Anaphora is “the repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginning of successive clauses, sentences, or lines” (Burton). In The Violin, anaphora is used and helps the character development of Jhin being used when presenting Jhin in two sides of his character: innocence and guilt.
The use of anaphora, “He remembers…. He remembers….”, when introducing the crime scene develops pathos, creating a strong emotional pull. It gives a strong emphasis to Jhin’s horrifying memory of his father’s corpse. This emotional effect develops an effective build toward the climax because the use of pathos inspire anger towards the murderer and draw pity to Jhin from the readers. Looking at the story as a whole, this emotional arousal is ironical because Jhin is actually the murderer of the father. The heightened emotional arousal that the readers carry throughout the story is betrayed as the story ends and reveals the true murderer. The betrayal relates to the sense of mystery, and this story is a mystery genre. Therefore, the use of anaphora by appealing to emotion effectively engages the readers into questioning who the murderer is. The imagery following the anaphora vividly pictures the scene and stimulate readers’ imagination. The phrase “body drowned in a pool of blood” appeals to the senses, sight of the corpse and a puddle of blood and smell of the blood. These images highlight the severity of the crime. After the setting is pictured, the small details of the scene are described also using imagery. Of course, the puddle of blood saturates “every fiber of his (the father’s) clothing” and makes the “white shirt” that the father was wearing into a “rich shade of red.” It shows the natural phenomenon when a fabric is soaked into liquid substance. This natural fact appeals to the readers because the diction used is not at all grandiloquent; the scene is described as it is, free from extravagance. The scene is delivered objectively, as if the character is not too shocked by the murder scene. It foreshadows the nature of Jhin, who is later found to be the person who murdered the father.
If the phrase “he remembers” was used to appeal to the potential innocence of Jhin early in the story, “I remember” is used to reveal the guilt of Jhin. In Jhin’s dialogue, Jhin’s dark truth is disclosed to the readers, how Jhin “remembers the satisfaction” that he felt as he “ripped it (father’s body) out and watched as his (father’s) blood spewed out of his leg faster than water from a hose.” The imagery that follows “I remember” intensifies the emotional effect. The way Jhin blurts out his obscene thoughts towards the scenery where his father’s blood spurting out without filtered language creates a strong emotional effect from the readers. Having been tricked by his potential innocence previously, readers are betrayed by Jhin’s straightforward language in which a hint of guilt cannot be found. He also yells that he “remembers” the tension that he felt as “the flowing blood pulsated in rhythm to his slowing heartbeat.” Jhin himself divulged his own satiating secret that he kept prior to when he was taken away from the police. With rage and without hesitation, Jhin told his own sister that he enjoyed every second of murdering his father. In addition, using anaphora in a dialogue of Jhin speaking to his sister Jink makes a stronger impact because readers know the personal thought that Jhin had originally thought when he was murdering his father. It gives a sharp contrast to the first time anaphora was used to present the potential innocence of Jhin – being scared about the father’s death.
In addition, other than the word “remember,” anaphora is used once more in Jhin’s dialogue when he is taken away by the police. He says: “I remember seeing your violin on the mantle. It was perfect: I could beat him with the very object that ruined my life! I could make him feel the pain that I felt. He cried a lot you know.” Repeating the phrase “I could” shows what Jhin is capable of, how violent Jhin can be. It shows the darkest side of Jhin in contrast to the innocence the readers are presented with. This adds to the anaphora of “I remember” because it is used in a similar context.
As such, anaphora is used when telling about the character Jhin. Jhin is a round character who changes from the beginning of the story to the end of the story. This is established through the use of anaphora. With the combination of anaphora and imagery, the tension is more heightened, leading into the climax when Jink and Arthur become aware of the father’s death and sought out for the truth: who killed the father. The anaphora helps to convey a sense of intensity and emphasis and gives emphasis to the neighboring clauses which incorporates vivid imagery.
Works Cited
The Violin. Storium. https://storium.com/game/the-violin.
Burton, Gideon. The Forest of Rhetoric. http://rhetoric.byu.edu/