Why We Search for Silver Linings
A tendency to reframe negative events may be embedded in our neurobiology. The post Why We Search for Silver Linings appeared first on Nautilus.
Pollyanna, Eleanor Porter’s buoyant novel from 1913, tapped into something deeply rooted in the human psyche. In the story, the eponymous protagonist is tragically orphaned and sent to live with a grumpy aunt, but nonetheless maintains such an optimistic view that it infects everyone around her. The story was so beloved by readers when it was first published that it spawned “Glad Clubs” all over the United States devoted to Pollyanna’s practice of making gratitude lists.
Over a century later, Pollyanna has become shorthand for someone who is excessively, even foolishly optimistic—oblivious to their circumstances and to the pain and suffering in
