Success is counted sweetest
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!
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!
- Emily Dickinson
***STRING IS CLOSED***
42 comments:
First and foremost, I would like to say that poetry is not my thing. I tend to have a hard time trying to think outside the box,and find meanings, so my answers may not be that creative.
I like this poem because I can almost understand it, and the poem is so true. I think the message in the poem is succeeding is sweetest when you are at the bottom. You can appricate your victory more if you never succeed, compared to if you always succeed. The victory may have more meaning that why,or maybe not. The poem expresses this message by associating dying and the sound of victory. Also, more creative ways of saying the same idea....This one is going to be rough, I think you picked "The distant strains of triumph" because you think we can succeed but we have to work for it, and it will be that much sweeter when we do :) ... rough I know.
I, like ange, am not good with poetry but I will try to analyze this. After reading the poem a second time I developed a beter understanding of it's message. I like this poem because it is talking about conquering something, in this case a battle or war. I believe Dickenson is saying that we are capable of accomplishing anything we want. It is even better however when we put forth our best effort. I think the reason Mr. D chose the 13th line was to show us that distant strains of triumph means that we apprise any person of our sweet success. Well that is my best effort with this poem, my apologies if I am completely wrong :)
Just so everyone knows, I'm probably going to be posting a lot on this particular post. My plan is to read the poem several times a day and post as I further understand Dickinson's message.
So far, I've dissected the first two lines. In these lines, Dickinson is saying that the people never succeed will appreciate success more than people the often succeed.
I wish I read more poetry than I do but, I was always fond of the way Emily Dickenson writes. Every poem she writes is always deep even if it’s about something very simple. I really enjoyed this poem because I love the point of view Dickenson has on success. She starts off by saying that success is more desirable only when you near it. Also, in order to succeed you must fail. Failing makes ones desire to succeed increase. I also believe she is trying to say one will never fully succeed because we make new goals constantly so one can only near succeed. Finally, the question as to why you chose the 13th line to represent our class forum. I believe you chose this line because we are far from succeeding to write in our own unique way or voice. This year our goal is to deprogram ourselves from how we all write and to let our minds take control of what we write. As anything programmed it takes time to break things in, and I believe this blog is exercises for are brain to do so
Marissa,
How do you read poetry? Any tips? because you seem to understand and I have a tough time seeing through the words, as much as I try.
Mr. D, I think you meant Marissa not Mariana on your above response to Angelina's question...
Angelina,
The question you ask of Marissa may be the best question a student has asked in connection with my class. How do we read poetry? The thing to remember is that poetry is condensed. More so than in any other type of writing, words matter in a poem. Take nothing for granted. Also, do not make things more difficult than they need be. Your assessment of the poem is solid. Don't underestimate yourself.
Okay, never mind, it just changed. Also, what is "BKill"?
Mr. D
Thanks! And I think I think too much into it and then it just doesn't make sense, but it's somethig I want to work on.
I like the poem. I have found myself to appreciate certain poetry... Very certain poetry. It shows us that to feel victorious we must feel the desire before hand. It can apply to our whole class because all of us feel the desire to succede and are working very hard for it (as i sit here DYING to go to bed) The 13th line demonstrates how we are going through distant strains of triumph as we speak
I liked the poem because I think it is true. I think that the message in the poem is that you appreciate success when you don't succeed often. I think that you picked "The distant strains of triumph" because we need to work to succeed.
In all honesty, Im really not a huge Emily Dickinson fan, so my interpretations of this might not be that great. I think the first stanza says that success seems all that much better if youve failed before. You have to really want to succeed to really appreciate it. I dont really understand the second stanza. I mean, I understand that its saying a battle has been one and it was hard work so the victory is great. But I don't really know what Dickinson was trying to say. In the third stanza there is the line from which you chose our class forum. This is a little rough, but I think you chose this because it symbolizes how hard work leads to great success
Sarah,
Have you a poet or poem that you do enjoy?
Personally, I didn't like this poem. I am, like some of you, not a fan of poetry. I don't really understand it. Most of the time I can understand what message the poet is trying to get across but I don't understand why they must do it in poetic form.
To me this poem means people who don't succeed, take it the sweetest when they do. Also, at some points when one reaches success thaey aren't always sure of why or how they reached it. They just know they did. I believe that our blog is called "Distant strains of triumph" because we will soon be at the point of success but it will take time and practice. We will come to success in the distant future.
I am still trying to figure out what BKill means. Just like im trying to figure out how much more I can get out of this poem. I think the author is trying to tell us that victory or triumph is often sweet?
