What does 形势大好 in this situation mean I'm reading a letter that Ba Jin wrote in the 80s to a group of students, and there are a few places in the letter that he uses what appears to be a phrase '形势大好' that meant something specific to the context of the times.  Here's a usage of it in context:


  我常常想，我们生活在其中的社会有时会是十分古怪，叫人难以理解。人们喜欢说，形势大
  好，我也这样说过。这种说法不是没有道理，我也有自己的经验：根据我耳闻目睹，舍身救
  人、一心为公的英雄事迹和一人有难、八方支援的好人好事，每天都在远近发生。


I think the literal translation "excellent situation" is missing something.  So is there a better way of understanding it?
漢典
shows that 形势 means [situation; circumstance; condition; state of affairs]
在其周围环境中所处的情形；或在一定时间内，各种情形的相对的或综合的境况。

According to the context, 
the author was talking about 
社会形势大好
because there were many 好人好事 everyday.

Thus, I think 形势 means 气氛 here.

The social atmosphere is very good.