Anaphora

Describe what an anaphora is.

You need to write a text
You need each sentence to start the same way
You need an anaphora!

The anaphora (from the Greek "anaphorá", which means "carrying back") is a rhetorical device where the sentences of a text all begin with the same string of words. Not only does it add impact and rhythm to the text, it also makes it easier to remember, which is why you usually find this device being used for speeches or Poetry. In another medium, if each scene of a movie or Comic Book starts the same way, it can also work as a visual anaphora. Since the anaphora is about repetition, the title of the text may be the same string of words that is being repeated (or get mistaken as such).

The opposite of an anaphora is an epiphora (also called epistrophe), or when you repeat the final word in a sentence for emphasis. When you mix the two, you get Symploce (example: "She is the soldier we need. She is the savior we need). Note that anaphora also has a second, linguistics-specific definition that is quite different from the rhetorical definition this trope covers. In linguistics it refers to the use of a word or phrase whose meaning is only clarified by the preceding clause: "Sally turned in the exam late, much to her embarrassment." This usage has its own distinct counterpart called "cataphora."

One-Liner, Name... One-Liner examples may also be this, if it deviates from the basic form enough. Compare with "Groundhog Day" Loop where each day is the same and could start the same way consecutively. Overlaps with Repeated for Emphasis since this trope also involves repetition as an essential element. The first use of an anaphora can be traced back to religious texts and thus is Older Than Feudalism. Mind you, repeating the exact same full sentence multiple times doesn't count as an anaphora.

---

Examples:

Advertising

• The '90s Bagel Bites jingle is based on The McGuire Sisters' "Sugartime":
  Pizza in the morning, pizza in the evening, pizza at suppertime
• That device has been used for slogans. For example, Kit Kat's "Have a break, have a Kit Kat".

Comic Books

• A rare visual example: Francis Blaireau Farceur is a French comic book series about a badger named Francis. Each story begins with the same panel which shows Francis strolling with the accompanying text: "Francis is strolling in the countryside."

Fan Works

• A Certain Droll Hivemind: When Abe Eiko's teasing Aino Sumiko about her He Is Not My Boyfriend starting with a Symploce starting with "We" and ending with "Out", because she's talking about the topic of going out with him, and then turns into a Anaphora to transition the topic to them as a couple:
  Aino Sumiko took a deep breath. "Anyway! 'Toru' equals 'worthless pig'. And…"
  "Aren't you still going out with him?"
  "We are not going out! We never went out! We… we just went places together as two people who just happen to be male and female.
• A Game of Cat and Cat: "When was the last time I", when wondering how much he has missed:
  Naoki could describe Daisuke's shoes, but what did they sound like?
  When was the last time I heard them?
  When was the last time I saw Daisuke?
• Not the intended use (Zantetsuken Reverse): Chapter 4: "Do you" because questioning:
  Kazuya put down his laptop. "Do you have any idea who could have done this? Do you have any enemies?"
• Oversaturated World:
  • Oversaturation: "Spectrum": When Sunset remembers, "She remembered", events to try to help her make a choice:
    She remembered Rainbow Dash's joy, and thought of how she'd react to losing her wings.
    She remembered Octavia's fear, and thought of how she'd react to losing her fingers.
    She remembered one of Princess Celestia's lessons on negotiation.
    "If you find yourself caught between two unpleasant choices," the princess had said, "then there's probably a third, better one the other party doesn't want you to pick."
  • Group Precipitation: "A Shot of Gin on a Cold Night, by Masterweaver": Juniper Montage complaining about Sunset Shimmer and her friends:
    Stupid Wondercolts. Stupid uncle. Stupid horse-girl-deity!
• The Palaververse:
  • "Any": When Sailears reports to his uncle:
    The little elephant considered. “I met the king of the donkeys, I think! I asked him about his fleet.”
    “Oh?” Trumpeter smiled. “And what did he say about it, Your Grace? Any comparisons to our own? Any positions? Any plans?”
  • Treasures:
    • From the first chapter of with "Plenty": Gallivant talking about his packed schedule:
      Gallivant: Plenty of work to be done tonight, and plenty more tomorrow.
    • From the fifth chapter, when Gallivant and Old Chestnut do some "hard negotiation", a.k.a brawl for archeological credit, and Daring's wondering why her dad's putting himself in so much pain:
      Was it for his own pride’s sake? Was it to make somepony else proud? Was that somepony Daring? Was it Mom?
• Past Sins: The first chapter has Spell Nexus talking about how important "tonight" is, to his cult:
  Spell Nexus: For it is tonight we give this essence of our queen life of its own. It is tonight our queen’s shackles to the meek Princess Luna shall be broken forever. And it is tonight that our campaign to retake Equestria begins!