I’ve been reading the poem multiple times a day for a few days now but I still can’t figure out why Emily Dickinson capitalizes the words: Flag, purple Host, and Victory. Does anyone know? I mean, I do know it has something to do with a battle because of the picture Mr. D posted right bellow it, but I don’t really know anything else.
I’m not a fan of poetry; however, overall, I like the poem because its message is true and I agree with Dickinson. Those who always succeed can not understand the true significance of winning something because they always expect it (and get it). For those who hardly ever succeed, it is a different experience altogether. This is because those who hardly ever succeed have to work harder to achieve that victory. From their hard work, they experience personal growth and their understanding of whatever it is that they are working on, also increases. Hence, when they DO get favorable results, it truly is the sweetest of nectars.
It is said that one does not truly appreciate what one has until it is gone. I believe that this is supported by the last stanza on the poem; where, the dying person has lost the battle and with it, is losing his or her life. Maybe Dickinson is hinting at the fact that our life is the most precious thing we have. However, I may be wrong since in my research of Dickinson I found that even though she did read the Bible, she resisted local revival groups and rebelled against Christianity.
I believe that Mr. D chose the 13th line to represent our class forum because the stanza in which this line is found is speaking of a defeated person to whom Victory has eluded. This person truly understands the meaning of Victory because he or she does not have it. When this person does achieve Victory, that is, if this person survives, he or she will be able to comprehend the magnitude of such an achievement. I believe that Mr. D considers our class to be this defeated person. If we survive our journey through AP English, strive for Victory, and actually achieve it, we will be able to fully understand the extent of our achievement.
Mariana,
Why would any of the rest of us capitalize any particular word? What is the function of a capital letter?
Excellent question.
Okay so like many others have already stated, I'm about to do the same. I am not good at poetry at all, I can understand easier ones, but not hard ones. This poem though I think means that as you try for something and you keep failing, the moment that you succeed you are very greatful. The man in this poem you at first think wouldn't be happy because well he died, but him dying showed how much people care about things. Some people would die for what they believe in if they came out victorious, just like this man did.
Oh wow I forgot to answer a question. I think that Mr.D picked that one line because you know that we are good students. Most of us would do just about anything to succeed in everything we do. First though we must see how it feels to not do so great, and when the time comes for us to conquerer our happiness will be that much greater
Abby as soon as I read your comment I had to laugh. I just love how you say what you feel. You don't like poetry and you don't understand why they have to make a message poetic. So you just went ahead and said it.
I must say that I find it interesting that so many of you suggest that you do not "get" poetry, and then proceed to offer a perfectly reasonable explication of the poem.
Don't let poetry intimidate you. So many of you folks will go on to college and study business, medicine, physics, engineering, language, or art.
This is kids' stuff. Take a shot. No one is going to steal your birthday if you take a risk, and don't quite make the end zone.
Remember, this isn't about an answer. This is about the exercise of trying to arrive at an answer.
Well, usually a word is capitalized because it is a name.
So, I’ve been doing some research and asking around if anyone knows why Dickinson capitalizes the words: Victory, purple Host, and Flag. What I have learned from a very reliable source (aka Mrs. Tobin) is that a poet capitalizes some words to draw focus to those words. Dickinson is kind of elevating those words and practically treating them like they are real people.
Some people also think that the purple Host is a representation of God, while others think that Dickinson is making the “purple Host” out to be some kind of royalty (since the color purple is a symbol of royalty).
Maybe the second stanza is making a reference to the Civil War (1861-1865) since she was alive around that time (1830-1886).
Sarah, I completely agree with you about the second stanza.
Abby, I think that poets put their message into poetic form and don’t just come out and say it because they want to try to confuse us and they want to make us think about it. Maybe when we try to decipher things, it makes us remember them more than when we just read it.
Mariana,
Very astute observations. Yes, we capitalize for emphasis. We stress proper names. Your research into the word "Host" is appropriate, but now I've another question. Why is it a purple Host? Why not red, white, green, chartreuse, mauve, etc.? Is there some significance - perhaps symbolic or archetypal - to the color purple ... other than the link to royalty that you've mentioned? Is there some symbolic or archetypal significance that might be supported by the other images in the poem? Hmmmmmm .... fried noggin.
Does fried noggin mean that we are thinking long and hard? Because my head is spinning!
The color purple I’ve also found can represent spirituality. There is also something called a Purple Heart which is a U.S. Military decoration given to soldiers who’ve been wounded in battle. But there are also many flowers that are purple, which gives the color purple a kind of delicate and precious feeling because flowers are delicate and precious. Purple also symbolizes richness. So it connects to them poem in that the winner, is rich and honored and considered to be precious. Or maybe, it’s just referencing that he got the Purple Heart decoration for being in a battle.
By the way, my noggin is definitely fried...
