Asyndeton

Discussion

Conjunctions join clauses into complete sentences and include words such as although, and, as, after, before, because, but, if, nor, since, that, until, unless, yet. They send signals about how the clauses work together. When then are omitted, they cause a certain amount of confusion, forcing the person to review what was just said. Asyndeton can thus be used as a form of light emphasis.

Where the conjunction is omitted there may well be a pause, which appears in written text as a comma or semicolon. This may act as a signal to the listener or reader to think again about the meaning.

You cannot just omit any conjunction. If you take the sentence 'I'll see you when you get home', omitting 'when' leaves nonsense. The clauses must stand alone and the listener must be able to make sense of how they are connected.

One of the most common forms of asyndeton is the omission of the word 'and' in a list. This creates surprise as the word 'and' is usually a signal that the list is about to end.

Asyndeton done well is terse and direct. Done badly, it is harsh staccato.

In grammar, syndetic means 'connected by conjunctions'. Related figures are syndeton (the use of a conjuction) and polysyndeton (the use of multiple conjunctions).

Asyndeton is popular in speeches, where the 'and' in a list is often missed out. It is also used in poetry and literature to add terseness.

Asyndeton is also known as brachylogia.

Classification: Omission

Quick links

Asyndeton

Description

Example

Discussion

See also

Site Menu

You can buy books here

Quick links

Disciplines

Techniques

Principles

Explanations

Theories

And

Site Menu

Quick links

Disciplines

Techniques

Principles

Explanations

Theories

And