Films — Animation

• The Lion King's song "I Just Can't Wait to Be King"
  No one sayin' "Do this"
  No one sayin' "Be there"
  No one sayin' "Stop that"
  No one sayin' "See here"
• In Monsters vs. Aliens, General W. R. Monger says this line to the President:
  We need a Hail Mary pass. We need raw power. We need... monsters.
• In Shrek Forever After, after accidentally wishing he had never been born, Shrek has to convince Fiona that she's his true love. He does so by telling her everything he knows about her:
  Shrek: I know you sing so beautifully that birds explode. I know that when you sign your name, you put a heart over the i. I know that when you see a shooting star you cross your fingers on both hands, squinch up your nose, and you make a wish, I know that you don't like the covers wrapped around your feet, and I know that you sleep by candlelight because every time you close your eyes, you're afraid you're going to wake up back in that tower.

Films — Live-Action

• The Big Lebowski: The Malibu Police Chief lists every quality he detests about the Dude, starting and ending each sentence with the same words.
  I don’t like your jerk-off name.
  I don’t like your jerk-off face.
  I don't like your jerk-off behaviour.
  And, I don't like you. Jerk-off.
• This verse sung by Jack's mother in the first song in Into the Woods:
  I wish my son were not a fool
  I wish my house was not a mess
  I wish the cow was full of milk
  I wish the walls were full of gold
  I wish a lot of things
• The titular hero of Johnny Mnemonic is fed-up with the Race Against the Clock concerning his lifespan and delivers a Rage Breaking Point induced spiel:
  I want room service!
  I want the club sandwich!
  I want the cold Mexican beer!
  I want a $10,000-a-night hooker!
  I want my shirts laundered...
• In RoboCop when a man is holding City Hall hostage to get an old job back:
  Man: And I want a bigger office! And I want a new car! And I want the city to pay for it all!
• Subverted at the end of Spider-Man, when Peter Parker tells the viewer this:
  Peter Parker: No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, the ones I love will always be the ones who pay.
• ¡Three Amigos!: Both the movie itself and the silent films for which the Three Amigos were famous ended with the Amigos announcing, "Wherever there is injustice, you will find us. Wherever there is suffering, we'll be there. Wherever liberty is threatened, you will find The Three Amigos!"

