Pollyannaism

Excessive blind optimism

Pollyannaism is excessive or naive optimism, especially the tendency to find good in everything regardless of circumstances.

The term comes from Pollyanna, the relentlessly cheerful protagonist of Eleanor Porter's 1913 novel who played "the glad game"—finding something to be glad about in any situation.

The word typically carries a dismissive edge: His Pollyannaism about the economy ignores mounting evidence of recession.

A Pollyanna is someone who exhibits this trait.

delusion

denial

Refusal to accept reality

self-deceptionConvincing yourself of falsehoods
fantasyImaginative mental wandering
illusionMisleading sensory impression

wishful · impractical · unrealistic · escapism · overconfidence · rose-tinted · fanciful · mirage · chimerical · quixotic

optimism

hopeful

Feeling positive expectation

rosyPinkly warm or hopeful
rose-coloredPinkish or overly hopeful
sunny-dispositionHabitually positive temperament

cheerful · buoyant · upbeat · sanguine · encouraging · heartening · glass-half-full · hopefulness · confident · assured

naivete

gullible

Easily deceived

credulousProne to blind trust
ingenuousInnocently frank and trusting
trustingInclined to believe others

unsuspecting · innocent · childlike · simple · guileless · unworldly · inexperienced · wide-eyed · starry-eyed · unsophisticated

literary

protagonist

Story's central figure

1913Specific past year
AmericanFrom the U.S.
novelNew and unusual

fictional · archetype · eponymous

Opposites

outlook on life/reality

Pollyannaismcynicism

Distrust of human sincerity

pessimism · defeatism · nihilism · fatalism · negativism

epistemic stance

Pollyannaismrealism

Accepting things as they are

brutal honesty · skepticism · disillusionment · level-headedness · critical thinking

Family

Pollyanna, Pollyannish

Familiarity: Top 1,000,000
Profile: Timeless · Abstract · Positive · Everyday, not technical · Rated G