Doing a test, I had to choose between two possible responses to the question
Are we writing a composition tomorrow?
The options were
I hope not
and
I'm afraid so.
I chose option Two, which was sooner an intuitive guess than a conscious choice.
Now I'm doubtful about whether I was right.
Would the option "I hope not" be correct if the question were
We are not writing a composition tomorrow, are we?
If I made a mistake, can you explain where I was wrong? And if I was right, why the "I hope not" response is wrong. It seems I'm missing something and I can't make out what.
Best Answer
The question doesn't make any sense as you have stated it, because both responses are perfectly grammatical and natural replies. The second one means "Yes", and expresses regret about this. The first one suggests that the replier thinks the answer is "No"; but it is possible the replier is just not sure. Either way, the possibility it unwelcome.
I suppose that the question-setter wants you to choose the second because that gives a definite answer to the question; but the other is just as valid linguistically in every way.