Pollyannaism


Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

pollyannaism

(ˌpɒlɪˈænəɪzəm)
n
a statement or behaviour characteristic of Pollyanna
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

Pollyannaism

blind or excessive optimism, after the character Pollyanna, created by American writer Eleanor Porter (1868-1920).
See also: Attitudes
-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
Mentioned in ?
References in periodicals archive ?
Embracing Robin Bernstein's critique of a "top-down understanding of children's culture" (28), I reject Nodelman's caricature of this position as a form of Pollyannaism and his charge that I am engaging in wishful thinking and of believing "that children's literature is primarily benign because children can resist its efforts to grasp them" (Nodelman, "Discovery" 52).
Some of the authors argue that "we should accept the reality and seek to learn more about these deals with a spirit of inquiry that steers clear of undue alarmism and Pollyannaism alike" (6).
Beyond just being a source for new pilots, it keeps the aviation Pollyannaism flowing around a population who just paid $3000 to replace a cracked wheel fairing.