allusion appears in the prologue, when Xanthias says that he couldn’t have participated in the sea battle of Arginusae because he had the pinkeye. Xanthias’ words seem random without any referent, and considering the other passages discussed, the most likely candidate is Archedemus. The second unnoticed allusion to Archedemus in Frogs is also connected with the battle of Arginusae. In the debate about prologues to tragedies, Aeschylus retells the story of King Oedipus. After Aeschylus’ words “εἶτ’ ἐξετύφλωσεν αὑτόν” Dionysus makes the following remark: Εὐδαίμων ἄρ’ ἦν, εἰ κἀστρατήγησέν γε μετ’ Ἐρασινίδου (Ran. 1195–1196). Oedipus, having entered into an unequal marriage with an older woman, deprived himself of sight. It should be remembered here that the chorus speaks of Archedemus as the villain par excellence of Athens. Considering his partial blindness, perhaps Dionysus’ unexpected reference to Oedipus reminded the audience of another individual of questionable morals who was absent at the battle of Arginusae but managed to be the first to accuse Erasinides of embezzlement.Downloads
References
Beekes, R. (2010). Etymological dictionary of Greek (Vol. 1). Brill.
Blaydes, F. (Ed.) (1889). Aristophanis Comoediae, Pt. 8: Ranae. In Orphanotrophaei Libraria.
Blaydes, F. (1899). Adversaria Critica in Aristophanem. Ιn Orphanotrophei Libraria.
Cartledge, P. (1993). The Greeks: A portrait of self and others. Oxford Univ. Press.
Coulon, V., & van Daele, H. (Eds.) (1962). Aristophane (Vol. 4). Les Belles Lettres.
de Vaan, M. (2018). Etymological dictionary of Latin and the other Italic languages. Brill.
Del Corno, D. (Ed.) (1985). Aristofane. Le Rane. Fondazione Lorenzo Valla.
Develin, R. (1989). Athenian officials, 684–321 B. C. Cambridge Univ. Press.
Dover, K. J. (Ed., Intro., & Comment.) (1993): Aristophanes. Frogs. Clarendon Press.
Fritsche, F. V. (Ed.) (1845). Aristophanis Ranae. Prostat in Libraria Meyeri et Zelleri.
García López, J. (Ed., Intro., Comment., & Trans.) (1993). Aristófanes. Introducción, comentario y traducción por García López J. Universidad de Murcia.
Hamel, D. (2015). The battle of Arginusae: Victory at Sea and its tragic aftermath in the final years of the Peloponnesian War. Johns Hopkins Univ. Press,
Hooper, Th. (2015). Archedemus. The Classical Quarterly, 65(2), 500–517.
Hunt, P. (2001). The slaves and the generals of Arginusae. American Journal of Philology, 122(3), 359–380.
Jordan, B. (1975). The Athenian navy in the classical period: A study of Athenian naval administration and military organization in the fifth and fourth centuries B. C. Univ. of California Press.
Kagan, D. (1987). The fall of the Athenian empire. Cornell Univ. Press.
Lang, M. L. (1992). Theramenes and Arginousai. Hermes, 120(3), 267–79.
Osborne, M. J. (1983). Naturalization in Athens (Vol. 3). Academie voor Wetenschappen, Letteren en Schone Kunsten.
Olson, D. S. (Ed., Intro., Trans., & Comment.) (2018). Eupolis, testimonia and aiges — demoi (frr. 1–146). Verlag Antike.
Ostwald, M. (1986). From popular sovereignty to the sovereignty of law. Univ. of California Press.
Paley, F. A. (Ed., Rev., Notes, & Preface) (1877). Aristophanis Ranae = The ‘Frogs’ by Aristophane. Deighton, Bell and Co.; George Bell and Sons.
Radermacher, L. (Ed., Intro., & Comment.) (1954). Aristophanes’ Frösche (2nd ed.). R. M. Rohrer.
Scafuro A. C. (1994). Witnessing and false witnessing: Proving citizenship and kin identity in fourth-century Athens. In A. L. Boegehold, & A. C. Scafuro (Eds.). Athenian identity and civic ideology (pp. 156–198). Hopkins Press.
Sommerstein, A. (Ed., Trans., & Notes) (1996). The comedies of Aristophanes, Vol. 9: Frogs. Aris & Phillips.
Stanford, W. B. (Ed., Intro., Rev., Comment., & Index) (1963). Aristophanes. The Frogs (2nd ed.). Macmillan.
Surikov, I. E. (2024). “Ils n’ont rien appris, ni rien oublié”: Athenian democracy and its leaders between two oligarchic revolutions (410–404 B. C.). Aristei: vestnik klassicheskoi filologii i antichnoi istorii, 30, 15–42. https://doi.org/10.53084/22209050_2024_30_15.
Surikov, I. E. (2025). Sud nad strategami-pobediteliami i “ten’ Alkiviada” [The trial of the victorious generals and “Alcibiades’ shadow”]. Vestnik drevnei istorii, 85(2), 353–377. (In Russian).
Tucker, T. G. (Ed., Intro, Comment., & Notes) (1906). The Frogs of Aristophanes. Macmillan.
van Leeuwen, J. (Ed., Intro., & Comment.) (1896). Aristophanis Ranae. Apud A. W. Sijthoff.
Worthington, J. (1989). Aristophanes’ ‘Frogs’ and the Arginusae. Hermes, 117(3), 359–363.
