The Humanities as a Hope Educator
By Pavlos Kontos George Kordis, Thinker , Digital Painting, 2018. 1 . Questions When considering the question “Is hope a necessary and positive component of our lives?” nearly everyone responds with an unequivocal affirmation. Human plans, deliberations, and actions, all of which project towards the future, are inherently intertwined with hope , or the capacity to envision a favorable future despite the uncertainty of luck . This intertwining occurs on many levels. For instance, hoping aids us in identifying paths toward realizing our practical goals. But hope also contributes to shaping our framework of goals, distinguishing genuine practical ends from objects of mere wishful thinking. Moreover, it serves as a motivational force propelling us toward the accomplishment of our objectives. These aspects of hope are iterative and cumulative, meaning that the more hopeful our view of the future, the greater our motivation becomes, and the broader our goals expand, and vice ver...