THE POLLYANNA THE RARE SYNDROME

Although it is good to be positive and optimistic, unrealistic optimism can be dangerous.  People who consistently binge drink at parties are being unrealistically optimistic in believing that they will survive the dangers of alcohol toxicity.  “It-couldn’t-happen-to-me” syndrome. In Jessica’s case, believing that she “can do anything good” or that she likes “anything” makes herself vulnerable to danger.  If she really likes anything, would she like to be kidnapped?  I don’t think so.  Would she like being in a car accident?  Probably not.  She doesn’t seem afraid of putting herself in a dangerous situation because she can “do anything.”  And that’s what  is risky about unrealistic optimism.



Unrealistic optimism is described as having an excessive (and even harmful) belief that all things will have positive outcomes, no matter what.  Meet Jessica: an extremely optimistic four year-old.   This video is entertaining, but there are plenty of adults who are actually like her.

Pollyanna is a best-selling 1913 novel by Eleanor H. Porter that is now considered a classic of children's literature, with the title character's name becoming a popular term for someone with the same optimistic outlook. The book was such a success that Porter soon produced a sequel, Pollyanna Grows Up (1915). Eleven more Pollyanna sequels, known as "Glad Books", were later published, most of them written by Elizabeth Borton or Harriet Lummis Smith. Further sequels followed, including Pollyanna Plays the Game by Colleen L. Reece, published in 1997.
Pollyanna has been adapted for film several times. Some of the best-known are Disney's 1960 version starring child actress Hayley Mills, who won a special Oscar for the role, and the 1920 version starring Mary Pickford.