The Merits and Dangers of Hope

Abstract

Abstract This chapter delves into the merits and dangers of hope as articulated by philosophers and political thinkers and as exemplified in various social and political situations. While hope tends to be automatically viewed as a virtue and an essential component in human advancement and success, the chapter portrays a more complex picture. Hope may be resource-consuming, misleading, and accompanied by frustration and pain. Especially in protracted conflicts such as the Israeli-Palestinian one, it seems that painful despair goes hand in hand with hope. Merging insights about the advantages and shortcomings of hope with empirical findings from psychological inquiry, the chapter ends with the concept of Optimal Hope, which helps exploit the benefits of hope while avoiding its disadvantages.