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Success is counted sweetest By those who ne'er succeed. To comprehend a nectar Requires sorest need.

Not one of all the purple Host Who took the Flag today Can tell the definition So clear of Victory

As he defeated — dying — On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Burst agonized and clear!

This poem is pretty inspirational. Especially the first four lines of it. Emily Dickinson has a way of explaining success in the simplest way possible in order for the reader to understand it. For example, in the first two lines of the poem, she says that success is never thought about or even considered to those people who constantly fail. The bad thing about that is that people who constantly fail have a very low self- esteem level, which makes them think that they can't succeed at anything. In the next two lines of the first stanza, Dickinson says that in order to accomplish something big, you have to start from a small place. Not everything good gets handed to you in life. Sometimes you have to work really hard to reach that great achievement that you're striving for. The second stanza sort of gets a little off topic. It starts to talk about a purple host. In my opinion, I believe that this purple host represents a higher power over people, such as the government or a leader of some sort. She's trying to say that not even the government can define victory because they apparently have not had it happen too often to themselves. In the last stanza, she describes what this higher power is doing as a result of not being victorious. They are defeated and "dying", but triumph is bursting from the other people who were fighting agains the higher power because they are victorious. Those people could probably give you a proper definition for victory. In the end, this poem has a good moral. Even if you tink that you can't do something or simply just give up on something, you should keep striving for victory and never give up. And remember, you can't achieve anything unless you start from somewhere small. 1203221251

I agree that this poem has an overall good theme about success and victory however it is difficult to understand what she is trying to say about it all. I think that the first stanza starts off by saying that for those who are not used to success see it as their highest or "sweetest" goal. In order to get a taste of success though they need to keep trying and not give up. If you have a need for success and you reach it, that is the biggest achievement of all. For the second stanza I think Dickinson is refering to a higher power as being an obvious sign of victory. The color purple often represents royalty which is associated with power and success. I think that she is saying that, for others, success is not labeled so obviously. Not everyone is given a title that suggests victory or awarded something like a flag or ribbon symbolizing their success. The third stanza is saying that, although you may feel defeated from not succeeding, there is still hope. There is still a lingering drive "of triumph" and that is not something that should be ignored. 1203374742

I'd suggest that this poem is not as inspirational as you may think. Where is the Victory in this poem? Where is the Success? It's somewhere else. "Success is counted sweetest / By those who **ne'er** succeed." Success is sweetest to those who **never** have it. They always lose. 1203375515

I Guess that you could say that this poem is sort of dissapointing in a way. Success might be thought of more highly by those who don't succeed because they never really try to succeed. But then on the other hand, one could say that the people who always seem to succeed, never give success even a glance because they think that they're so good or something like that. It's odd how the mind works in that way; how people who almost never succeed think more higly of succeeding than those who almost constantly are winning or succeeding. That, to me, sounds like people are just being concieted. 1203450786

I think that this poem is confusing. Emily Dickinson talks about how sweet success is and then she says by those who have never succeced. It's like she's trying to say that success is bittersweet. Maybe she is talking about how sucess for one is disappointment for another. Only the people that have traveled the journeys with all of the hardships and rough times, can really tell what a victory truely means.

The final stanza is confusing, it seems like the victory was that someone had died!? I think that this is weird because i don't understand why she would want to have that because that is deffinitly a victory to maybe her but not to others! 1203553962ape2

My view on this poem is that success is the best feeling a person can grasp. However even if a person didn't accomplish a goal, there is still room formore improvement, for example, coming up short for an A on a Math test, instead of getting an A, the person recieved a B+. The second stanza means when people who accomplish tasks in life in a very successful way can not describe in detail of how victory was celebrated. It's indescribable just having the urge feeling victory. All I know is that it is powerful. The last stanza says that when people sacrificed theri dedication and hard work that represented a special accomplishment. It can put a very good impression on other people and it would make theirselves recognized. 1203699899

This poem sounds like its one of dickensons more patriotic poems. Because she talkes about achievments and success and victory. I liked this poem, mostly because it sounds encouraging and it makes you want to make a difference.there is some hard vocab words in the poem though like nectar, Im not sure but i think that is the stuff that Bees eat or something. Also, sorest this word is a little confusing. It might just be a different form of the word sore, Ive just never seen that form before. 1203977955

team a=89-10 Team B=12-78 I feel thqat this poem is not about victory or succes but abput those who need it and want it, kind of. I will esplain it a bit better here; you win every game in Little League right and you have a record of about 89-10, your last game you guys lose. Ohh great 89-10, But this poem is about the other team. Se now the team that beat you went 12-78. they haven't won many games so when theyn win a game it is more important than the 89-10 team. Who have won almost every game, but the team that loses all the time never really feel how it is to win and when they do they feel it more than the winning team. it also sayus that team B has a very vivid picture of what is like to win because they have expierenced it the first time. like; in a video game whne you go through it the first time you notice all the graphics and cool scenery, but the second time you go through it, it is like you are used to it by that time just like team A was usedd to winning until a team beat them

