How to theorize about Hope

In order to better understand the topic of hope, this article argues that two separate theories are needed: One for hoping, and the other for hopefulness. This bifurcated approach is warranted by the observation that the word hope is polysemous: It is sometimes used to refer to hoping and sometimes to feeling or being hopeful. Moreover, these two senses of hope are distinct, as a person can hope for some outcome yet not simultaneously feel hopeful about it. I argue that this distinction between hoping and hopefulness is not always observed or fully appreciated in the literature and has consequently caused much confusion. This article then sketches what theorizing about hope looks like in light of this clarification and discusses some of its implications.

Automated summary

This article argues that in order to better understand the topic of hope, a distinction needs to be made between the concept of hoping and the feeling of being hopeful. The lack of this distinction in the literature has caused confusion. The article provides an overview of theorizing about hope and discusses some of its implications.