Pangloss
1
9.9
- proper noun
- /ˈpæŋɡlɒs/
- Literature
:
Pangloss
- The character Pangloss represents the idea that optimism can be misguided, insisting that everything happens for a reason.
- Dr. Pangloss
- Pangloss of Voltaire
Examples
-
Consumer: You sound like Dr. Pangloss: everything is for the best in this best of all possible worlds.
Fiction book (1995) -
For example, Dr. Pangloss of Voltaire's Candide, surely the greatest spin doctor in all Western literature, stated that syphilis, inadvertently transmitted from the New World to Europe, might be unpleasant, but that, on balance, all must be for the best because the Americas had also provided such wonderful products as chocolate.
Academic text (1995) -
"What then are we to do?" asks Pangloss anxiously.
Academic text (2007) -
The philosopher Pangloss tells Candide at the end of his adventures that "all events are linked in the best of all possible worlds."
Academic text (2007) -
Voltaire's satiric 18th-century book Candide has a character called Dr. Pangloss, an optimistic tutor, who justifies the evils of the world with false logic of how everything that happens is always for the best, because that is the best of all possible worlds.
Blog text (21) -
In the story, Pangloss's unwavering belief that "all is for the best" leads him into absurd circumstances.
-
Despite the chaos unfolding around him, Pangloss continues to maintain a hopeful outlook, claiming that this is the best of all possible worlds.
Synonyms
7
8.2
A person who always expects the best, even when things are bad
A person who is very optimistic in a way that ignores real problems
A person who keeps expecting good things even when it seems unlikely
Antonyms
How Optimistic
Surface Forms
Etymology
Pangloss comes from Voltaire's tutor in the story 'Candide', a man who always said everything was for the best. His name mixes pan- ('all') and -gloss ('tongue' or 'speech'), so a 'Pangloss' today is someone who is too hopeful and keeps saying everything will turn out fine.