Pangloss

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person who is excessively optimistic or believes that everything happens for the best
2. a proponent of an overly positive worldview that ignores challenges and negativity
3. an individual whose perspective is characterized by unquenchable optimism, often disregarding real-world issues

Etymology: Voltaire wrote "Candide" in 1759 as a satire of Gottfried Leibniz's belief that we live in "the best of all possible worlds." His tutor, Dr. Pangloss, repeats that doctrine no matter what disaster strikes, from syphilis to earthquakes to hangings, and never wavers. Voltaire gave him a name that sounds like "all-tongue," a fitting label for a man who talks endlessly of optimism. The character's name became a common noun for anyone who sticks to a cheerful outlook in the face of evidence to the contrary. Because the novel was widely read across Europe, readers did not need to know the book to recognize the type, and the name carried the satire on its own.