Literature

• The 29th psalm of the Book of Psalms (whether is it the original Hebrew version or the King James Version, other versions give similar results) may be the first example of an anaphora:
  The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters.
  The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.
  The voice of the LORD breaketh the cedars; yea, the LORD breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.
  (...)
  The voice of the LORD divideth the flames of fire.
  The voice of the LORD shaketh the wilderness; the LORD shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.
  The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.
• Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest:
  • The 1987 winner, uses "ya":
    The notes blatted skyward as the sun rose over the Canada geese, feathered rumps mooning the day, webbed appendages frantically peddling unseen bicycles in their search for sustenance, driven by Nature’s maxim, “Ya wanna eat, ya gotta work,” and at last I knew Pittsburgh. — Sheila B. Richter, Minneapolis, MN
  • The 1988 winner uses "A man" to prefix a list of qualities:
    Like an expensive sports car, fine-tuned and well-built, Portia was sleek, shapely, and gorgeous, her red jumpsuit molding her body, which was as warm as the seatcovers in July, her hair as dark as new tires, her eyes flashing like bright hubcaps, and her lips as dewy as the beads of fresh rain on the hood; she was a woman driven – fueled by a single accelerant – and she needed a man, a man who wouldn’t shift from his views, a man to steer her along the right road, a man like Alf Romeo.
• The Empirium Trilogy: A couple of Eliana's chapters in Lightbringer repeat the phrase "When Eliana awoke..." to accentuate the repetitive nature of her mind-speak induced dreams-turned-nightmares at the hands of Corien.
• Jesus delivers another famous one, known as the Beatitudes, in his Sermon on the Mount:
  And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
  Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
  Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
• The Hiver doubles this up with Rule of Three in A Hat Full of Sky:
  "You build little worlds, little stories, little shells around your minds, and that keeps infinity at bay and allows you to wake up in the morning without screaming!"
• Brazilian poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade used anaphoras in several of his poems, such as in E agora José? (And now, José?):
  “If you screamed,
  if you moaned,
  if you played
  the Viennese waltz,
  if you slept,
  if you got tired,
  if you died...
  But you don't die,
  you are tough, José!”
• For Want Of A Nail is a proverb-turned-poem which can be traced back to the 13th century and is about how one small omission can lead to huge grave consequences. Many variations of it exist, but all of them have each sentence beginning with "For want of a...".
• The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri: one of the most famous examples of anaphora in literature can be found in third Canto of the Inferno, where the first three verses function as a self-introduction of the place itself (bonus points for being shown In-Universe as an inscription right above the In-Universe Gates of Hell).
  Through me the way into the suffering city,
  through me the way to eternal pain,
  through me the way that runs among the lost.
  • In the fifth Canto of Inferno, Francesca begins three of her stanzas in a row with the word "Amor." She does this to blame passion for her crimes and to sway Dante by appealing to his love of poetry and romance.
    Love, that in gentle heart is quickly learnt,
    Entangled him by that fair form, from me
    Ta'en in such cruel sort, as grieves me still:
    Love, that denial takes from none belov'd,
    Caught me with pleasing him so passing well,
    That, as thou see'st, he yet deserts me not.
    Love brought us to one death: Caina waits
    The soul, who spilt our life." Such were their words;
  • In the thirteenth Canto of Paradiso, three of the first four stanzas begins with the command "Let him imagine" as Dante tries to get across how beautiful the dance of the starry saints is.
    Let him imagine, who would rightly seize
    what I saw now; and let him while I speak
    retain that image like a steadfast rock;
    in heaven's different parts, those fifteen stars
    that quicken heaven with such radiance
    as to undo the air's opacities;
    let him imagine, too, that Wain which stays
    within our heaven's bosom night and day,
    so that its turning never leaves our sight;
    let him imagine those two stars that form
    the mouth of that Horn which begins atop
    the axle round which the first wheel revolves
• In The Documents in the Case, Munting already knows more than he ever wanted to about the case, but can't keep himself from asking further questions.
  I want to know whether Lathom knows the sort of woman he did it for. I want to know how much she really knows or suspects. I want to know whether, when she wrote that letter which drove him to do it, she was deceiving him or herself. I want to know whether, in all these months, he has been thinking she was worth it...
• Halfway through the 37th canto of The Faerie Queene, the narrator emphasizes how numerous and similar the examples of discord are by beginning each like with "some of" and then describing some episode of discord.
  "And eke of priuate persons many moe,
  That were too long a worke to count them all;
  Some of sworne friends, that did their faith forgoe;
  Some of borne brethren, prov'd vnnaturall;
  Some of deare louers, foes perpetuall[.]"
• W. H. Auden's "Funeral Blues" has an example of this which may or may not trigger your tear glands just a little:
  He was my North, my South, my East and West,
  My working week and my Sunday rest,
  My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
  I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.
• This technique is used heavily throughout Green Eggs and Ham to emphasize the main character's distaste for the food while staying within the 50-word limit:
  I do not like them in a house.
  I do not like them with a mouse.
  I do not like them here or there.
  I do not like them anywhere.
  I do not like green eggs and ham.
  I do not like them, Sam-I-Am.
• Joe Brainard's poem "I Remember":
  I remember a piece of old wood with termites running around all over it the termite men found under our front porch.
  I remember when one year in Tulsa by some freak of nature we were invaded by millions of grasshoppers for about three or four days.
  I remember, downtown, whole sidewalk areas of solid grasshoppers.
  I remember a shoe store with a big brown x-ray machine that showed up the bones in your feet bright green.
• Langston Hughes' "Let America Be America Again"
  I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
  I am the worker sold to the machine.
  I am the Negro, servant to you all.
  I am the people, humble, hungry, mean
• William Blake's "London":
  In every cry of every man,
  In every infant's cry of fear,
  In every voice, in every ban,
  The mind-forged manacles I hear
• Elie Wiesel's Night:
  Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.
• Walt Whitman's "Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking":
  Out of the cradle endlessly rocking,
  Out of the mock-bird's throat, the musical shuttle,
  Out of the Ninth-month midnight,
  (...)
  Out from the patches of briers and blackberries,
  From the memories of the bird that chanted to me,
  From your memories, sad brother, from the fitful risings and fallings I heard,
  From under that yellow half-moon late-risen and swollen as if with tears,
  From those beginning notes of yearning and love, there in the transparent mist,
  From the thousand responses of my heart never to cease,
  From the myriad thence-arous'd words,
  From the word stronger and more delicious than any,
  From such as now they start the scene revisiting,...
• Princesses of the Pizza Parlor: Cookies and Campers: To emphasize how things are starting from zero, "New":
  Claire: New game, new characters, new adventure, right?
• T. S. Eliot's "The Rock":
  Where is the Life we have lost in living?
  Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
  Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
• The Song of Hiawatha, being a deliberately archaic Narrative Poem, does this from the get-go and frequently throughout.
  With the odors of the forest
  With the dew and damp of meadows,
  With the curling smoke of wigwams
  With the rushing of great rivers
  With their frequent repetitions...
• The first sentence of Charles Dickens' novel, A Tale of Two Cities:
  It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.
• Philip Levine's "They Feed They Lion"
  Out of burlap sacks, out of bearing butter,
  Out of black bean and wet slate bread,
  Out of the acids of rage, the candor of tar,
  Out of creosote, gasoline, drive shafts, wooden dollies,
  They Lion grow.
• Lyttle Lytton Contest: The 2001 honorable mention by Jason Melancon, uses "To" for talking about the future:
  To stand tall, to humbly crawl; to laugh, to cry; to puke bitterly, to suck on come what may—​here follows my turbulent infancy.
• Our Wives Under the Sea: When Miri reminisces on how Leah used to be before she turned into an Empty Shell, four sentence in a row start with "I thought about".
• Lords and Ladies illustrates the difference between how people think of The Fair Folk and what they're actually like with six two-sentence paragraphs in which the first sentence begins "Elves are" and the second begins "They".
  Elves are wonderful. They provoke wonder.
  Elves are marvellous. They cause marvels.
  Elves are fantastic. They create fantasies.
  Elves are glamorous. They project glamour.
  Elves are enchanting. They weave enchantment.
  Elves are terrific. They beget terror.