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I like this poem because it makes a lot of sense right off the bat. Success is sweetest for those who ne’re succeed. The poem isn’t saying success is sweet, but the feeling of almost getting there being on the brink of success is more sweet. There is a quote I once heard that the two greatest tragedies in life are getting what you want and not getting what you want. I believe that quote relates to this poem very well. Anticipation is the utmost greatest thing in life, having something to look forward to, whether it be simple or it be complex it keeps us going and makes us happy. Anyone can look at that quote and understand it, think of when you want something really bad like a car, you look forward to getting the car and you think about it non-stop and its your life until a week or so after you get it, the fame the anticipation goes away and you find knew things to look forward too. 1203989420

I like this poem. But I think the first line can miss lead people a bit. When I read it I thought that the poem would be about someone succeeding and about how success is good. But when I actually read it I was a bit disappointed, because it really didn't talk about someone succeeding. My favorite part of this poem is the first two lines...

"Success is counted sweetest By those who ne'er succeed."

To me this is saying that the people who like success are the ones who succeed. And once i thought about it this is very true. When I work hard toward a goal, and I spend all my time working on it, and I finally accomplish it I feel really good. If people always win, they don't have the same value toward winning as people to only sometimes or never win. If you work hard and do well you feel alot more accomplished. I enjoyed this poem,but I wish it could have been more positive. 1204075150

I believe that the first two lines "Success is counted sweetest--By those who ne'er succed," doesn't mean the people who like success are the ones who succeed, I believe it means success is counted sweetest by those who NEVER succeed (ne'er is like never which i didn't get at first but was able to find out). That makes so much sense, because if you think about it, people who don't succeed are probably always wondering what its like to finally conquer something, they count it //sweetest.// Even if they never succeed they believe it is a great feat that they must try to conquer as I said. Since they've never expierenced it, it is somewhat more dear to them to try to accomplish which is simply true for any kind of thing. This is a very good poem but I believe that is the true meaning of the poem, it's my interpretation, but I really believe thats what this whole poem is about. Also as brtom said, the poem really isn't joyful, if someone is dying to succeed at something its not really sad but where is the joy in that? 1204152248

This poem speaks of things in life being unappreciated, until they are something that you do not have. Like the phrase goes "you only know what you have got when it's gone." When something is restricted from you, and you finally receive it after all of your put effort, it will be much better than something that is simply handed to you. I agree completely with Emily Dickinson in this poem. If you work very hard to receive a bike, you will know it is something that you want, you will treat it better, use it more often and appreciate it being there more fully than if it was just given to you. 1204172570

I think this poem can be difficult to understand and comprehend. At first when i saw this it seemed as though it would be inspurational and that was what i was going to post about. Or atleast Until is saw what Br. Tom wrote then i took a second look at things and i noticed that this poem was kind of a drag. I do not know why she would write a poem about almost getting things. I do agree with joey pullano because success is a greater feeling when you never succeed. It is more meaningful to those people, rather than the people that always succeed and expect to succeedIn a way that can inspire people though because it would make us not want to feel how it feels to suffer defeat or almost getting something, instead we should strive for the best and expect the worst. Then you dont feel a 100% let down or sad. Success can sometimes be bitter sweet though because you may have won at something but maybe you let someone down or something i dont know this poem was knid of confusing. 1204255379

I think that the first two lines " success is counted sweetest--by thouse who ne'er succeed," means that people who don't experience it a lot have a greateer desire and and thriving to achieve it. That really speaks to me especially in athletics winning is everything when you are the underdog. For example in the world today those who have food may throw some of it out if they are finished or don't like it. There are people in the world today who don't have half or even more of the stuff that we throw out every day. Even if the team, person, or group of people never succeed in their goal they still have the dertrmination to go out there and get it. Since they have never or rarely experience the feeling of victory over something it makes it that much sweeter. This is a poem that is really great and speaks to all of us. It really hits the nail on the head when people who don't succeed find it sweeter when they finally do. 1204255988

To me Emily's saying that those who won a battle, the purple host of brave men, can't count their victory as sweet as those who were defeated. because the man is dying, the victory seems sweeter to him, he values it more because he did not win it. You want what you can't have more than you want what you already do.

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To me Emily Dickinson is saying that success might be thought of more highly by those who don't succeed because they never really try to succeed. But then on the other hand, someone could say that the people who always seem to succeed, never give success even a glance because they think that they're so good or something like that. It's odd how the mind works in that way; how people who almost never succeed think more higly of succeeding than those who almost constantly are winning or succeeding. If I won at everything I ever did, it wouldnt be that special but if I never ever won anything than I would really want to celebrate if I won something.

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