Preview

Success Is Counted Sweetest

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1001 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Success Is Counted Sweetest
person who has achieved his goal. Also, it explains that the article teaches to be humble with success, because success means another’s failure ("Overview: 'Success Is Counted Sweetest'." 1). Throughout the poem, there are certain lines that solidify the argument of the Grad at Grad subgoal and assist in breaking down the meaning of it. For instance, “Success is counted sweetest / By those who ne'er succeed” (Lines 1-2). These lines are similar to the subgoal because these line explain to be humble. ("Overview: 'Success Is Counted Sweetest'." 1). By having that knowledge, one will appreciate success more and will have more integrity when dealing with failure. Another line that supports the Grad at Grad subgoal is the line, “To comprehend a …show more content…
By knowing this, one will have more successful relationships. In a literary criticism article by Paul Anderson, he argues that this poem was a big comedic stunt for Dickinson and that we can tell the truth through comedy and laughter (Anderson 1). Not only does Dickinson use comedy and laughter to describe the truth, but this poem also helps to better understand idea of being Open to Growth. This is apparent in the line, “Tell all the truth but tell it slant” (Dickinson 1). This supports the Grad at Grad subgoal because the line describes how to properly tell the truth to others (Anderson 1). If one has this knowledge, they will have a better understanding of fibs and will be more respectful when talking to others. Another line that supports the subgoal is the line “As Lightning to the Children eased” (Dickinson 5). This line also helps to explain how to properly tell the truth and describes that telling the truth is like describing lightning to a child, a simple concept most people can understand (Anderson 1). It is relatable to the Grad at Grad subgoal because it also describes how to tell the truth which will lead to having more integrity, or honor. The final line from this poem that supports the Grad at Grad subgoal is the line “The Truth must dazzle gradually” (Dickinson 7). Through simple personification, this line describes that telling the truth needs to be taken one step at a time (Anderson 1). This line gives greater detail on how to tell the truth which gives a person a chance to have even greater

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Understanding facilitates the development of belonging, and this cannot occur unless individuals go out of their way to forge connections with the larger world. The persona in Dickinson’s “My Letter to the World” attempts to do this on a massive scale, addressing her “letter” – a metonymy for her entire body of work – to a world that is dismissive of her. The persona makes it clear that she is writing to a society that “never wrote to me”, which suggests feelings of isolation. These feelings are turned around upon the establishment of a connection with the persona’s countrymen based on the persona’s love of nature, which is personified and described here with a regal and majestic beauty. It is due to this love that she allows herself to ask them to “judge kindly of her”. The persona’s adoration of Nature…

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    The language present in Emily Dickinson’s poetry is at times unclear, sometimes ungrammatical and can be found to be disjunctive. Dickinson wrote in distinct brevity, irregular grammar, peculiar punctuation and hand picked diction. Her poems were written in a circular manner, where she took the reader to one place and them swept them back to the beginning always relating one metaphor to the next. Dickinson was an intimate person throughout her life, and her poems reflect that lifestyle. Like her poems, she was never quite figured out. Dickinson wrote not for the audience to understand but for her own self expression by writing down the words as they came to her, with little regard to the conventional syntax or diction. In this poem Dickinson coveys a metaphorical description of hope through simple language to explain a complex idea present in everyone’s life.…

    • 1320 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The irony cannot be missed in Emily Dickenson's poem "Tell the Truth But Tell it Slant". This poem is read like a church hymn, advising the reader to not exactly tell the blunt truth if asked. Thus, in the cadence of very familiar moving religious tunes, Dickinson implores one to tell the truth, but to give it an angle that makes it more palatable to the listener. Dickinson either wished to dramatically touch the spiritual side of the individual as he read the poem, or she was totally irreverent concerning religion. Either interpretation serves to get the message across. Dickinson believes that most individuals do not possess the ability to handle truth with grace. Truth hurts. An example in its simplest form could be described as follows. An individual wishing to tell a significant other "I am sick of you! I do NOT want to date you anymore!" will find the message accepted more readily, and handled with more dignity if, in the telling, the truth is couched in a little white lie. "I don't deserve a wonderful person like you; I could not ever be good enough for you, and since you ought to have someone much better than me; I am going to step out of your life and allow you to find someone more worthy of your wonderful qualities." The truth, put into a sugar coated "line," is less emotionally damaging and the receiver of the bad news will possibly remain more composed and self confident than hearing the truth. Therefore, the truth, bent, is less harsh to the listener. Truth is personified, giving it a life of its own in Dickinson's poem. The irony of a hymn-like poem suggesting the "darker edge of truth" gives an eerie quality to the very honesty of Dickinson's revelation. Then again, perhaps a hymn is what our world needs to face possible…

    • 313 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Compare and Contrast

    • 275 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In conclusion so many people think it's the fame and money that brings success to them but that is defiantly not the only ways to feel successful. Kindness, caring, and compassion and so many other different things that arent even that huge can bring you great success. In these two poems it explains, everyone has a different example of being…

