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ἀργαλέων τʼ ἐν ὅπλοις ξυνόδων. Κλεοφῶν δὲ μαχέσθω
The genitive plural 'ἀργαλέων' (difficult/hard) modifies 'ξυνόδων' (meetings/encounters) in the phrase 'ἐν ὅπλοις' (in arms). While 'ἀργαλέος' is a common adjective, its specific collocation with 'ξυνόδων' to denote the arduous nature of military assemblies or the hardships of war is a distinctive Aristophanic usage that contrasts with the more abstract or political 'συνόδους' found in oratory. The phrase sets up a hyperbolic contrast for the immediate command to Kleophon, who is being urged to fight despite the inherent difficulty ('ἀργαλέων') of such military engagements.
Kleophon (Κλεοφῶν) is a specific historical figure, a prominent democratic orator and general in Athens during the later stages of the Peloponnesian War, known for his aggressive stance against Sparta and his opposition to peace negotiations. In the context of the *Frogs* (405 BCE), Aristophanes is satirizing Kleophon's political rhetoric and his push for continued war, ironically suggesting that he should personally engage in the very 'difficult meetings in arms' that he has been advocating for, while the city suffers. This reference relies on the audience's knowledge of the specific political climate of 405 BCE and Kleophon's reputation as a warmonger.
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κἄλλος ὁ βουλόμενος τούτων πατρίοις ἐν ἀρούραις.
The construction κἄλλος ὁ βουλόμενος functions as an elliptical comparative clause where the comparative adjective ὁ βουλόμενος ('whoever wishes') stands in apposition to the implied subject of the main clause, effectively meaning 'and let the one who wishes [do so]'. This usage of the definite article with a participle to create a substantive subject in a hortatory or gnomic context, combined with the elision of the predicate verb (understood as 'is' or 'shall be'), is a characteristic Aristophanic feature of compressed, colloquial syntax that demands reconstruction of the omitted verbal element from the context of the preceding lines.
