A character who genuinely believes that their world is A World Half Full; that Humans Are Good, or at least that Rousseau Was Right and a person who will tell you that if you think it's wrong to hope that you're wrong every time. They will take ideals that others have for the future and will do everything they can to take them to fruition, sometimes going too far.
If you begin to deconstruct their idea, they will immediately begin to reconstruct it. This character will take their (perceived) Crapsack World, and keep moving forward.
The way that an idealist can do this even in the face of adversity and certain death is by focusing primarily on non-material things. Of particular note are the famous/infamous trio of faith, hope and love. Though having any religious grounds for their worldview can usually explain an idealistic perspective, and can be played both positively and negatively.
In fiction, (and perhaps as an instance of Truth in Television) idealists are often seen in the role of the main character- usually The Hero- for their tendency to act from internal motivation. However, they can take other forms if idealism is being heavily criticized by more cynical writers, or played as the villain. A big draw of putting them in a main position being: "No revenge plot necessary!" They motivate themselves.
This character is likely to show up in any work. However, they can exist in a Sugar Bowl, where they are always right, or in a Crapsack World, where they exist usually to be proven wrong (and often brutally killed for drama).
The polar opposite of The Cynic. See also Idealism Tropes, and the Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism.
Sub Tropes:
- The Hero
- All-Loving Hero: A hero that is loving and forgiving to all.
- The Cape: A hero that is noble and heroic.
- Ideal Hero: A hero with attributes that we should all aspire to have.
- Knight in Shining Armor: A hero guided by justice and honor.
- Knight in Sour Armor: A hero that has grown cynical but still holds onto their idealism.
- The Ingenue: A very sweet, innocent, and optimistic girl.
- Knight Templar: plays with the Super-Trope:
- The Cynic by perceiving a Crapsack World; idealistic of own personal ideals as if the answer to "fix a broke world"
- The McCoy: The caring and emotional member of a team who makes decisions based on their morality.
- Naïve Everygirl: A young, relatable girl who looks at the world through a romantic lens.
- Plucky Girl: A brave and optimistic heroine.
- The Pollyanna: A character who remains steadfast in their optimism and kindness.
- Took a Level in Idealism: A pessimist becomes more caring and hopeful.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: An idealist in a Crapsack World, often naive and doomed to suffer or worse.
This is a Super-Trope, so examples should go to the relevant sub-pages if possible.