Agathist

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An individual who views life as a series of events that are inherently beneficial sees every occurrence as contributing to an ultimately positive outcome
2. A person who maintains that all events, regardless of their nature, ultimately lead to the most positive results possible in life experiences
3. A person who holds the belief that everything happening in life will eventually result in good outcomes

Etymology: Agathist is built from the Ancient Greek "agathós", meaning "good", with the suffix "-ist", which marks a person who holds a particular belief or follows a particular doctrine. Put together, the word names someone who adheres to the view that good comes out of everything. The pattern is the same as in "optimist", which the agathist shares in spirit, though the two words differ in emphasis: an optimist hopes for good outcomes, while an agathist is committed to the idea that every event is in itself beneficial. The word is a plain coinage on classical roots, so its history is short and transparent. Its value lies in showing how English builds specialised labels for philosophical positions by attaching "-ist" to a Greek root, a method that produces many words of this kind.