Use asyndeton, polysyndeton, and anaphora as literary listing and opening devices (CCSS L.7.5.a; RL.7.4)

Construct three named rhetorical-listing moves. ASYNDETON: omit conjunctions in a list for speed and momentum ('I came, I saw, I conquered'). POLYSYNDETON: pile conjunctions for weight and slowness ('and the rain and the cold and the wind'). ANAPHORA: repeat an opening word or phrase across successive clauses or sentences for ceremonial rhythm. Recognize each device in mentor texts (Harjo, Hughes, Baldwin).

Mastery threshold

85%

Min instances

Typical minutes

Spaced intervals (days)

1, 3, 7, 14, 30, 60

Prereqs

Successors

Compose a 5-paragraph analytical essay with CEA body structure and syntactic variety (CCSS W.7.1.a-e; W.7.2.a-f; W.7.4-6)

Common misconceptions

Confuses asyndeton (no conjunctions) with simple comma list — every list needs final comma + 'and' in normal use; asyndeton is the deliberate omission.
Overuses anaphora — when every paragraph opens with the same word, the device exhausts.

Exercise pool (3)

Diff	Stem	Type
2	Identify the device in each sentence. (1) 'I came, I saw, I conquered.' (2) 'And he saw the river and the bank and the tree and the...	device identification
5	Construct: (a) one ASYNDETON sentence about a character's actions. (b) one POLYSYNDETON sentence about accumulating detail. (c) one...	device construction
5	Find one example of asyndeton, polysyndeton, AND anaphora in published literature (any source). Quote each + cite + name the device.	device in published text