When and Where: Watching one of my favorite series, Boardwalk Empire, I heard these two words used by the character Arnold Rothstein. The character, who is newer to this season, was discussing plans with regards to bootlegging. In context he said "Yiddish Meyer? I can't think of a more obvious route to my acquiescence than shared commonality."
What they mean:
- According to dictionary.com, the word acquiescence means "agreement or consent by silence or without objection." In this context, I think Arnold is insinuating that compliance with the common culture is the best option.
- Yiddish, also according to dictionary.com, is a "language spoken as a vernacular by Jews in Europe and elsewhere by Jewish emigrants." It is a "dialect of high German with an admixture of words of Hebrew, Romance, and Slavonic origin."
Level of Familiarity: Both words really sounded familiar to me but I really did not know what they meant. I had more insight on the word, Yiddish, and thought it had something to do with language and possibly the Jewish culture. When I heard the word acquiescence used in context, I knew I had heard the word before but really did not know the meaning. Thank goodness for digital recording because I was able to replay that dialogue over a few times to clarify the words that interfered with my meaning making of the scene. Unfortunately, I could not grasp the meaning from just the spoken context, particularly for the word acquiescence.
Reflective Commentary: Before I looked up the words this time, I really tried to decipher the meaning without the support of a dictionary. I wanted so badly to understand what the character was saying because the show is becoming so dramatic and climatic. Additionally, I feel very unsure about this character, Arnold Rothstein. I can't determine which group he is associated with and how he really feels. Often characters in this series are unpredictable and you (as the audience) find yourself surprised by their actions. I seemed to perseverate on the word acquiescence much more than yiddish as I know it said more about who he is as a character. Based on the context, I believe Arnold Rothstein is attempting to appear colloquial with other major bootleggers but he is possibly scheming to overthrow major players in this controversial business.
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