A Pollyanna is an overly optimistic person who can’t see the serious side of situations. The term comes from a 1913 novel about a girl who plays “The Glad Game.” The book’s impact continues today, but some find it simplistic. While optimism is good, unrelenting optimism can be problematic and infantilizing.
A Pollyanna is a blindly optimistic person about every situation, sometimes to the point of madness. The term is typically used in a negative way, to describe someone who can’t think through the more serious ramifications of various situations. Someone who acts like a Pollyanna might be called Pollyannaish, which is why you might hear statements like “so-and-so can be so Pollyannaish on sales numbers.”
This term comes from a 1913 novel of the same name by Eleanor H. Porter. The book’s heroine, Pollyanna, is an orphan who is sent to live with her aunt in Vermont. In her childhood, Pollyanna played a game with her father called “The Glad Game,” in which the two try to look on the bright side of every situation, and she takes the game with her when she moves in with her. aunt. Throughout the book, she transforms the perspective of the people who live in her city about her, teaching them to look on the bright side of life.
The book made a huge impact when it first came out and continues to be surprisingly popular; it typically never makes it out of print, and a number of sequels have even been written to continue Pollyanna’s story. The book is widely regarded by many as a classic of American children’s literature and has certainly had a profound impact on American society. Some modern readers might find the book and its main character a bit simplistic and childish, but something about it seems to resonate with people.
When the book came out, Pollyanna was undoubtedly designed to send a message to readers. Her unwavering optimism in the face of a variety of challenges was meant to remind readers that there could always be something good in a situation, even if the goodness wasn’t always immediately apparent. Pollyanna also struggles with things at times, briefly losing the use of her legs after a devastating accident, but she ultimately decides she’s grateful that she once had the use of her legs in the first place.
There’s certainly nothing wrong with a little optimism, but unrelenting optimism can sometimes be a torment for some people, especially under difficult circumstances. Some people see constant optimism as evidence of infantilism, although this isn’t necessarily always true. Typically someone accused of being a Pollyanna is also someone who refuses to see the truth in a situation, making it difficult to seriously discuss issues that need to be addressed.
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