Realism and optimism

There are various outlooks to life which one may hold. While there certainly exists a spectrum or continuum of ideologies, and there no distinct delineations between categories, there are three foundational approaches to situations, and thus, to life. They are pessimism, realism, and optimism. The pessimist sees the glass half empty. The optimist sees the glass half full. The realist sees that the container under consideration could hold 200 milliliters of liquid at full capacity and presently contains exactly 100 milliliters. That is not to say the realist is overly scientific or reductionistic. They simply see the situation as it is, not bringing their predispositions to the table - or the glass - and infusing them into or forcing them onto the scenario. Now, the truth is that these observers and interacting participants in situations cannot help but bring their own set of preconceived notions to their contexts, and so to think the realist is purely unbiased would be untrue. The thing about biases is, though, not so much do you have them as it is if your biases are true and accurate. Everyone has a bias, but a rare few people don’t pretend not to. The realist brings suppositions to the situation, but they are grounded in reality, after all. They regard the 100 mL that are present in the glass and the potential for 100 more to fit, if so desired. They don’t automatically assume it is half full or half empty, but think to ask questions like “Is someone in process of drinking the contents of this glass” (which itself still wouldn’t answer the half-full, half-empty debate). “If so, what are the contents of the glass; water, cola, alcohol, hydrofluoric acid?”, which would get one closer to resolving the optimism or pessimism question. Also questions like “Even if the glass is completely empty, what was it full of a moment ago and where did the contents go?” If the answer is “Water, and to that tired, sweaty, thirsty person over there,” then the glass being completely empty is a good thing, an optimistic thing. Yes, there seems to be in this interrogation of the realist a slight inclination to optimism. And to that I must agree. For if we are going to be true, genuine, through-and-through realists then we have to ask what is the ultimate nature of true reality. And to that we are told that at the foundation of everything there is one who controls everything and works out all things to the good of this who love Him.