Emily Dickinson, "Success is counted sweetest" (112)
• Variants: "plain" for clear", "Break, agonizing" for "Burst agonized"
• Variants: "plain" for clear", "Break, agonizing" for "Burst agonized"
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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 victoryAs he defeated – dying – On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Burst agonized and clear!
— Emily Dickinson on Victory
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "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 victoryAs he defeated – dying – On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Burst agonized and clear!" in the context of "Emily Dickinson, "Success is counted sweetest" (112)
• Variants: "plain" for clear", "Break, agonizing" for "Burst agonized"" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Victory" (D)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Virtually unknown in her lifetime, Dickinson has come to be regarded as one of the greatest American poets of the 19th century. Although she wrote (at latest count) 1789 poems, only a few of them were published in her lifetime, all anonymously, and some perhaps without her knowledge.
About Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Virtually unknown in her lifetime, Dickinson has come to be regarded as one of the greatest American poets of the 19th century. Although she wrote (at latest count) 1789 poems, only a few of them were published in her lifetime, all anonymously, and some perhaps without her knowledge.
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