What is hope?

Question

I am writing a psychological paper and would like to know how you would define hope? And secondly, could you please tell me what hope means to you personally? Thanks to all who take the time to answer :)

Answer 1

Hope is a wish in your heart of good things to come.

Hope for me personally means that no matter what adversity I face and no matter how hard times get I know my sunshine will come.

It's an eternal burning flame that will never go out as long as someone believes.

I have hope that one day we can live in a peaceful world. Martin Luther King Jr's DREAM lives on through the HOPE of me and everyone else alike.

There are many things to hope for love.........long life........wealth.........hope is just the start to get you going and eventually keeps you going.

Answer 2

It's magic and it's free
It's not in a prescription
It's not in an IV.

It punctuates laughter,
It sparkles in our tears,
It simmers under sorrows,
And dissipates our fears.

Do you know what Hope is?
It's reaching past today,
It's dreaming of tomorrow,
It's trying a new way,

It's pushing past impossible
It's pounding on the door,
It's questioning the Answers,
It's always seeking more.


It's rumors of a breakthrough,
It's whispers of a cure,
A roller coaster ride
Of remedies, unsure.


Do you know what Hope is?
It's candy for the soul,
It's perfume for the spirit,
To share it, makes you Whole

Answer 3

Hope is an emotional belief in the possibility of positive outcomes related to events and circumstances within one's personal life. Hope implies a certain amount of perseverance — i.e., believing that something is possible even when there is some evidence to the contrary. Beyond the basic definition, usage of the term hope follows some basic patterns which distinguish its usage from related terms:

Hope is subordinate to faith, in that while hope is emotional, faith carries a divinely-inspired and informed form of positive belief. Hope is typically contrasted with despair, and because despair connotes an ignorance of religious faith, hope likewise carries a connotation being aware of spiritual truth. (In some religions, despair itself is considered to be a sin - See also Hope (virtue)).
Hope is more emotional and less intellectual than optimism, which refers to an a positive attitude, as based on rationality. But hope and optimism both can be based in unrealistic belief, or fantasy.
Hope is distinct from positive thinking, which refers to a therapeutic or systematic process used in psychology for reversing pessimism.
The term false hope refers to a hope based entirely around a fantasy or an extremely unlikely outcome.

Answer 4

Hope is really just a feeling. When all is lost and you still think there is something to live for that is hope. Hope is living, hope is the one thing that sepatates us from animals. When we think something positive will happen to us, that is hope. When someone is thinking of suicide but decides that tomorrow is another day and that it can get better, that is hope. Hope is something to look forward to.

Answer 5

Hope is the belief against anything and everthing that something is true or will come to pass. Remember Red in the Shawshank Redempton? He said hope is a dangerous thing but Andy's hope got him out One of the main themes of that is the power of hope. Analyzing that story might be a good thing. Faith is very close to hope and probably understanding both might come in handy for your paper.

Answer 6

Hope is a desire for something to happen, while expecting or being confident that it will come true. Hope also implies a certain amount of perseverence, believing that something is possible even when there is some evidence to the contrary. Hope may be directed toward something minor or towards something extremely significant. "False hope" is hoping for something that is extremely unlikely or unrealisic.

Answer 7

What Is Hope

Answer 8

Hope is a big part of everyone’s life. Hope points us to the future. It gives us something to look forward to. It inspires us. When we combine it with our faith we can happily wait for what we are hoping for to happen - even as we get older.
Hope is one of God’s principle graces. It goes right along with faith and love. These are the three principles that the Bible says will last forever – faith, hope, and love.

Hope looks to future happiness and waits for it.

According to Noah Webster,

HOPE is the desire of some good, accompanied with at least a slight expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is attainable.

Webster’s definition goes on to say,

Hope is different than a wish or a desire, because it implies some expectation of obtaining the good desired, or the possibility of possessing it.

When we hope in something, we are hoping for something good, and we have the belief that what we are hoping for is possible.

Hope therefore always gives pleasure or joy, whereas pain and anxiety may come with a wish or desire.

Hope helps us to continue on. When we expect that what we are hoping for will actually happen, it gives us endurance to continue on, especially during hard times.

Hope is an anchor for the soul; firm and secure. Hebrews 6:19.

Hope is to anticipate, usually with pleasure. It is expectation, or confidence. Hope looks to the future, not the past.

We hope for a better tomorrow, healing, overcoming bad habits, and making relationships better.

Single mothers hope for a good life for their children.

People with diseases hope for a cure.

Starving people in third-world countries hope for food.

Homeless people hope for a place to live.

The downcast hope for a future.

The poor hope for a way out of their poverty.

Those abandoned hope for a loving home with people to care about them.

Alcoholics hope to be cured.

Answer 9

Hope is when a person chooses to think that smth will happen' even if it seems impossible, frequently because this thought comforts him.
For me hope is too a comfort resourse, which helps to keep me calm in some difficult situations.

Answer 10

It is when a situation comes when something you don't but wish you have when you're incapable of getting it yet, usually to overcome a certain obstacle/problem/necessity, or just to simply answer a question, in a certain point in life.

I hope this helps.