Mariana,
Like black, purple is a color often associated with mourning and death. It's an unfortunate image, but coffins are often lined with purple satin.
As you wrote previously, Dickinson's reference to the "purple Host" implies a sense of regality or royalty. Likewise, the "purple Host" may also be a reference to those individuals who lie dead on the battlefield.
This isn't really my kind of poetry; I'm more into the 'lets go to the cemetery and read poetry' type or silly poems. However, I did like this one; it reminds me of school. I'm probably not the only AP student who would say that high school hasn't exactly been easy. We work so hard all year, we absolutely hate it, and we wish we had easier classes, but when we get our honor society letters, or report cards come out, unlike most people, we can't wait to show them to our parents. However much we wish thing weren't so hard, by the end of the year we're glad we worked so hard, that feeling of accomplishment is the sweet success we worked for.
So I don't so much like the poem as I just don't hate it. The first question to me is not really, if I liked it, but more accurately, if I hated it. I don't like any poem, I just dislike some more than others. The reason I don't hate it is because it does make some sense. The poem has a message, although I do not think the message is specific, since almost all poems seem never to have a "specific message". The message that it does have, is that to savor victory and enjoy success, one must know what failure is. I believe that the 13th line is a very good title for our class blog. It represents how our class will "fail" in each student's own way and while others succeed they will witness and learn to appreciate success more.
To everyone that keeps wondering what "Bkill" stands for, I'm fairly certain I already guessed it last post.
Angelina,
Poetry is feelings written by one person. Everyone is different, so everyone has their own outlook. So how do you read it? That can only be answered by yourself. Poems may have many hidden meanings, some we may never know and some that are very clear. To read it you have to open you mind up to many possiblities. Besides the central message I believe everyones interpretation of poetry will be different.
Mr.D
I think that the reason most of say that we don't get poetry is because through out the year we were taught if we didn't understand it we weren't good at it. So when we might not get thee underline meaning of the poem at first the teacher would just tell us we were wrong. Instead of being like you. You are one of the first teachers in my opinion whose is telling us that it's okay to not get it at first, and that's different to most of us.
William Wordsworth was a British poet who had very definite opinions about what poetry is and what it could be. In his Preface to Lyrical Ballads, he suggested that poetry is the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility."
What is Wordsworth suggesting about poetry? What is Wordsworth suggesting about emotion?
Hollis ... remember ... we don't go to the gym because we need to bench-press more than everyone else. We go to the gym for the exercise. I can't speak to any other teacher's class, but my class is all about the exercise.
Mr. D, I think that Wordsworth was suggesting that poetry can be whatever you want it to be and that emotions are powerful and poetry is a good way to release them.
Mr D. I had to read a few poems last year for some project, but really other then that I haven't read poetry. One of them was Eternity by William Blake.
"He who binds to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity's sun rise."
I know its short, but I just kind of liked it.
I think Wollsworth is saying poetry is just emotions being written down.
Sarah et al.,
Yes, Wordsworth is suggesting that poetry is emotion as that emotion is transcribed by the poet, but he is also saying something more. Look at the last part of the quote. Wordsworth writes that poetry, "... takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility." Recollected in tranquility? Hmmmmm? What do you make of that? Yep ... fried noggin ... my favorite.
Mr D,
I think that Wordsworth is saying that poems are somewhat of a stream of consciousness. He's also saying that poetry is emotions, written on paper, as opposed to a novel, which has more time to establish emotion.
Collin,
Explain yourself please. How are poems an example of the stream of consciousness? You may be onto something, but I need you to clarify our thoughts. How does a novel have, "more time" to create emotion?
Brandon,
Nice thought! That's a good example. In this class we learn to make observations amongst one another. Then we strive to accomplish our next task.
Mariana,
I like your thought into what the "purple Host" is. I think when Mr. D mentions that it could also resemble death that the purple Host could be the enemy who defeats those fighting. This is very confusing but I think the author could be saying that the purple Host is the one who takes the lives of the soldiers.
First of all, i think i have seen this poem before. Maybe 7th grade we read it i think. I do like this poem for many reasons. I believe that is has a very strong message. Dickinson is trying to say that success if the most cherished by those who succeed the least. People who have never really succeeded in anything in life tend to appreciate their success when they finally get it. Also i think that the message is that victory may not always be as great as it seems. Victory isnt something that has a set definition. I get this from the second part of the poem. Even though one side won the "battle" they still lost men. It is those men who hear the distant strains of triumph while they lie dying. They have been successful as a team, but not all the individuals have been.
To Marianna,
That is a good point. I'm sure most poets do that for remembrance. I guess it works too.
To everyone,
You all make very good points and have opened my eyes a little wider to poetry. I guess it isn't that bad.
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