white hope 的词源

“人们希望在不久的将来非常成功的人或物”，这个词最早出现在1911年秋季，起初是在美国体育界使用，特指寻找能够击败拳击冠军杰克·约翰逊的白人拳手。

It is a terrible thing to be hailed as a white hope one day and pronounced a white elephant the next. Such was the sad fate of poor Carl Morris, and it has been the fate of many who were dragged out of obscurity and exploited as men likely to restore the flower of fistic supremacy to the white race. [W.W. Naughton, widely reprinted syndicated sports column, October 1911]

被誉为“白人希望”，然后又被称为“白人象”是件多么可怕的事啊。这就是可怜的卡尔·莫里斯的悲惨命运，也是许多被从默默无闻中拉出来，作为可能恢复白人拳击 supremacy 的希望而被利用的人的命运。[W.W. Naughton，广泛转载的联合体育专栏，1911年10月]