Page - 149 - in Entangled Entertainers - Jews and Popular Culture in Fin-de-Siècle Vienna

From Diff erence to Similarity | 149 Language as an Indication of Jewishness In Th e Apostle of Schottenfeld, Mr. and Mrs. Goldmann correspond to a large ex- tent to the image that many Viennese non-Jews had of Jews who lived in Vienna, as well as to the prevailing view within Judaism regarding “assimilated” Jews. We see this image exemplifi ed in the play’s satirical depiction of Mr. and Mrs. Goldmann’s eff orts to adapt to their non-Jewish social environment. In doing so, they and their daughter appear to ignore religious characteristics of Jewishness, viewing them as unimportant. Th is attitude is particularly clear in their disre- gard of religious dietary laws. When Esther comes home from Father Lorenz, she fi nds her mother in the kitchen preparing Gra mmelknödel (dumplings made with pork fat).1 Esther calls them Grie benknödel (another word for dumplings prepared with pork fat), but her mother corrects her because she thinks Gram- m eln (pork cracklings) is the more appropriate term. Th e ensuing debate between mother and daughter thus zeroes in on the socially accepted name of the dish, rather than the question of whether Grammeln or Grieb eln are compatible with a Jewish religious way of life. Th e Goldmann family members are still noticeably uncertain about their new lifestyle and look for guidance in everyday life. Th e use of language seems to be suited to them. It contains codes that help to hide their Jewishness. Th e debate between mother and daughter becomes comical, thus provoking the opposite of the intended eff ect, when Mr. Goldmann interferes in the situation. He asserts that neither the word Grammeln nor Griebeln is import- ant, because they aren’t called Knöde l, but rather kneydl ekh. Kneydlekh is the plural form of the word kneydl (dumpling) in Yiddish. Mr. Goldmann’s use of the term reveals his familiarity with the Yiddish language, thus allowing us to draw conclusions about his Jewishness. Although he endeav- ors to conceal any hint of Jewishness, he is obviously not immune to linguistic lapses that expose it. In this scene, Hirsch evokes a socially widespread idea re- garding Jews. According to the stereotype, Jews attempt to keep their “origin” a secret, only to be undermined mainly by linguistic slippages that give them away.2 Whether it be their intonation, syntactical particularities, or the use of specifi c terms that mark them as Jewish, Jews are ostensibly unable to conceal their ethnic background. Th e Apostle of Schottenfeld also depicts this aspect in the scene in which Father Lorenz visits the Goldmanns in their home. As a gesture of hospitality, they off er him a garnished pig’s head as a meal.3 No other moment in the play better expresses the family’s endeavor to camoufl age their Jewishness. On the other hand, Mrs. Goldmann is so surprised by the priest’s visit that she briefl y loses her composure and exclaims “Shema Yisrael.” Despite all their attempts at assimilation, a single impulse is suffi cient for calling attention to their connection to Jewish culture. In this context, language reveals itself to be a telltale medium. “Jewish” speech seemingly cannot be eradicated, in spite of all eff orts to the contrary. Th e treach- This open access edition has been made available under a CC BY 4.0 license thanks to the support of Knowledge Unlatched.