'how do you say....?' help

[ephraim-oakes.livejournal.com]

Hi y'all,

I have to do a brief presentation about a family member later this week, and i need some vocab that my teacher can't seem to help with. So, i figured i'd ask you all.

So far, the words i need are "performance art" "performance artist" "nightlife" and "day job" (as in the job that an artist takes just to pay the bills, but unrelated to their career choice).

Somehow i thought that picking my most eccentric family member would make this assignment easier rather than harder...

Comments

[pitsot.livejournal.com]

performance art - искусство выступления, or possibly эстрада.
performance artist - артист. If I'm right with эстрада, then артист эстрады. It is not clear what your family member do...
nightlife - ночная жизнь
day job - I don't know any specific term. I would say постоянная работа if you mean steady job. There is also word халтУра for occasional job, but this word is obscene.

[pitsot.livejournal.com]

if you mean one-day-job then it is подённая работа

[oryx_and_crake]

халтура is not obscene but colloquial. That's a big difference.

[oryx_and_crake]

No, day job is something you do 9-to-5 so you have some money to pay for your living; but "day job" implies that it is not your passion, it is just a way of earning money so you can go on doing what you love in your spare time. Think of a writer who teaches at school during the day and at night he writes his novel.

[oryx_and_crake]

and I think there is no Russian expression for that; you could say он зарабатывает на жизнь (e.g. преподаванием в школе) but this does not have the same definite connotation as "day job", you will have to add "а по ночам он пишет свой гениальный роман" or some other specifics.

[oryx_and_crake]

подработка is by definition a part-time activity, a supplemental one, and day job is your main one that brings all or most of your income.

[oryx_and_crake]

"халтура as a term meaning 'extra job' was demonized during the Soviet era ... That's why nowadays халтура is often used for 'poorly done job'."

May I ask where did you get this information? As far as I know, халтура as a poorly done job is the main meaning of the word, and the other one came later.

[uiallwen.livejournal.com]

In that case i'd say "day job" = "постоянная работа", "основная работа".

[oryx_and_crake]

Yes, "основная работа" is probably the best version.

[oryx_and_crake]

For some reason your link is not opening. But here http://www.pedlib.ru/Books/1/0109/1_0109-36.shtml the ethymology of the word (both meanings) is definitely traced back to pre-Soviet era.

[uiallwen.livejournal.com]

'Performance art = искусство выступления' is not as a russian would say, though it's right in litteral translation. I suppose 'performance art = актерское мастерство' here. And 'performance artist = артист эстрады' is right, but very unclear term, and a bit old and soviet as well. What's the context?

[oryx_and_crake]

I still cannot see it - it is probably the problem with my computer as it is not the first time I cannot view some sites in .ru domain. Could you possibly reproduce the text here?

[oryx_and_crake]

Yes, that's true too. It is the best version but still not perfect. So you will still need explanations about the person's real passion (performance art, in this case).

[oryx_and_crake]

They definitely do. Please read more carefully:

В церковном быту существовал и глагол халтурить — 'совершать службы (особенно отпевание покойника) на дому, совершать поскорее и кое-как, чтобы успеть обойти побольше домов и получить побольше денег'. Затем это слово нашло своеобразное преломление уже в другой сфере. В жаргоне уголовников, «блатной музыке», халтура связана была также по преимуществу с покойниками: халтурщик 'вор, работающий там, где есть покойник'. Это «работа», так сказать облегченная и даже непристойная для квалифицированного вора.

[oryx_and_crake]

I think that the words "поскорее и кое-как" are very unambiguous.

[oryx_and_crake]

So, where does it say anything about the 2nd meaning originating later than the 1st, as a result of demonizing it, and that all of it happened during Soviet era?

[oryx_and_crake]

Could you answer the questions that I asked you in the other thread? You are trying to read into the text what is not there and at the same time ignore its plain meaning.

[uiallwen.livejournal.com]

'Easy' - yes! but 'bad' too. Really.

[oryx_and_crake]

You still haven't answered my questions

[oryx_and_crake]

Sorry, this last sentence of yours does not make any sense. Please either give me the answers to my questions based on your quotation, or admit that all this stuff about Soviet era and demonizing are just something you got "off the ceiling".

[oryx_and_crake]

So what?
OK, I can agree that the 2nd meaning may have originated from the 1st one. But please tell me where does your source say that it:

a) originated during the Soviet era
b) originated because the supplemental earnings were demonized?
These were your two original postulates, in case you don't remember.

[oryx_and_crake]

So what? Does it date the word's origin in any way? It ALREADY uses the word халтурить meaning sloppy quality of a job, which means it could originate any time before. And there is nothing here at all about supplemental earnings, even less about "demonizing" them.

[oryx_and_crake]

Is this your ultimate argument?

[oryx_and_crake]

It mentions year 1100 and then says ПОТОМ which can mean any time between 1100 and the moment when this text was written. Still nothing about Soviet era and demonizing...

[oryx_and_crake]

OK, let's stop at that. My apologies to the OP for flaming up the topic. However I hope it was at least somewhat educational.

[oryx_and_crake]

This is certainly a non-conventional definition of халтура, but maybe. Still for me халтура is a supplemental thing and day job is the main source of income.

[airballade.livejournal.com]

day job — "временная работа".

[oryx_and_crake]

Certainly not.

[ephraim-oakes.livejournal.com]

wow, thanks to everyone who's commented. much appreciated on all accounts.