Happy 2023!
One my favourite nerdy things about New Years is that the dictionaries all announce their Words of the Year. In 2019 the Collins Dictionary’s one was climate strike. I remember scanning the other words on the shortlist – deepfake… influencer… nonbinary… rewilding… until one in particular caught my eye.
hopepunk (ˈhəʊpˌpʌŋk) noun:
a literary and artistic movement that celebrates the pursuit of positive aims in the face of adversity.
The word was coined by the author Alexandra Rowland
on Tumblr:
“Hopepunk says that genuinely and sincerely caring about something, anything, requires bravery and strength. Hopepunk isn’t ever about submission or acceptance: It’s about standing up and fighting for what you believe in. It’s about standing up for other people. It’s about DEMANDING a better, kinder world, and truly believing that we can get there if we care about each other as hard as we possibly can, with every drop of power in our little hearts. […] Hopepunk says that kindness and softness doesn’t equal weakness, and that in this world of brutal cynicism and nihilism, being kind is a political act.”
It might sound a bit twee, but the more I read about Hopepunk, the more it seemed like a really radical idea – a ways of powering activism that isn’t rooted in fear. After a year of struggling with eco-anxiety, this was the first time I’d come across someone taking hope seriously
More than that, hopepunk was defined as a movement – it promised there were others out there doing the same.This was the Collins Dictionary’s Word of the Year for 2022:
permacrisis noun.
An extended period of instability and insecurity, especially one resulting from a series of catastrophic events.
The shortlist included sportswashing, “the sponsorship or promotion of sporting events in order to enhance a tarnished reputation or distract attention from a controversial activity” and also warm bank, “a heated building where people who cannot afford to heat their own homes may go.”
How depressing.
Hopepunk never quite became mainstream, but the philosophy remains powerful. Maybe 2023 is the year for us all to start taking hope seriously again.
Check Out
- 8 Hopepunk Books to Lift Your Spirits
- What are Hopepunk Books, and where should I get started?
- In need of relentless optimism? The 10 best ‘hopepunk’ shows to binge now
- A hopepunk recommendation list (scroll down!)
First time reader?This is a semi-regular newsletter by Matt Sowerby, a storyteller and poet. Subscribe to start receiving little parcels of hope (in the form of stories, thoughts, tools and tips) delivered to your inbox, drawing on history, literature, art, and politics. 🙂
Matt Sowerby 