Live-Action TV

• The fourth season of Babylon 5 opens with this narration:
  Lennier: It was the year of fire
  Zack: the year of destruction
  G'kar: the year we took back what was ours.
  Lyta: It was the year of rebirth
  Vir: the year of great sadness
  Marcus: the year of pain
  Delenn: and the year of joy.
  Londo: It was a new age.
  Dr. Franklin: It was the end of history.
  Ivanova: It was the year everything changed.
• Star Trek: Occurs during the "Space, The Final Frontier" monologue preceding the titles of Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation.
  These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.
  [TOS: Its five-year mission/TNG: its continuing mission]: to explore strange new worlds,
  to seek out new life and new civilizations,
  to boldly go where no [TOS: man/TNG: one] has gone before.

Music

• Rick Astley:
  • The chorus of "Never Gonna Give You Up":
    Never gonna give you up
    Never gonna let you down
    Never gonna run around and desert you
    Never gonna make you cry
    Never gonna say goodbye
    Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you
  • In "Never Gonna Stop", the chorus begins each line with the phrase "never gonna," the bridge features "I don't think" at the start of each line (with the occasional "no" tossed in), and the outro begins each line with "tell me."
• Appears as an idiosyncrasy in verses of the intro, interlude, and outro of BTS' MAP OF THE SOUL : 7. The first and last have it in Korean, while "Interlude: Shadow" has it in English.
  "I wanna be a rap star
  I wanna be the top
  I wanna be a rockstar
  I want it all mine
  I wanna be rich
  I wanna be the king
  I wanna' go win
  I wanna be..."
• Rob Cantor: "I'm Gonna Win" makes heavy use of this. For example, the part preceding the chorus uses "'til I'm" four times in a row, and then switches to "it's hard to...":
  I'll never give up
  I'll never give in
  'Til I'm bloody and bruised
  'Til I've broken my bones
  'Til I won't be abused
  'Til I'm laughing alone
  It's hard to be charming and smart and disarming
  It's hard to pretend you're the best
  It's hard to fulfill everyone's expectations
  It's hard to keep up with the rest
• Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line"
  I keep a close watch on this heart of mine
  I keep my eyes wide open all the time
  I keep the ends out for the tie that binds
• Current 93's "I Have A Special Plan For This World":
  There is dying that occurs relatively suddenly
  There is dying that occurs relatively gradually
  There is dying that occurs relatively painlessly
  There is the death that is full of pain
• Bob Dylan's "Blowin' In The Wind" has three different short anaphoras:
  How many roads must a man walk down
  Before you call him a man?
  How many seas must the white dove sail
  Before she sleeps in the sand?
  (...)
  The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind
  The answer is blowin' in the wind
  (...)
  Yes, and how many years can a mountain exist
  'Fore it is washed to the sea?
  Yes, and how many years can some people exist
  Before they're allowed to be free?
  Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
  And pretend that he just doesn't see?
• Ira and George Gershwin's "I Got Rhythm"
  I got rhythm
  I got music
  I got my girl
  Who could ask for anything more?
• Good Kid's "Nomu" contains a section where every line starts with "of every":
  A tiny piece
  Of every part
  Of every heart
  Of every stone
  Of every grave
• The children's song "I Know An Old Lady", in which every refrain adds a new line beginning with "She swallowed the [animal]".
• The hymn "I Know That My Redeemer Lives"
  He lives triumphantly from the grave
  He lives eternally to save
  He lives exalted throned above
  He lives to rule his church in love
• Shayfer James: "First Date" has most of the lines in its verses start with "my first..."
  My first kiss was in a cemetery
  My first drink was in a church
  My first father was a mercenary
  And my first lover was a curse
  My first enemy became my friend to me, for what it's worth
• Jhariah: "To Take for Granted.":
  I don’t take the sea for granted, it could dry any time it wants
  I don’t take the sky for granted, it could fall anytime it pleases
  I don’t take the land for granted, it could flood anytime this year
• j-hope: The chorus of "On the Street", though one line breaks it up slightly.
  "Every time I walk
  Every time I run
  Every time I move
  As always, for us
  Every time I look
  Every time I love
  Every time I hope
  As always, for us (On the street, I'm still)"
• John Denver's "Annie's Song":
  Like a night in a forest
  Like the mountains in springtime
  Like a walk in the rain
  Like a storm in the desert
  Like a sleepy blue ocean
• Bruce Johnston's grammy-winning ballad "I Write The Songs":
  I write the songs that make the whole world sing
  I write the songs of love and special things
  I write the songs that make those young girls cry
  I write the songs, I write the songs
• Melina KB: In "I've Had Enough", each stanza's starting verse parallels the one adjacent to them via the first words; except for the bridge. The two opening stanzas—as well as the one immediately after the chorus—begin with "So you + verb [...]" as a way to mock the abusive partner's hypocrisy. A pair of stanzas starts with "Closed for [...]". Another stanza has four verses opening with "You're/Your/You". The chorus dials it up, with its two (different) stanzas starting with "Here's to the 'no's", and then has each following verse open with "To the + noun". The "Here's to [...]" sentence gets repeated in the closing stanza.
• Alanis Morissette song "Thank U" alone uses three anaphoras:
  • Regular verses start with How 'bout, example:
    How 'bout getting off of these antibiotics
    How 'bout stopping eating when I'm full up
    How 'bout them transparent dangling carrots
