A heroic failure is a loss or losing draw, in which the losing side has actually gained the moral upper hand. An example of a heroic failure is the Tet offensive 1968 in the Viet Nam war, where the Viet Cong offensive led into a complete failure and wiping out the Viet Cong as a fighting force, but it looked like a victory to the rest of the world and convinced the US Government the Viet Nam war was unwinnable. The Tet Offensive was a series of operational offensives launched in 1968 by the PLAF and PAVN against ARVN and ARVN-allied forces during the American involvement in the Vietnam War. ...
Of course, admiration of heroicfailure is part of the national character.
Failure in a competitive situation also involves the independent variable of the other candidates, whose existence and comparative quality set the standard.
Failure extends beyond the individual: organisational and managerial failure is widely recognised.
These attempts only succeeded where short distances were to be covered, where various kinds of cable railway were successful, particularly for steep inclines (where the inefficiency of moving the engine up and down a hill is particularly significant).
A heroicfailure was Isambard Kingdom Brunel's attempt to construct an atmospheric railway from Exeter to Plymouth in Devon, England.
Cable haulage did prove viable where the gradients were exceptionally steep, such as the 1 in 8 gradients of the Cromford and High Peak Railway opened in 1830.
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