Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, Part 1, ch. 1

What it means

The novel's famous opening suggests happiness rests on a few shared basics, while each failure is unique. If one basic is missing, things go wrong in their own way. Tend the basics at home.

The source

"Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." Leo Tolstoy said it in Anna Karenina, Part 1, ch. 1. Translated by Constance Garnett, 1901.

"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Constance Garnett, 1901, Anna Karenina, Part 1, ch. 1. Text read at gutenberg.org.

Who said it

Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Russian novelist who wrote War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1878), then spent his later life on questions of faith and simple living.

Questions

What does "Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." mean?: The novel's famous opening suggests happiness rests on a few shared basics, while each failure is unique. If one basic is missing, things go wrong in their own way. Tend the basics at home.
Who said "Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."?: Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Source: Anna Karenina, Part 1, ch. 1.
What is the original wording?: Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way (Constance Garnett, 1901). Translated by Constance Garnett, 1901.
Is "Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." on a shirt?: Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 6 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.

Cite this line

"Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." (Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, Part 1, ch. 1, trans. Constance Garnett, 1901). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/happy-families-are-all-alike-every-unhappy-family