Success is Counted Sweetest by Emily Dickinson

Success is Counted Sweetest

by 

Emily Dickinson

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 defnition

So clear of Victory

As he defeated – dying –

On whose forbidden ear

The distant strains of triumph

Burst agonized and clear!

• Words
• Comprehend (verb): to understand
• Require (verb): need
• Victory: (noun): win / triumph
• Defeated (verb): lost
• Forbidden (verb): tell somebody to stop doing something
• Strains (noun): pressure
• Agonized (verb): feeling either physical or mental pain

 

Summary of the poem: 

This poem by Emily Dickinson explores the idea that success is most appreciated by those who have never experienced it. The poet suggests that understanding the sweetness of success requires a deep longing or need for it. The second stanza uses the metaphor of a battle, describing how those who have never succeeded can appreciate the taste of victory more than the victorious themselves. The poem reflects on the bittersweet nature of success and how those who have never achieved it may perceive it as a distant and agonizing triumph.