    • 275 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mrs. Dickinson strives to maintain her image in the eyes of others. Mrs. Dickinson “… [is] one of those woman who have an unfailing sense of what to say, and say it: despair, perversity, or stubborn virtue must actuate them” (111). Mrs. Dickinson understands that being harsh on Fredrick (her son), hurts him extensively but she continues to be harsh. She doesn’t have much concern towards Fredrick’s feelings; Mrs. Dickinson just ignores Fredrick when he cries. Mrs. Dickinson punishes her son for crying in public, by not taking him to the zoo. Despite Mrs. Dickinson’s ignorant behavior towards her son she tells everyone, “… there is Fredrick. I bound to put him firs t… “(113). Mrs. Dickinson rejects marriage proposals by saying that she cares about Fredrick first; whereas the truth behind her rejection is that she likes to be seen as a very independent woman, since she is a single mother. Mrs. Dickinson “[lifts] her chin with that noble, decided movement so many people liked” (111). Mrs. Dickinson adores displaying herself as a gallant woman by keeping her chin up. She only acts as if she cares about Fredrick because it helps strengthen her false image of being self-reliant. Mrs. Dickinson strives to impress whoever she…

    • 923 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Emily Dickinson's Defunct

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages

    This specific poem intertwines facts about Dickinson with words from some of her more well-known poems. Like the fact that she describes Dickinson as having “packed poems/in her hip pocket” allows the reader to visualize how Dickinson was without actually telling the reader if she literally packs poems in her pockets (Meyer 794). One of the allusions that stood out the most to me was in…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Michael Salvucci Mrs. Comeau English 10 Honors Death, Pain, and the Pursuit of Peace Although Emily Dickinson’s poetry is profoundly insightful, her poems have a very confinedpan of subjects and themes. Most likely due to her early life and social reclusion, Dickinson’s poetry is limited to three major subjects: death, pain, and on a somewhat lighter note, nature. Dickinson’s poetry is greatly influenced by her early life as she led an extremely secluded and pessimisticlife. In her early adult years the poet spent one year studying at female seminary, from 1847 to 1848. Dickinson’s blunt pessimistic attitude is shown in a letter, written to a friend, as she says “I am not happy…Christ is calling everyone here, all my companions have answered, and I am standing alone in rebellion.” (Meltzer 20-21) The poets self-described rebellious manner can be acclaimed to her residence featuring many politically active and dominant men, as her brother, father and grandfather were all attorneys with interest in politics. Again in a letter to a friend written during a political convention, Dickinson wonders “why can’t [she] be a delegate in the convention?” as she says “[she] knows all about the tariff and the law.” (Sewall 64-65) She recognizes the gender barrier in society and as a result Dickinson develops a unique style of poetry. Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me; The carriage held but just ourselves And Immortality. (Lines 1-4) The speaker’s use of the word ‘kindly’ to describe death exemplifies his civil and considerate manner, but is his courteous character an illusion? Later in the poem the speaker writes: We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away My labor, and my leisure too, For his civility. (4-8) Because of death’s kindness in stopping for the speaker, she “put[s] away / [her] labor, and [her] leisure too,” (5-6), is death being true in taking her to heaven, or is he betraying her? There interposed a fly (9-12)…

    • 978 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The human desire for belonging can be nurtured or inhibited by an individual’s society. In her poem, “this is my letter to the world,” Dickinson not only reveals her desire to belong, but also the way that society has prevented her from achieving this. Dickinson accomplishes this effectively as she reflects her feelings through a “letter to the world.” Dickinson attempts to internalise the views of her society and, upon failing to do so, retreats further within herself where she finds a sense of belonging. The line “The simple news that Nature told, with tender majesty,” demonstrates Dickinson’s reverence for nature and the hope that people will be able to hear her message through it, which is personified as the mediator between Dickinson and her society. Within this poem, it is clear that Dickinson has a closer affinity to nature than she does with society. It is through nature that she is able to gain a sense of belonging, which is fundamental for human growth and development. Dickinson's messages are complex and profound but usually conveyed in simple language, which tends to create an enigmatic effect. In this poem, Dickinson uses metonymy to represent her society as “hands I cannot see.” This demonstrates her alienation with society and her need to simplify them into something she is able to comprehend. The last line makes a final appeal to the…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tell all the Truth but tell it slant is one of Dickinson’s poems. In this poem, she is telling us to tell the truth in a way that would not hurt someone. In line one, “Tell all the Truth but tell it slant-”. She tells us that we should tell the truth, but we should twisted it a little or tell half of the truth. According to line two, “Success in Circuit lies”. In this line, she believes that we should not directly tell the truth, but to circle around it, then the truth would not be too harsh and you will be more successful. In the next line, “Too bright for our infirm Delight”. She is telling us that the truth might be too “bright” for us to handle and that we cannot withstand the reality. Furthermore, in line four she stated “ The Truth’s superb surprise”. In other words, she is telling us that the truth could be a surprise to someone. In order to emphasize the last line more she continues with “ As Lightning to the Children eased” to compare how “bright” to truth can be. In the line, “With explanation kind” she informs us that we should tell it like telling a story to a child about lightning. Additionally, she added “The truth must dazzle gradually” She is telling us to tell the truth slowly and…