    How 'bout that ever elusive "could have"
  • Chorus lines start with the title, Thank u
    Thank u, India
    Thank u, terror
    Thank u, disillusionment
    Thank u, frailty
    Thank u, consequence
    Thank u, thank you, silence
  • The bridge before the final verse and chorus start with The moment I
    The moment I let go of it
    Was the moment I got more than I could handle
    The moment I jumped off of it
    Was the moment I touched down
• "Sad But True" by Metallica uses several different anaphoras. The ones in the refrain provided as the example:
  I'm your dream, make you real
  I'm your eyes when you must steal
  I'm your pain when you can't feel
  Sad but true
  I'm your dream, mind astray
  I'm your eyes while you're away
  I'm your pain while you repay
  You know it's sad but true
• Nirvana: A downplayed example from the chorus of "In Bloom", since the line starter "And he likes" is only said twice.
  He's the one who likes all our pretty songs
  And he likes to sing along
  And he likes to shoot his gun
• Oingo Boingo:
  • The pre-chorus of "Stay" changes each time it's repeated, but all of the lines in it begin with "this is not". For example, this is its first iteration:
    This is not the first time you tried to get away
    This is not a party where people know your name
    This is not a classroom with teacher at the board
    This is not a game show with prizes at the door
  • "Insects" has several anaphoras, likely meant to highlight the Sanity Slippage the singer seems to be undergoing. The first lines of the song:
    Tiny insects in my hair
    Tiny insects everywhere
    Tiny insects in my pants
• Opeth: "Master's Apprentices" has its verses begin each line with "there is a..."
  "There is a voice calling for me
  There is a light coming down on me
  There is a doubt that is clearing
  There is a day that is dawning
  There is a wound that is healing
  There is a season waiting for me
  There is a road that is turning
  There is a fire still burning
  [...]
  There is a peace I am searching
  There is a freedom I'm depending on
  There is a pain that's never ending
  There is a rain falling only on me
  There is a dream I am living
  There is a life I am dreaming of
  There is a death I'm awaiting
  There is a home I am deserting"
• "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison is almost one long anaphora, with many of the song's lines beginning with the words "pretty woman".
• Pink Floyd:
  • "Jugband Blues", the closing track of A Saucerful of Secrets (the last Pink Floyd album to feature Syd Barrett), has a lot of anaphoras used throughout most of the song.
  • Almost every line in "Eclipse", the closing track of The Dark Side of the Moon, begins with the phrase "all that you" (with or without an "and" at the start), expanding upon (and consequently bookending) the line "and all you touch and all you see" in "Breathe" near the start of the album.
  • The breakdown at the end of "Dogs" begins every line with the words "who was":
    Who was born in a house full of pain?
    Who was trained not to spit in the fan?
    Who was told what to do by the Man?
    Who was picked out by trained personnel?
    Who was fitted with collar and chain?
    Who was given a pat on the back?
    Who was breaking away from the pack?
    Who was only a stranger at home?
    Who was ground down in the end?
    Who was was found dead by the phone?
    Who was dragged down by the stone?
    Who was dragged down by the stone?
  • The Wall:
    • In "Goodbye Blue Sky", the verses begin almost every line with the words "did-did-did-did you," tying in with how the lyrics reminisce on the scars of World War II, which Pink's father died fighting in.
    • Almost every line in "Mother" begins with either "mother" (in Pink's verses) or "mama" (in the titular mother's choruses). Usually they form part of the larger phrases "mother, do you think" or "mama's gonna."
    • In "Hey You", almost every set of lines in the verses begins with a Title Drop.
    • "Waiting for the Worms" begins each line of the hook with the word "waiting," tying in with its nature as a List Song about all the things Pink wants to see happen while envisioning himself as a neofascist dictator.
      (Waiting) To cut out the deadwood
      (Waiting) To clean up the city
      (Waiting) To follow the worms
      (Waiting) To put on a black shirt
      (Waiting) To weed out the weaklings
      (Waiting) To smash in their windows and kick in their doors
      (Waiting) For the final solution to strengthen the strain
      (Waiting) To follow the worms
      (Waiting) To turn on the showers and fire the ovens
      (Waiting) For the queers and the coons and the reds and the Jews
      (Waiting) To follow the worms
  • The Final Cut:
    • The first bridge in "Not Now John":
      Make them laugh, make them cry
      Make them dance in the aisles
      Make them pay, make them stay
      Make them feel okay
    • A more minor one appears in the last chorus of the Title Track:
      Thought I oughta bear my naked feelings
      Thought I oughta tear the curtain down
  • The choruses of "Louder Than Words" begin almost every line with "it's louder than words."
• The chorus of The Police's "Every Breath You Take"
  Every breath you take
  Every move you make
  Every bond you break
  Every step you take
  I'll be watching you
• Two different ones appear in the choruses to "Drive" by R.E.M.. The first chorus starts each line with "what if," while the second and third start each line with "maybe." Each sequence is broken only by a single "tick-tock, tick-tock" inserted midway through.
• Queen: The David Bowie collaboration "Under Pressure" features two brief, consecutive anaphoras during the closing breakdown:
  Because love's such an old-fashioned word
  And love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night
  And love dares you to change our way of caring about ourselves
  
