I have a problem with this one statement of your: "Especially regarding the use of Yiddish it seems to ignore the fact that so many of these intellectual scholars and leaders in the community lived in cities separate from the shtetls they were trying to appeal to." There's a longstanding reaction among historians of Yiddishkeit to the popular "Fiddler-on-the-Roof" shtetl fantasy. As Crabapple rightly demonstrates, the Jews of the Pale moved comfortably from old-timey village life to big-city industrial work, and Yiddish moved with them. The story of Yiddish can't be reduced to the kind of dichotomy you suggest. Cheers.
There's a longstanding reaction among historians of Yiddishkeit to the popular "Fiddler-on-the-Roof" shtetl fantasy. As Crabapple rightly demonstrates, the Jews of the Pale moved comfortably from old-timey village life to big-city industrial work, and Yiddish moved with them. The story of Yiddish can't be reduced to the kind of dichotomy you suggest. Cheers.