A yiddish cowboy here in need of some help!
I'm currently writing a Western, set in the 1870s-80s featuring an Irish/Jewish Gunfighter (true story). To say the guy suffered from a sense of alienation would be a bit of an understatement. I'm having a hard time finding period and regionally correct epithets to put in the mouths of his antagonists. "Kike" is a gift of Ellis Island, so it's out. So far, that's left me with "sheeney" and the old, go-to "shylock". I've been getting mixed signals about whether "jew boy" was in circulation or not.
Any alternatives would be welcome. The more flavorful the better. There are at least two scenes where my MC needs to be goaded into shooting by such taunting, so the language has to be fairly toe-curling. Any help would be much appreciated.
I'm currently writing a Western, set in the 1870s-80s featuring an Irish/Jewish Gunfighter (true story). To say the guy suffered from a sense of alienation would be a bit of an understatement. I'm having a hard time finding period and regionally correct epithets to put in the mouths of his antagonists. "Kike" is a gift of Ellis Island, so it's out. So far, that's left me with "sheeney" and the old, go-to "shylock". I've been getting mixed signals about whether "jew boy" was in circulation or not.
Any alternatives would be welcome. The more flavorful the better. There are at least two scenes where my MC needs to be goaded into shooting by such taunting, so the language has to be fairly toe-curling. Any help would be much appreciated.
Last edited: