Gimpel: Truly the Fool? Isaac Essay

Total Length: 614 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 2

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Just as "easy-going" is Gimpel's defining characteristic, his marriage to Elka is his defining relationship. Throughout their twenty years together, Elka cheats on Gimpel numerous times, with many different men -- including his own trusted apprentice. Gimpel allows himself to be convinced that this is not really occurring, however, just as he allows himself to believe that the young son she had prior to their marriage was actually her brother (he eventually refers to the character simply as "her brother"). Through it all, however, Gimpel manages to have a family of children that he loves completely and in unadulterated totality, even after Elka tells him that they are not his (one of the few instances in the tale in which Gimpel acts with disbelief). While most men in his situation would have become bitter, left their families, and grown both angry and jaded -- and with good reason -- Gimpel's decision to check reason at the door in favor of belief and acceptance allows him to be happy and to love his family deeply and everlastingly, without hesitation or any sense of regret.
Even his brief lapse of judgment and desire for revenge eventually passes without major incident, and Gimpel is able to retain his peace.

The final irony of the tale is that Gimpel begins to tell outlandish stories to children and villagers as he travels through them. He tells them as fictions, not intending to fool people, but the surrounding context of this revelation questions whether the stories that Gimpel tells might actually be real. He notes that being ready to accept all has allowed him to see and learn about a great many things, and thus his easy going nature led to true wisdom......

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