In his article published in Forward, a popular Jewish news source, Rukhl Schaechter explains how Yiddish, while commonly believed to be an almost-extinct language, is still spoken by many Israelis. Since Israel’s founding in 1948, Hebrew has been taught as the nation’s principal language. However, the founders of this country originally spoke Yiddish, a German-based dialect unique to the Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe. As European immigrants began to die, their descendants spoke less Yiddish. However, Schaechter’s purpose is to prove that Yiddish is not as much of a dead language as many believe. He accomplishes this through sophisticated jargon and personal examples. The specialized jargon Schaechter uses is extremely important in establishing his ethos. Although he is a good and knowledgeable writer, he is not an expert on the Yiddish language. For that reason, his naming of Israeli places and Yiddish terms is necessary to show that his own personal interest has made him an expert. For example, he writes, “They may not know...Yiddish classes and cultural events like Leyvik House,Yung Yidish and Beit Sholem Aleichem.” These events and terms would only be known to an expert, making Schaechter seem extremely trustworthy. Schaechter also uses personal examples to make his case, and these are important because of their number. Because the author is trying to prove an unpopular opinion, many examples are necessary to do this. He shares his son’s experiences with two shopkeepers, a passerby, and a taxi driver in order to do this. He writes, “The driver didn’t smile enthusiastically, but simply replied in Yiddish with no emotion, as if hearing a 31-year old guy speaking Yiddish occurred on a daily basis.” This example really helps Schaechter’s assertion that speaking Yiddish is more common than people think. In the end, because of the caliber of his examples, Schaechter’s argument is understood and accepted by the audience.
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