  This is our last dance
  This is our last dance
  This is ourselves under pressure
• Savage Garden's song "Affirmation" has every line begin with "I believe".
• Tally Hall: In "Ruler of Everything", three consecutive lines start with "do you like how...":
  Do you like how I walk?
  Do you like how I talk?
  Do you like how my face disintegrates into chalk?
• A mostly symploce example in the second verse of tool's "Ænema".
  Fret for your figure, and
  Fret for your latte, and
  Fret for your lawsuit, and
  Fret for your hairpiece, and
  Fret for your Prozac, and
  Fret for your pilot, and
  Fret for your contract, and
  Fret for your car
• "No Scrubs" by TLC:
  So, no, I don't want your number
  No, I don't wanna give you mine
  And no, I don't wanna meet you nowhere
  No, I don't want none of your time
• "Stressed Out" by Twenty One Pilots:
  I wish I found some better sounds no one's ever heard
  I wish I had a better voice that sang some better words
  I wish I found some chords in an order that is new
  I wish I didn't have to rhyme every time I sang
• Roger Waters:
  • Parts I and II of "What God Wants" feature verses where almost every line starts with the phrase "God wants." Part III drops the pattern, but features a brief, second anaphora in verse two where four consecutive lines begin with "and the."
  • Each verse in "Picture That" features a chunk of consecutive lines that all start with the verb "picture." Verse three is made almost entirely of these lines, with the sole exception of a Title Drop in the middle.
• "Weird Al" Yankovic's "You Make Me" has several lines that begin with the title:
  You make me wanna slam my head against the wall
  You make me do the limbo
  You make me wanna buy a slurpee at the mall
  You make me watch The Gong Show
• Yellow Magic Orchestra's "Be A Superman" starts with an anaphora spoken by William S. Burroughs. The lyrics sung by Yukihiro Takahashi all begin by "I don't wanna..." yet are interspersed by a female voice repeating the song's title.
  Be a man!
  Be a human animal.
  Be a superman!
  Be a superman...
  (...)
  I don't wanna sleep now
  I don't wanna wake up
  I don't wanna work now
  I dont wanna make love
• In the refrain for "No Matter What" (written for and played in the 4Kids Entertainment dub of Yu-Gi-Oh! and subsequently included in the "Music to Duel By" CD)
  No matter what, let the duel begin
  No matter what, may the best man win
  No matter what, we're in this together
  No matter what, we'll be friends forever
  No matter what

Puppet Shows

• Fraggle Rock: In "The Minstrels", Cantus tells Red that she and her friends have been chosen to sing a medley, and that she will be the leader, if each and every one of them finds his own song. They each manage to do this... except Red, who, after hearing Cantus' magic pipe play the songs her friends have found, is sure her song is in the pipe as well. Cantus refuses to let Red play it, then uses the phrase "that's where you're" at the beginning of two phrases in a row, after telling Red that a song must never be played to be heard.
  Red: But everybody's song must be in that pipe!
  Cantus: That's where you're right... and that's where you're wrong.

