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Success Is Counted Sweetest Analysis

Decent Essays

After only a short sixteen years, I have that realized that success abounds everywhere. To me success is learning, growing, and changing. While society tries to inculcate that success equals winning, or being the best at something, I would argue that losing is what truly plants the seed for the greatest accomplishments in life. A failure is just an opportunity to gain knowledge of what does not work. This knowledge can then be applied in order to accomplish goals in the future. My theory of success, contends that failures should not be a cause for frustration, because they are necessary in order to move forward.
First of all, even history has shown us that success is not measured in the amount of triumphs one has. “As an inventor, Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When a reporter asked, ‘How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?’ Edison replied, ‘I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The …show more content…

She writes, “Success is counted sweetest/ By those who ne’er succeed” (Dickinson 1-2). Contrary to popular opinion, Dickinson articulates that success is appreciated more when one works hard and learns from each attempt, much like Edison did. Often in the face of failure, small victories go unnoticed, but one must not forget that eventually all those little victories add up. This process leads to greater self fulfillment and a true feeling of success. The author, Emily Dickinson herself, is a perfect example of what she conveys in her poem. During her lifetime, Dickinson was not popular, and her works were rarely published. By most accounts, this would mean Emily Dickinson, a world-renowned poet, was unsuccessful. However, present day opinions acknowledge that she succeeded in writing enthralling poems. Her works are now celebrated and recognized as highly insightful and

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