SUMMARY: In the first stanza Emily Dickinson is saying those who never succeed can only take the sweetest of victory into the true meaning and affect to comprehend the sweetness of victory you must face hard trails. In the second stanza Emily is saying not one of an army that is used to victory can understand victory, because they always win. but one who took the flag can tell the definition of victory so clear In the third stanza Emily is saying as someone is dying or someone who has never experienced defeat, can understand the meaning/ sweetness of victory. One who defeats death can understand the true meaning of victory so clearly through the distant strains of triumph.

Analysis: During the poem "Success is counted sweetest" Emily Dickinson uses lots of positive and negative words to give imagery of happy and negative places. Allowing the reader to image what is happening while they read. She uses references to the Royal Army and the amount of victories, saying that they can't understand the true meaning of success because it has become to often. Emily references a dying man overcoming death, can hear the triumph of victory burst aloud.