Theatre

• "She Used To Be Mine" from Waitress (written by Sara Bareilles):
  She's imperfect but she tries
  She is good but she lies
  She is hard on herself
  She is broken and won't ask for help
  She is messy but she's kind
  She is lonely most of the time
  She is all of this mixed up
  And baked in a beautiful pie
• "Welcome To The House On Maple Avenue" from FunHome (written by Lisa Kron and Jeanne Tesori) is an interesting blend of this with expected rhyme — while discussing the father's tyrannical control over the house's aesthetics (and the children in it) — making the audience wait for the final rhyme.
  He wants the Hepplewhite suite chairs back in the parlor...
  He wants the Dresden figurines back in the basement...
  He wants them alphabetized by classification...
  He wants it vacuumed, the surface gleaming
  He wants it closer to the door
  He wants, he wants, he wants...
  He wants - He wants - He wants -
  He wants more.

Video Games

• The start of Bioshock 1 has Andrew Ryan's welcoming speech recorded for the entrance bathysphere to Rapture:
  Andrew Ryan: I am Andrew Ryan, and I am here to ask you a question: Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?
  "No," says the man in Washington, "It belongs to the poor."
  "No," says the man in the Vatican, "It belongs to God."
  "No," says the man in Moscow, "It belongs to everyone."
• Baldur's Gate III: If Us is asked why you were "forced" onto the Nautiloid, they say that Evil Is One Big, Happy Family and starts each sentence of its three-sentence answer with "to" and also involve "you".:
  Us" To know you. To love you. To give you our gift.
• Control: The Flavor Text for the Research & Records: Research: "Ahti's Cabin" Collectible, the second sentence uses this to connect the things the cabin has:
  Lomille lomps, holiday homps. The sauna is warm, the beer is cold, and the kossu is in ice.
• Deltarune: During Spamton NEO's fight in Chapter 2, this piece of dialogue comes up before his face attack:
  Spamton NEO: KRIS! CAN YOU REALLY LOOK IN MY [Eyes] AND SAY NO!?
  LOOK IN MY [Eyes]
  LOOK IN MY [Nose]
  LOOK IN MY [Mouth]
• Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory: In Re;Birth3, when Neptune is yelling at her friends to think of her safety, "Are you", transitioning to "me" Epiphora:
  Are you gabbing gals even listening?!
  Are you lippy ladies ignoring me?!
  Can't you flippant females hear me?!
• Magical Diary Horse Hall: In the school orientation on September 2, where Professor Potsdam introduces the school, she first talks about how each student is "different":
  Professor Potsdam: You all have different strengths, different talents. Here at Iris Academy, we embrace that diversity and tailor your education to your needs.
• Märchen Forest: Mylne and the Forest Gift: Rosetta, a.k.a Rozalina's shop's slogan is "Good goods & good judgment".
• Prayer of the Faithless: The description lists as a Feature:
  More skills, more tools: New skills acquired through leveling up and finding weapons add more options to your arsenal, rather than simply stronger versions of old skills
• River City Girls: The end credits song starts with talking about "Some girls":
  Some girls are sweeties who will fill your life with joy
  Some girls will break your heart, leave you crying on the street destroyed
• The Shantae series:
  • Shantae: Risky's Revenge: Magic Jam Flavor Text:
    It's incredible! It's edible! It's a jar of Magic Jam!
  • Shantae: Half-Genie Hero: Talking to the "Geneology guy" for the first time has him repeatedly reference the hypothetical person and how they explain the flowers that signify remains:
    Geneology guy: Person goes in the dirt.
    Person turns into plant food.
  • Shantae and the Seven Sirens: At the end of the "Arriving at the Island" cutscene, Sky has the final sentence of "The sooner we check in, the sooner we can relax."
• Sunset Overdrive: Used twice in the http://www.overchargedrink.com website used to promote the game, when they're promoting locations:
  • Japanese Heritage Museum: "Want to":
  Want to delve into a lively and fascinating culture? Want to appear more sophisticated on your next date? Want to make penance for the joke that didn't seem racist at the time, but in retrospect was pretty racist?
  • Sunset City Park and Play Area: "Real":
  Virtual reality may be the primary babysitter for kids these days, but why not take them to the lovely Sunset City Park & Play Area? Let them experience real grass, real air, and real pain from falling off of metal contraptions.
• A Very Long Rope to the Top of the Sky: When Oliver is talked to about in Queen Claire's personal garden, he talks about what he's seen about what this world favors:
  Oliver: I've been living a long, long time in this backwards world—a world that favors tradition over progress, a world that favors stagnation over growth.
  [...]
  Maybe you're right. Maybe I don't have a soul. [pause] I don't even know what that is.
  (passionate) One thing I do know is that I want to live!
  I want to live as bad as every blade of grass that stabs through the cold soil just to feel the warmth of the sun!
  I want to live as bad as a cub clinging to his mother in the middle of winter!
  I want to live just as bad as you!

