"Life has become better, life has become happier"[a] is a widespread version of a phrase uttered by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin at the First All-Union Conference of Stakhanovites on 17 November 1935.[1] The full quote from Joseph Stalin was, when translated into English, is:
Life has improved, comrades. Life has become more joyous. And when life is joyous, work goes well. Hence the high rates of output. Hence the heroes and heroines of labour. That, primarily, is the root of the Stakhanov movement. If there had been a crisis in our country, if there had been unemployment - that scourge of the working class - if people in our country lived badly, drably, joylessly, we should have had nothing like the Stakhanov movement.[2][3]
In modern Russian the phrase is used in an ironical sense.[4]
Song
edit| "Life's Become Better" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Language | Russian |
| Written | c. 1936 |
| Songwriter(s) | Vasily Lebedev-Kumach |
| Composer(s) | Alexander Alexandrov |
In 1936, the words were used in the chorus of a song of the same name, with music by Alexander Alexandrov and words by Vasily Lebedev-Kumach. The opening bars of the song and some sequences share a notable resemblance to those of the State Anthem of the Soviet Union, as the two songs had the same composer. Alexandrov apparently liked the opening bars of this piece. He used them again, with only minor alterations, just a few years later in the tune for the State Anthem (1944–1991).[citation needed]
Song lyrics sample
edit| Russian original[5][better source needed] | Romanization of Russian | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Звонки, как птицы, одна за другой, |
Zvonki, kak pticy, odna za drugoj, |
Jingly, like birds, one by one, |
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Russian: Жить стало лучше, жить стало веселей, romanized: Žitj stalo lučše, žitj stalo veselej, IPA: [ʐɨtʲ ˈstalə ˈlutʂːɨ ʐɨtʲ ˈstalə vʲɪsʲɪˈlʲej]
References
edit- ^ Hoffmann, David L. (6 August 2018). Stalinist Values: The Cultural Norms of Soviet Modernity, 1917–1941. Cornell University Press. p. 126. ISBN 978-1-5017-2567-8.
- ^ "Речь на Первом Всесоюзном совещании стахановцев 17 ноября 1935 года". И. Сталин Сочинения. Vol. 14. 1997.
- ^ "Speech at the First All-Union Conference of Stakhanovites". J. Stalin Works. Vol. 14. 1978 [17 November 1935].
- ^ "Жить стало лучше, жить стало веселее"
- ^ "Red Army Choir - Жить стало лучше (Zhit' stalo luchshe) lyrics + English translation". lyricstranslate.com. Retrieved 2022-10-19.