    • 418 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This stanza concerns Emily’s signature theme of death, but this time it deals with how her progress and achievements in her life have immortalized her in the minds of people and in paper. However the stanza has an ambiguous meaning since her inability to die and live more than God(Though I than he may longer live, he longer must than I) can implicitly adumbrate that many people won’t remember God bringing them into his church, but instead call forth on her as their light in the darkness. She thinks that God is the true architect in the scheme, not her, but people will remember her more than they will ever do about God. In short, Emily Dickinson delights us with an intricate poem that can be difficult to discern but at last proves worth by revealing to us a powerful and truthful pathway, God still can sow in our…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A sense of belonging can be developed from one’s choice to cease interaction with their world, and instead to concentrate on the satisfying of personal desires. Through Dickinson’s poetry, she illustrates her resilience after experiences of rejection from society, and her aspiration to be accepted in posterity. In This is my letter to the world, this notion is conveyed when she incorporates a grieved, self-pitying tone when discussing “the world / that never wrote to me”. From the rejection that she has received in response to her desire for social recognition, Dickinson displays her lack of concern for society with the absence of any criticism or anger. Rather, she expresses an emotional determination to develop a stronger self-identity. In addition, the “hands I cannot see” act as symbolism for the degree of isolation that Dickinson feels from society. A sense of ambiguity is created as she emphasises a trust in her work to posterity, whilst also emphasising her choice to separate…

    • 880 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Measure of Success

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages

    “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is a familiar, yet complex, question that every child at some time or another has been asked. As a child, it is essentially simple to decide what to be; but as that child grows up his or her ideas and passions change. Passion is what drives people to further their education. Everyone has a dream about what their career might look like once they reach adulthood. It is ultimately what we decide to do with our life that determines how successful one can be. This takes a lot of hard work, curiosity, the ability to think critically, and the support of family and teachers. In the articles “Thinking Critically, Challenging Cultural Myths” by Gary Colombo, “The Achievement of Desire” by Richard Rodriguez, and “Learning Power: The Myth of Education and Empowerment” there are many different viewpoints about how to be successful and what education has to do with it. These articles demonstrate different perspectives about the subject of education. The fact remains that the amount of learning a student achieves is measured by the amount of curiosity and determination that is put into it, as well as, the perseverance to succeed.…

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the poem, Tell all the truth but ell it slant by Emily Dickinson makes the reader ponder on the meaning of the so-called “truth” that she is suggesting and refers to how the “truth” will be blinding any man if told in its purest form. Additionally, symbolic definition of her utilization of “circumference” is vital because Dickinson does not utilize the word in its conventional meaning; however, rather uses the words to paint a picture poetically to manifest a metaphysical principle. Correspondingly, in tell all truth but tell it slant, Dickinson consequential utilization use of “circle” alluding to the readers that there are a beginning and an end, which seamlessly connected throughout the “circumference” lining of the brain. In addition,…

    • 253 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Tell All The Truth But Tell It Slant is a poem by Emily Dickenson written in 1263. The poem describes how telling the truth is the best. The main theme of this poem is the truth; the whole poem basically goes on and on about the amazement and dazzling awesomeness of telling the truth. In this poem the author means by the truth, is the truth about life, and living in a true and honest way and the truth of god. She means the truth by who we are and what are we doing here, the truth of beauty, pain, art etc. , she doesn’t really tell us what the truth really is. The poem starts by instructing the readers “ Tell the truth but tell it slant”. She later explains that we shouldn’t be afraid of the truth and we should tell the truth dancing instead of just telling it. The truth is also explained as something powerful that no one can handle. Later by the half ending of the poem she explains that if the children understood how the lighting works it would ease their fears away and she compares this by telling us if we tell the truth in a slant and delicate way it would make it easier for other people to handle. There’s also a comparison within this comparison, which is that the truth is powerful and bright like the lighting. She also explains that we should tell the truth gradually and not all at once. Thus if we tell the truth all at once we would be over-dazzled and blinded by the powerfulness of the truth. Finally, this means that humans wouldn’t take in the whole truth all at once, but in a delicate and slant way; because we’re humans and humans are sensitive. Emily ended the poem with a dash rather than a period that means that there’s some type of continuation. The author used metaphors to express what she means and to attract the readers. The poem is a balled and it’s an iambic tetrameter. There’s no exact setting in the poem.…

    • 443 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    My Favourite Poem

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages

    This poem constantly reminds me of the daily challenges I face at school while studying and how hope is there in the hardest moments to ‘keep me warm’. It teaches you how hope is frail but strong, and hope is unselfish and never asks not even a ‘crumb’ of you. The way in which Dickinson puts the words together with such subtlety amazes me as it can relate to me and connect to me with such power.…

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays