Asyndeton
Pronounced uh-SIN-dih-ton.
Asyndeton: Omitting conjunctions between clauses so the phrases land in quick succession.
Cutting the conjunctions speeds a sentence to a march; each clause arrives sooner than grammar promised, which reads as urgency or command.
Asyndeton examples
"I came, I saw, I conquered."
— attributed to Julius Caesar
"...we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe."
— John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, 1961
"Duty called. He shaved, dressed, left."
— original example
"Aristotle discussed the device in the Rhetoric as suited to the close of a speech."
— Rhetoric, Aristotle
Spot the Asyndeton
Score: 0/0Omitting conjunctions between clauses so the phrases land in quick succession.
"I came, I saw, I conquered."
Which work is this from?
Explore every literary device in the poetic devices hub.
Asyndeton: common questions
What is asyndeton in literature?
Omitting conjunctions between clauses so the phrases land in quick succession. Cutting the conjunctions speeds a sentence to a march; each clause arrives sooner than grammar promised, which reads as urgency or command.
What is an example of asyndeton?
A classic example is "I came, I saw, I conquered." (attributed to Julius Caesar).
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