THE FUTILITY OF HOPE
By Babatunde Jose
‘Hope’ is among the most exalted of all feelings. We have bestowed an air of nobility upon it – an optimist hopes, pessimist despairs. In Greek mythology, ‘hope’ is also the last of all things to jump out of Pandora’s box. It is pitched as a remedy for all the evils which leapt out of the box before it. If not a remedy, it certainly gave humans a reason to live on – a hope that things will be better tomorrow, even though it also has the capacity to extend and accentuate one’s misery at the same time.
For the Stoics, ‘hope’ was irrational. It is only by hoping that things turn out a certain way do we create the possibility of things not turning out how we want them to. If where there is misery, there is hope; then where there is hope, there is misery, too. We suffer not because of what we go through, we suffer because of what we hope for. Lucius Annaeus Seneca, who lived through much physical suffering, put it pithily: “we suffer more in imagination than in reality.”
“It is the audacity of hope which makes people dream, but it is understanding the futility of hope which makes people content.” – Maitreya Thakur
Hope is a blend of optimism and willpower. It can exist even in the most difficult situations and emotions. Hope is much more than wishful thinking, as it requires positiveness and determination. Hope is the belief that your future will be better than the present and that you have the ability to make it happen.
Hope is more than a feel-good emotion. It is an action-oriented strength involving agency, the motivation and confidence that goals can be reached, and also that many effective pathways can be devised in order to get to that desired future.
People high in hope tend to focus on what’s in front of them. They don’t dwell on the past or worry about the future, though they do set goals for themselves. They stay focused on what’s happening right now. This allows them to stay positive and act.
Hope is the belief that your future will be better than the present and that you have the ability to make it happen. It involves both optimism and a can-do attitude. This definition of hope is based on “Hope Theory,” a positive psychology concept developed by American psychologist Charles Snyder.
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one’s life or the world at large. As a verb, its definitions include: “expect with confidence” and “to cherish a desire with anticipation”.
It is rather unfortunate that hope is not infinite. It gets to a stage when if hope is not realized, it degenerates into frustration and it becomes futile: Meaning it becomes unrealizable. At this stage it dawns on the subject that it is a hopeless hope and a furlong exercise.
What is the danger of losing hope? It can happen when our dreams die. It can also be devastating as they can lead to a loss of purpose and on to depression and discouragement.
When people are sold on the concept of ‘renewed hope’ after years of suffering deprivation, want and insecurity, and are suddenly plunged into poverty, hunger, misery, and want they experience the futility of hope. Suddenly, the price of fuel jumps from under 200 a liter to 600, diesel becomes out of reach, wages become inadequate to put food on the tables, with prices of food skyrocketing: We return to the state of nature, “No arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” So said Thomas Hobbes in his Leviathan.
They project into the future and there is no future for their children and children’s children. This is the futility of hope.
How do we maintain hope in the face of uncertainty? What are you hopeful for? We all want to feel hope, but what does that mean to you? Turn to faith and spirituality. This is where God comes in. For those who poo poo the resort to spirituality, they have not experienced the futility of hope.
Can we survive without hope? Even when you have hit bottom, with no plan for getting out, hope gives. What does it give? Hope gives the motivation and courage needed to succeed. It’s been said that a person can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but only four seconds without hope.
Hope is necessary not just to survive, but also to thrive. Hope that things will change. Hope that the situation will improve. Hope that we can be better.
In 1992 Abiola raised the hope of the masses with his ‘Hope 93’. There was a revolution of rising expectations as the momentum of the campaign increased. Hopes were elevated for a better tomorrow. But with the annulment of that election all hopes were dashed. Then there was an interregnum of terror during which the revolution of expectations became a revolution of rising frustration. But after those dark days came a supposedly ‘glorious’ dawn with the coming of civil rule. Hope was rekindled. So, we thought.
For 24 years hopes have been raised and dashed by our civilian rulers. We had 16 years of the locust, 8 years of clueless rule of the ‘merchants of change’ who brought no change. No light, no industrial revolution, no food, no petrol, no diesel, no fertilizer, at a time, no cash, no future and no light at the end of the tunnel.
And then we arrived at the present with the mantra of ‘renewed hope’: Instead of hope being renewed, we have a worsening living standard. A life of hunger, insecurity, and pauperization. A life of hopelessness and frustration with a dim hope of tomorrow. A life of increased robbery, mass abductions and kidnappings where people are not safe in their homes. This is the hopelessness of hope that we live in: This is the futility of Hope.
In Genesis 8:22 God said: “For as long as Earth lasts, planting and harvest, cold and heat, Summer and winter, day and night will never stop.” That is the consolation from the Bible to keep hope alive.
It encourages us to renew our hope in God. Bolster our faith and make prayer and quiet time with the Lord a priority. Surround ourselves with people of hope and faith, keep the word of God in our eyes and ears as many hours as possible each day. Refuse to quit and mix faith, hope, and love.
Despair, desperation, despondency, discouragement, hopelessness refers to a state of mind caused by circumstances that seem too much to cope with.
Overall, hope is beneficial to our well-being. Hope encourages us to persist, even though we may be facing setbacks. Hopeful individuals are more likely to frame difficulties as challenges, rather than threats. This enables them to experience setbacks as less stressful and draining.
This brings us to the various types of hope. Realistic hope: is hope for an outcome that is reasonable and possible. Utopian hope: is a collectively oriented hope that combined action can lead to a better future for everyone. Chosen hope: Helps us live with a problematic present in an uncertain future. And, Transcendent hope, or Existential hope, is the hope that is not tied to a specific outcome, but a general hope that something good can happen; this is where we are now.
We keep moving forward with optimism because hope allows us to envisage a better future or a good outcome. Allah promises us that after every difficulty is a relief. Inna ma’al ‘usri yusra. ‘Verily with every hardship comes ease’. Quran (94:6). We must never lose hope that our situation will improve.
Islam rejects excessive hope or excessive fear, describing both as a “pseudo” type, which would respectively contribute to self-deceit and despair, and end in spiritual decline. We should expect things to turn out for the best and we can look forward to tomorrow with confidence. God has promised us that following His guidance will lead us to the best outcome.
“And He provides for him from (sources) he never could imagine. And if anyone puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him. For Allah will surely accomplish his purpose: verily, for all things has Allah appointed a due proportion. (Surah Talaq, Quran 65:3)
In the Psalms, we read of a Song of Ascents, Psalm 21: I lift up my eyes to the hills– where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip– he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD watches over you– the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm– he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Amen
Barka Juma’at and a happy weekend.
Babatunde Jose