Webcomics

• Homestuck: On page 2082, Terezi accuses Sollux of being predictable for creating red and blue teams for a game, because his eyes and glasses are the same colors. In the proceeding conversation, both of them start many sentences with the word "maybe":
  Sollux: Maybe there is more to me than you think.
  Sollux: Maybe i am not the two trick hoofbeast you want to make me out as.
  Sollux: Maybe i just want to give the red and blue thing a rest for a change and not make it so its like, oh look its that predictable fuck with those two stupid colors, its amazing how much everyone fucking hates him.
  Sollux: Maybe red and blue arent that great and i hate them suddenly, have you thought of that.
  Sollux: Maybe im more of an aubergine guy plus whatever that putrid color is you type with, what is that, turqoise?
  Sollux: Maybe its making me turqueasy.
  Sollux: Maybe the new name for that color is summer shithead mist, have you considered that?
  Sollux: But im sticking with red and blue so maybe you should suck on it.
  Terezi: Maybe maybe maybe
  Terezi: Maybe maybe is a stupid word
  Terezi: Maybe thats the big maybe we should all ponder tonight
  Terezi: Over some hot shut the hell up tea
• NEXT!!! Sound of the Future: Tech, a retired Idol Singer, repeats the words 'I used to' at the beginning of her sentences when she explains how she can't sing anymore.
  Tech: I used to love it. I used to love singing, I used to love music… I used to love it, being an idol.

Web Original

• 17776: Ten's speech in chapter 19 (a eulogy to the Bulb) uses repetition for rhetorical effect, including anaphora. Several phrases start with "it was", and two with "it did not know".
  The Livermore Bulb probably did not have a soul. It was largely glass and filament through which electricity ran. It did not know us, and it did not know its own royalty.
  It was the oldest functioning electric being in the known universe. It was our dearest ancestor. Year over year, century over century, it continued to astonish us: it was, after all, a light bulb that stayed on for more than 15,000 years without burning out or breaking. It was a miracle, and yet, it did not occur to us that it could die.
• Bookburners: In Anywhere But Here: When Sal goes to the Vatican Library and notes how it's "definitely not in America":
  Old Europe. Old money. Old secrets.

Western Animation

• Avatar: The Last Airbender: From "The Blue Spirit", Zuko in despair:
  Zuko: "My honor. My throne. My country. I'm about to lose it all..."
• Batman: The Animated Series:
  Batman: "I am vengeance. I am the night. I am Batman!"

Real Life

• The inaugural speech of former American president Barack Obama remains known for its words "Yes we can" which appears an anaphora near the end:
  Yes we can to justice and equality. Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity. Yes we can heal this nation. Yes we can repair this world. Yes we can.
• French general and former president Charles de Gaulle remains known for the speech he made after the liberation of Paris during World War 2:
  Paris! Paris outraged! Paris broken! Paris martyred! But Paris liberated!
• Former French president François Hollande made a speech in a debate against presidente-candidate Nicolas Sarkozy during his run for office named "Moi Président de la République" (I, President of the Republic or As a president of the Republic) where every sentence starts with the speech's title.
• The inaugural speech of former American president John F. Kennedy has a segment where each of four sentences starts with "Let both sides...".
• Also used by Kennedy in his "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech:
  There are many people in the world who really don't understand, or say they don't, what is the great issue between the free world and the Communist world. Let them come to Berlin. There are some who say that communism is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin. And there are some who say in Europe and elsewhere we can work with the Communists. Let them come to Berlin. And there are even a few who say that it is true that communism is an evil system, but it permits us to make economic progress. Lass' sie nach Berlin kommen. Let them come to Berlin.
• The "I Have A Dream" speech of Martin Luther King Jr. is notorious for its use anaphora throughout ("A hundred years later", "Now is the time", "We can never be satisfied", "Let freedom ring" and most famously "I have a dream", which is also the title of the speech. That anaphoric segment is the most remembered part of this speech.
• Oprah Winfrey, serving as commencement speaker at a women's college, recited a speech in which multiple lines opened with her urging the listener to "Be a queen."
• In 1940, Winston Churchill gave a speech regarding the intervention of the UK in World War 2.
  We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills.
• From Hugo Ball's Dada Manifesto of 1916:
  ... Dada is the world soul, dada is the pawnshop. Dada is the world's best lily-milk soap. Dada Mr. Rubiner, dada Mr. Korrodi. Dada Mr. Anastasius Lilienstein. ...
• Ashton Wood's Backhanded Apology to Jeep:
  Dear Jeep,
  I'm sorry.
  I'm sorry my Jeep broke down before it even left the dealership.
  I'm sorry it had 21 problems.
  I'm sorry it had to be towed 4 times.
  I'm sorry I wasn't more grateful for your offer of a replacement battery.
  I'm sorry you wouldn't offer me a replacement or refund.
  But most of all I'm sorry... I BOUGHT A JEEP

---