[heretohelp]

>won't even consider job seekers who don't have this stuff down

That's not the point, it means different things to different programming languages, which means there is more than one correct answer unless you get more specific.

Further, it's virtually irrelevant to Python programmers since the OO model there is "we're all consenting adults".

Have what down? You haven't even stated a well-formed question.

[sirclueless]

Imagine you answered on the phone that your expertise is in python, where all members are virtual and public, visibility is only by convention, duck typing makes interfaces largely unnecessary and abstract classes only exist as a standard library feature to allow isinstance(variable, BaseClass) to work properly. If a recruiter declares that a failed answer then I would question their process, but it can be a good interview question so long as it lets you demonstrate deep understanding of your favorite OO language.

[heretohelp]

I've given answers similar to that, where I explained the place of each terminology and why it means nothing in my language(s) of choice.

I've also gotten rejected for either:

(A) Not having enough experience in their language of choice, despite apparently knowing both.

(B) Not knowing the "answer" to the question.

You assume too much about the typical recruiting process.

tl;dr this is why I work at a startup now.